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10 percent of phoenix's public housing units empty.
Thousands of people in Phoenix are waiting for a place to call home
Casey Newton
The Arizona Republic
Despite the long waiting list, nearly 10 percent of Phoenix's public housing is vacant, with the average unit sitting empty for more than five months before the city's housing staff places a new tenant.
Some 250 units are going unused, costing the city as much as $600,000 a year in lost revenue - revenue that would fund the very operations needed to fill the units more quickly.
The reason, housing officials say, is a staff shortage brought about by budget cuts at the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Two years ago, Phoenix laid off 30 percent of its Housing Department staff. Today, the city lacks the resources to quickly refurbish apartments after they're vacated, officials say, or to process applications in a reasonable amount of time.
Funding shortfalls have required painful cuts across the nation, with housing authorities laying off staff members by the hundreds. But in other cities, vacancy rates remain far lower.
Phoenix maintains 2,473 federally subsidized apartments and homes, and the average unit sits empty for more than 23 weeks. Despite facing similar budget pressures, cities such as Dallas and San Antonio move new tenants into vacated units in as little as three weeks.
Concerned about the department's performance, some Phoenix City Council members are discussing dismantling the Housing Department, either privatizing it or folding it into another city department. More HERE
