St. Joseph County Housing Consortium

Home Browse Search

AP-75 Barriers to affordable housing - 91.420, 91.220(j) Introduction The City of South Bend, the City of Mishawaka, and St. Joseph County have identified the following impediments for the 2025 Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice: Impediment 1: Lack of Affordable Housing for Sale. The median value and cost to purchase a single- family home in St. Joseph County that is decent, safe, and sound has increased significantly to over $165,700. For the City of South Bend it is over $128,200, and for the City of Mishawaka it is $113,800. This limits the choice of housing for lower-income households throughout the County and in both Cities. Impediment 2: Affordable Rental Housing. The current supply of rental housing is not necessarily affordable to lower-income households. The monthly housing cost for apartments has steadily increased to the point that 46.0%of all rental households in St. Joseph County, 49.0%of all rental households in South Bend, and 44.5%of all rental households in Mishawaka are considered cost burdened by 30%or more. Impediment 3: Continuing Need for Accessible Housing Units.As an older built-up environment,there is a lack of accessible housing units in St. Joseph County and the Cities of South Bend and Mishawaka. Since 41.5% of the County's housing units, 60.6% of South Bend's housing units, and 31.3% of Mishawaka's housing units were built prior to 1960, these units were not constructed with accessibility features. It is estimated that 13.4%of the County's overall population, 14.4%of South Bend's population, and 16.4%of Mishawaka's population is classified as disabled. Impediment 4: Fair Housing Education and Outreach. There is a continuing need to educate persons about their rights under the Fair Housing Act and to raise community awareness to affirmatively further fair housing. Impediment 5: Private Lending Practices. The HMDA data for St. Joseph County indicates that there may be a disparity between the approval rates of home mortgage loans originated from minorities and those originated from non-minority applicants. Impediment 6: Impacted Areas of Concentration.There are specific areas throughout the two Cities and the County where the concentration of low-income persons exceeds 70%of the area's population,and areas with concentrations of minority persons. Impediment 7: Economic Issues Affecting Housing Choice. There is a lack of economic opportunities in the County and both Cities which prevents low-income households from improving their income and providing an opportunity to live outside areas of low-income concentration. Impediment 8: Public Policies That May Affect Housing Choice. Public policies such as community comprehensive plans and zoning ordinances sometimes affect the location of affordable housing, special needs housing,and the development process of these types of housing. Actions it planned to remove or ameliorate the negative effects of public policies that serve as barriers to affordable housing such as land use controls,tax policies affecting land,zoning OMB Control No:2506-0117(exp.07/31/2025) 198