ISU Extension and Outreach - Monthly Publication COVID-19 Resources for Iowans

---

A monthly publication of COVID-19 resources for Iowans from
Extension and Outreach Community and Economic Development

---

FROM THE DIRECTOR

As 2020 winds down (thankfully!) we thought it would be a good time to create a special thematic issue of Community Matters Now that focuses on an issue critical to the economic health and well-being of rural Iowa. We chose rural housing because it is a topic in which we are deeply engaged. 
Our Rural Housing Readiness Assessments (RHRA) have been concluded or are in process in a number of communities across the state. You can read about our RHRA in Issues 3 and Issue 6. 

In the truest meaning of “community engagement,” when we do things, we learn things. The learning and problem-solving that take place during a program such as RHRA is a two-way street. We gain a little deeper understanding of the rural housing challenge every time we conduct an RHRA session, and with every conversation we have with local housing committees and other stakeholders. In some cases, it has prompted us to dig deeper into data, causes, effects, or other issues that weren’t apparent to us when we started this program. Things that have made us go, “Hmmm.” 

In this issue we are sharing three articles that fit that description. We don’t assert that we have all the answers; however, our search for the right questions incrementally leads us to a place where we are better able to respond to communities with solutions that better fit their needs.
​
Gary Taylor
Program Director, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach Community and Economic Development

---

​LOCALLY RUN HOME REPAIR AND REHAB PROGRAMS OFFER OPTIONS FOR ADDRESSING HOUSING NEEDS

ISU Extension and Outreach Community and Economic Development (CED), in partnership with IEDA and the Empower Rural Iowa initiative, has been helping rural communities form local housing policy and create housing action plans through the Rural Housing Readiness Assessment (RHRA) program. 

Among the rural communities participating in RHRA, common themes have emerged. For example, housing realities that many communities face are aging housing stock and deferred maintenance. Read more.

ONLINE RESOURCES

• Iowa Finance Authority Housing Dashboard
• Empower Rural Iowa Rural Housing Readiness Assessment Resources
• IDEA's Community Development Block Grant
• COVID-19 Eviction and Foreclosure Prevention Program
• COVID-19 Federal Rural Resource Guide
• Pandemic Checklist for Local Governments

EXCESS SUPPLY AND DEPRESSED HOUSING VALUES IN RURAL COUNTIES MAY AFFECT HOUSING DEVELOPMENT
 New housing development is occurring in Iowa, but its distribution is not even across the state. In 2018, just five of Iowa’s 99 counties accounted for more than 65% of the total new housing permits issued statewide. Learn more here. 

---

DESPITE DEMAND, FEW HOMES ARE BUILT IN RURAL IOWA DUE TO DEARTH OF DEVELOPERS AND BUILDERS


Leaders in rural communities tell us that the demand exists for new homes, yet in many communities it is obvious that homes are not being built. Statewide data for the number of housing permits granted by county indicate why concern may exist. Learn more here.

---