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>> THANK YOU FOR VISITING THE LOCATION AFFORDABILITY
PORTAL, THE DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING IS EXCITED TO SHARE
THIS TOOL WITH THE PUBLIC AND WE'D LIKE TO TAKE THIS
OPPORTUNITY TO INTRODUCE THE SITE.
I WILL INTRODUCE THE CUTTING EDGE TOOLS WE ARE MAKING
AVAILABLE, MY TRANSPORTATION COST CALCULATOR AND LOCATION
AFFORDABILITY INDEX. THERE IS MORE TO HOUSING
AFFORDABILITY THAN HOW MUCH RENT OR MORTGAGE YOU PAY.
TRANSPORTATION COSTS ARE THE SECOND BIGGEST BUDGET ITEM
FOR MOST FAMILIES, BUT TO DATE THERE HASN'T BEEN A WAY
FOR PEOPLE TO FULLY FACTOR TRANSPORTATION COSTS INTO THE
DECISIONS ABOUT WHERE TO LIVE AND WORK.
THE GOAL OF THE LOCATION AFFORDABILITY PORTAL IS TO
PROVIDE THE PUBLIC WITH RELIABLE USER FRIENDLY DATA
AND RESOURCES ON COMBINED HOUSING AND TRANSPORTATION
COSTS TO HELP CONSUMERS, POLICYMAKERS AND DEVELOPERS
MAKE IMPORTANT DECISIONS ABOUT WHERE TO LIVE, WORK AND
INVEST. WE HAVE WORKED HARD TO
PROVIDE RESOURCES AND SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION SO
THAT PEOPLE CAN ENHANCE THEIR UNDERSTANDING OF BOTH THE
TOOLS THEMSELVES AND LARGER ISSUES RELATED TO THE
LOCATION, PARTICULARLY THE WAYS IN WHICH TRANSPORTATION
COSTS ARE INFLUENCED BY THE ENVIRONMENT IN WHICH WE LIVE.
HUD AND DOT ARE COMMIT TO ENGAGE WITH THE PUBLIC TO
IMPROVE AND EXTEND THIS RESOURCE SO PLEASE E-MAIL 2
LOCATION AFFORDABILITY AT HUD.GOV WITH QUESTIONS OR
COMMENTS. THE FIRST TOOL I'D LIKE TO
SHOW YOU IS MY TRANSPORTATION COST CALCULATOR.
WE ENVISION THIS BEING FIRST AND FOREMOST A CONSUMER
EDUCATION TOOL, SO THE BEST WAY TO DEMONSTRATE IT IS FROM
THE PERSPECTIVE OF A FAMILY USING IT TO MAKE DECISIONS.
FIRST THING THAT THIS FAMILY IS GOING TO SEE WHEN THEY SIT
DOWN AT THE SITE IS THIS ADDRESS BAR.
SO THIS FAMILY CURRENTLY LIVES IN LAWRENCEVILLE,
GEORGIA, WHICH IS A SUBURB OF ATLANTA.
ONE HUNDRED EIGHTY-SIX WAYSIDE DRIVE.
THIS IS GOOGLE MAPS, AND YOU CAN ENTER ADDRESS, AND ZIP
CODE, AND IT WILL KNOW WHAT YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT.
THE FIRST THING THAT THE FAMILY IS GOING TO DO IS
ENTER THEIR HOUSEHOLD PROFILE, SO THAT MEANS THEIR
HOUSEHOLD SIZE, FOUR PEOPLE, $58,000, PRETTY TYPICAL FOR
THE ATLANTA REGION, AND TWO COMMUTERS, AND THEY OWN THEIR
HOME. THE CALCULATOR IS A SERIES OF
SCREENS THAT ARE GOING TO GUIDE YOU THROUGH ENTERING
SOME BASIC DATA ABOUT YOUR HOUSEHOLD BUDGET AND TRAVEL
PATTERNS AND FOR EACH ENTRY POINT, THERE IS GOING TO BE A
SUGGESTION OF A VALUE FOR YOU TO ENTER, AND YOU CAN EITHER
TAKE IT OR YOU CAN ENTER A DIFFERENT ONE THAT YOU THINK
IS MORE ACCURATE. THE SUGGESTIONS ARE GENERATED
USING THE HOUSEHOLD PROFILE YOU HAVE ENTERED AND OUR BEST 3
GUESS FOR THE COST FOR YOUR FAMILY IN THAT LOCATION.
