Happy New Year! We here at GAHP are excited to welcome you to the inaugural issue of the Building A Better Albuquerque blog and newsletter. It is our hope that this blog will inform, educate, and inspire you to understand the impact of having a home that is affordable means to the individuals and families we house and to the wider community. GAHP has spent nearly 30 years in our community building single-family and multi-family homes.
Our expertise lies in building affordable apartment homes for 55+ seniors and families with children who have low incomes, and we continually explore new projects and partnerships. The work can be painstaking and challenging, but it is highly rewarding. I hope that you will join us on our journey as we explore all the ways we can help build a better Albuquerque through quality, affordable housing.
The need for affordable housing is critical. In a 2020 report conducted for the City of Albuquerque, the Urban Institute researchers identified a gap of over 15,500 affordable homes in Albuquerque alone.
“The number of renter households with extremely low incomes (households whose income is at or below 30 percent of the area median income) has increased while the supply of rental units affordable to them has decreased.”
That means people need to spend most of their income on rent, forgoing other vitally important needs such as healthy food, adequate clothing, and healthcare. In some cases, the inability to pay their rent leads to evictions and subsequent homelessness.
While GAHP has played a significant role in helping to bridge this gap, there is much work to be done. The issue of housing affordability is complex, and we work hard every day to continue being part of the solution. In this blog, we will provide insights from our highly qualified staff, our residents, and our partners on the issues related to affordable housing. In turn, we hope you feel inspired to be an advocate and supporter of all the efforts being made to address this critical need. I look forward to hearing your feedback on the articles we write and ideas for future content.
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Felipe Rael
Executive Director, Greater Albuquerque Housing Partnership