Across the nation and here in Texas, families with the lowest incomes face an unprecedented shortage of affordable housing. The numbers tell a stark story:
According to NLIHC's The Gap 2026, the United States faces a shortage of 7.2 million affordable and available rental homes for extremely low-income renters, leaving only 35 affordable homes for every 100 households in need. Only one in four households eligible for housing assistance receives it, and 74% of extremely low-income renters are severely cost-burdened, spending more than half of their income on housing. [nlihc.org], [texashousers.org]
The housing crisis is even more severe in Texas. The state is short 708,661 affordable and available rental homes for extremely low-income households, with only 26 affordable homes available for every 100 households in need. Additionally, 91% of extremely low-income renters are cost-burdened, and 79% are severely cost-burdened. Texas renters with incomes at or below 50% of Area Median Income face a shortage of 881,014 affordable homes. [tsahc.org], [nlihc.org]
For many working families, housing remains out of reach. In some Texas communities, a minimum-wage worker would need to work far more than a standard full-time schedule to afford a modest rental home. [nlihc.org]
The Dallas-Fort Worth region faces one of the most severe shortages in the nation, with only 18 affordable and available rental homes for every 100 extremely low-income renter households. [texashousers.org], [tsahc.org]
The crisis extends beyond housing shortages alone. The 2024 State of Texas Low Income Housing Plan reports that approximately 1.58 million Texas renter households with incomes at or below 80% of Area Median Family Income experience at least one housing problem, including housing cost burden, overcrowding, or inadequate kitchen or plumbing facilities. [tdhca.texas.gov]
These statistics represent real people: families choosing between rent and food, seniors living on fixed incomes, individuals with disabilities struggling to find accessible housing, and children experiencing housing instability.
At Lazarus House Initiative, Inc., we work to close this gap by providing housing assistance, homelessness prevention and intervention services, case management, life-skills training, employment support, and resources that help families achieve long-term self-sufficiency.
Together, we can help more Texas families move from crisis to stability, from homelessness to housing, and from poverty to opportunity.
Sources
LHI's Pathway to Self-Sufficiency Program and Pathway to Self-Sufficiency Program for Persons with Disabilities serve households experiencing homelessness or living on no income, extremely low income, very low income, and low income. These programs provide critical support to help individuals and families achieve housing stability and long-term self-sufficiency.
Through federal and state funding, participants may receive access to affordable housing opportunities, rental assistance, case management services, life-skills training, counseling, employment and job-training resources, and youth support services. These programs help bridge gaps in housing access and supportive services for vulnerable populations.
Priority populations include:
Program Goal:
To promote housing stability, economic mobility, and self-sufficiency by connecting eligible households with housing assistance and comprehensive supportive services tailored to their needs.
Priority populations include:
This gap hits them hardest — and it keeps growing.