SO I HAVE JUST ENTERED HOUSING COSTS, TAKING THAT
SUGGESTION. THE NEXT SCREEN IS VEHICLES.
SO THIS FIRST, VEHICLE COST, IS PRICE PER GALLON FOR GAS.
IF YOU DON'T KNOW, YOU'RE NOT SURE, YOU CAN BRING UP FUEL
ECONOMY.GOV, USING THAT BUTTON RIGHT THERE, AND IT
WILL ALLOW YOU TO SEARCH FOR A MORE PRECISE NUMBER.
THE NEXT ENTRY IS NUMBER OF VEHICLES.
THIS FAMILY HAS TWO VEHICLES WHICH IS VERY TYPICAL FOR THE
ATLANTA METRO REGION. LET'S SAY ONE OF THEM GETS
22 MILES A GALLON AND THE OTHER GETS 26.
FOR MONTHLY VEHICLE COST, THE ESTIMATES ARE RIGHT HERE.
THIS IS CALCULATED, TAKING INTO ACCOUNT HOW MUCH YOU PAY
FOR THE CAR ORIGINALLY, AND SPREADING IT ACROSS THE
LENGTH OF TIME YOU OWN THE CAR.
AND MAINTENANCE COST, AND ANY COSTS THAT ARE NECESSARY TO
KEEP THE VEHICLE ROADWORTHY. NEXT WE'RE GOING TO LOOK AT
DRIVING. THE BEST WAY TO USE THIS IS
TO CLICK ON THIS CALCULATOR BUTTON HERE AND ENTER YOUR
ADDRESSES OF EMPLOYMENT, SO IN THIS FAMILY, ONE OF THE
WORKERS WORKS AT EMORY UNIVERSITY, AND THE OTHER
WORKS AT BROOKHAVEN DENTAL ASSOCIATES, WHICH IS ALSO IN
A SUBURB OF ATLANTA. SO YOU WILL SEE THAT THIS
GIVES YOU THE ROUND TRIP COMMUTING DISTANCE FOR EACH
PERSON EVERY DAY, AND THEN ALL YOU NEED TO DO IS ADD THE 4
NUMBER OF DAYS A WEEK THAT EACH COMMUTER USES EACH CAR.
AND YOU WILL SEE THAT WE HAVE ESTIMATES FOR THE TOTAL
MONTHLY DRIVING FOR BOTH COMMUTE TRIPS AND OTHER
TRIPS. NEXT WE'RE GOING TO FILL IN
TRANSIT COSTS. PROBABLY THIS FAMILY IS NOT
GOING TO SPEND ANY MONEY ON TRANSIT BECAUSE THEY DON'T
LIVE NEAR A TRANSIT STOP, SO THE RESULTS TAB SHOWS YOU TWO
THINGS: ONE ARE THE ESTIMATES FOR YOUR HOUSEHOLD,
AND THESE ARE GENERATED FROM ALL THE INPUTS YOU'VE PUT IN.
THE OTHER IS ESTIMATES FOR A SIMILAR HOUSEHOLD.
THIS WOULD BE A HOUSEHOLD THAT MATCHES YOUR HOUSEHOLD
PROFILE FOR THIS LOCATION, BUT IS AVERAGED IN EVERY
OTHER WAY, VERSUS YOUR HOUSEHOLD HAVING SPECIFIC
ESTIMATES ACCORDING TO WHAT YOU HAVE ENTERED INTO THE
TOOL. SO THIS FAMILY GOING THROUGH
THIS PROCESS WILL LOOK AT THIS AND OBVIOUSLY THE FIRST
THING THAT THEY WILL SAY IS WOW, WE ARE DRIVING A LOT,
SPENDING A LOT ON DRIVING, ON GETTING AROUND.
SO -- AND THEY MAY QUESTION WHAT CAN WE DO ABOUT THAT.
WELL, ONE THING THIS FAMILY COULD POTENTIALLY DO WOULD BE
TO MOVE CLOSER TO WHERE BOTH OF THE WORKERS WORK.
SO AN EXAMPLE OF SUCH A LOCATION WOULD BE 1305
IVERSON STREET NORTHEAST, IN THE CITY, IN ATLANTA,
GEORGIA. YOU WILL SEE THAT THAT
DROPPED ANOTHER PIN, PIN B, ON THE MAP, AND THE NEW 5
LOCATION HAS ADDED A NEW SET OF TABS TO GO THROUGH AND
ENTER INFORMATION INTO, AND YOU CAN EITHER USE WHAT YOU
HAD ENTERED PREVIOUSLY, OR NEW VALUES.
SO FOR THIS LOCATION, THE CALCULATOR IS SUGGESTING
$1811 FOR THE MONTHLY COST OF HOUSING.
LET'S SAY THIS FAMILY THINKS, YOU KNOW, THAT'S A LITTLE
LOW, LET'S GO WITH 1900 EVEN. NEXT, VEHICLE COST IS GOING
TO BE THE SAME. YOU WILL SEE ON THE DRIVING
TAB, THOUGH, THAT THEIR DRIVING HAS FALLEN
PRECIPITOUSLY. FINALLY, FOR TRANSIT, MAYBE
THEY THINK THIS IS A LITTLE LOW SINCE IT'S GOING TO BE ON
A TRANSIT STOP, WHICH THEY WILL BE IN THIS NEW LOCATION,
MAYBE WE WILL SPEND MORE LIKE $70 A MONTH ON TRANSIT, SO
YOU WILL SEE THAT COMPARED TO THE PREVIOUS LOCATION, THEIR
CURRENT LOCATION, THEIR COST LIVING HAS GONE DOWN
SUBSTANTIALLY. EVEN THOUGH THEIR HOUSING
COSTS HAVE GONE UP, APPRECIABLY, THEIR
TRANSPORTATION COSTS HAVE GONE DOWN MORE THAN ENOUGH TO
COMPENSATE. I SHOULD ALSO KNOW THAT ON
ANY OF THESE RESULT TABS, YOU CAN PUT IN MONTHLY OR ANNUAL
VALUES AND ADD PERCENTAGE OF INCOME IN ADDITION TO JUST
THE NUMBER OF DOLLARS. SO THIS FAMILY IS LOOKING AT
THIS, AND THEY ARE THINKING HOW ELSE MIGHT WE BE ABLE TO
SAVE MONEY. OBVIOUSLY, THAT WOULD BE A
HUGE BOOST TO THEIR BUDGET IF THEY WERE TO RELOCATE IN THAT 6
WAY. WELL, HOW ELSE MIGHT THEY BE
ABLE TO SAVE MONEY? WELL, SINCE THEY ARE NOW
LIVING IN A NEIGHBORHOOD THAT HAS ACCESS TO A TRANSIT STOP
AND ONE OF THE PEOPLE WHO WORKS IS WORKING IN A
NEIGHBORHOOD THAT ALSO HAS TRANSIT ACCESS, THEY COULD
THEORETICALLY SELL ONE OF THEIR CARS AND GET AROUND,
GET BOTH TO THEIR JOB AND OTHER PLACES USING TRANSIT,
SO IF THEY WERE TO DO THAT, TO TEST THAT THEORY, THEY CAN
GO IN AND CHANGE THE NUMBER OF VEHICLES FROM TWO TO ONE,
AND GO BACK TO THE SCREEN AND SEE WHAT HAPPENS, AND YOU
WILL SEE THAT THIS IS ANOTHER $4000 LESS THAT THEY WOULD BE
PAYING A YEAR IN TRANSPORTATION.
THIS IS NOT CERTAINLY FOR EVERY FAMILY.
THIS IS JUST A SPECIFIC EXAMPLE.
BUT THIS IS HOW WE THINK PEOPLE, INDIVIDUALS AND
FAMILIES, WILL USE THIS TOOL TO THINK THROUGH DECISIONS
THAT WILL SAVE THEM MONEY ON THEIR ANNUAL BUDGET.
THE SECOND TOOL I'M GOING TO SHOW YOU IS LOCATION
AFFORDABILITY PORTAL. LIKE THE CALCULATOR, THE
FIRST THING YOU DO IS ENTER A LOCATION, IT BE A CITY, ZIP
CODE OR SPECIFIC ADDRESS. I'M GOING TO ENTER ATLANTA,
GEORGIA. THE CITY OF ATLANTA IS
OUTLINED HERE, AND THE MAP IS SHADED BY THE COMBINED
PERCENTAGE OF INCOME GOING TO HAVING A TRANSPORTATION COST.
WHOSE INCOME, YOU MIGHT ASK. THE DEFAULT HERE IS THE 7
REGIONAL TYPICAL HOUSEHOLD. WE HAVE HOUSEHOLD TYPES
DEFINED BY ANNUAL INCOME, NUMBER OF PEOPLE, NUMBER OF
COMMUTERS. THE REGIONAL TYPICAL
HOUSEHOLD HAS THE MEDIAN INCOME FOR ANY GIVEN
METROPOLITAN REGION, THEN THE AVERAGE NUMBER OF PEOPLE AND
COMMUTERS, AND YOU CAN SEE THERE ARE A VARIETY OF
DIFFERENT LEVELS OF AFFORDABILITY HERE FOR THIS
FAMILY. BUT THERE ARE MANY DIFFERENT
TYPES OF FAMILIES IN EVERY AREA.
SO WE COULD LOOK AT, FOR INSTANCE, REGIONAL MODERATE,
WHICH HAS THE AVERAGE NUMBER OF PEOPLE AND COMMUTERS BUT
MAKES 80 PERCENT OF MEDIAN INCOME AND YOU CAN SEE
ALREADY THE MAP, THE SHADING IS MUCH DARKER, IT'S GOING TO
BE A LITTLE HARDER TO FIND A PLACE THAT'S AFFORDABLE FOR
THIS FAMILY. NOW, IF YOU LOOK AT LOW
INCOME, THIS IS 50 PERCENT OF THE MEDIAN INCOME, THREE
PEOPLE, ONE COMMUTER, IN OTHER WORDS, THIS IS A SINGLE
PARENT FAMILY WITH TWO CHILDREN.
ANYONE IN THE CITY OF ATLANTA, IT'S GOING TO BE
DIFFICULT FOR THIS FAMILY TO LIVE AND MAKE ENDS MEET, JUST
BECAUSE IT'S EXPENSIVE. IT'S EXPENSIVE IN TERMS OF
THIS FAMILY'S INCOME, WHEREVER THEY GO.
IN ADDITION TO BEING ABLE TO FLIP THROUGH HOUSEHOLD TYPES,
YOU CAN CHANGE FROM A MAP OF EVERYONE TO A MAP THAT'S
EITHER JUST RENTERS OR JUST OWNERS, JUST HOMEOWNERS. 8
YOU CAN ALSO LOOK AT JUST TRANSPORTATION COSTS INSTEAD
OF THE COMBINED FIGURE. AND THEN FOR EVERY HOUSEHOLD
PROFILE, IN EVERY LOCATION, WE GIVE YOU THE ESTIMATED
VEHICLES, NUMBER OF VEHICLES THAT THE HOUSEHOLD OWNS, THE
ESTIMATED VEHICLE MILE TRAVEL ANNUALLY AND ESTIMATED TRAVEL
TRIPS, SO THAT CONCLUDES THIS DEMONSTRATION.
WE HOPE YOU ENJOY USING THE WEBSITE.
WE HOPE IT'S USEFUL FOR YOU, IN FIGURING OUT YOUR
HOUSEHOLD BUDGET. AND IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS
OR COMMENTS, PLEASE DO E-MAIL US AT LOCATION AFFORDABILITY
AT HUD.GOV. THANK YOU.