Glossary

Here's what RHINO means when talking about the rental housing  world.

Activist: An activist is a citizen who is engaged in support of social, economic or political activity. 

Advocate: An individual  or organization that expresses strong opinions about public policy and social issues/needs.

Association: A collectivity of people who interact on a regular basis. An association is more formal than a community.

Bureaucrat: An indidual who is employed by a governmental body or who works for a business that contracts with a governmental body.  Bureaucrats are generally constrained by the terms of their employment from expressing political opinions.

Citizen: Persons with a right to vote in the US. Non citizen residents have some of the same rights as citizens, except for the right to participate in electoral politics. Update: NYC grants voting rights in local elections to non-citizen residents.

Civic Engagement: Taking actions in support of civic or social change. See activist (above)

Community: A collectivity of persons who share a common geographic location or common values and associations. Residents of a neighborhood or town can be a community; attendees of a church or denomination can be a faith community. Persons who share a racial or ethnic identify can be a community. Persons with common interests like birdwatching can be a community of interest.

Elected official: A person chosen by voters to hold a position in a government body. Unlike bureaucrats (see above), elected officials are chosen by voters to espouse policies on a range of topics.

FIRED: The  Finance, Investor, Real Estate, Developer lobby. FIRED lobbyists work to promote the well being of members of these industries. Goals focus on creating tax or subsidy benefits, deregulation of these industries and promotion of individual homeownership. An oblique reference to the TV Show "The Apprentice."

Grassroots:  A collective term for ordinary citizens. (above). Grassroots may also include non citizen residents. 

Group/Organization: An association of individuals. Groups are typically less formal. Organizations are typically larger and more formal.

Leader: A person to whom other citizens look for guidance. Leaders may be elected, selected or simply respected by a community (see above) of persons.

Landlord: a person or legal entity which provides housing to a tenant or renter (see below) subject to a rental agreement (see below). Mom and Dad are not landlords except of they have a rental agreement with their children,

Member: A person who self identifies or recognized by others as belonging to a group, organization or community.

Organizer: An individual or team that supports collective action. Organizers work with grassroots groups to promote civic engagement, social, or political change. Organizers generally eschew leadership roles and use their expertise to shape campaigns around goals selected by leaders andmembers of grassroots organizations.

Politico/Politician/Pol: A person who is interested in participating in the electoral process. PPP's can be elected officials, wanna be officials, political consultants, hobbyists, others.

Rental Agreement: In Ohio, "...any agreement or lease, written or oral, which establishes or modifies the terms, conditions, rules, or any other provisions concerning the use and occupancy of residential premises by one of the parties."

Renter: a person or household who's home is subject to a rental agreement. See tenant (below).

Tenant:  a person or household who's home is subject to a rental agreement.  See renter (above).

US Housing policy explainer

The evolution of Federal Housing Policy: US Housing policy has evolved into a 5 legged stool: Public Housing, Private subsidized housing. Housing Vouchers. Homeowner assistance. Housing production.

https://time.com/5826392/coronavirus-housing-history/

https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/RL/RL34591

https://ace-usa.org/blog/research/research-housing-policy/the-history-of-housing-policy-in-the-united-states/

"Why Fewer American Children are living in poverty." This NYT podcast outlines a myriad of ways in which enlightened and accidental anti-poverty programs have made a dramatic difference in the lives of poor families. The one missing piece? Universal Housing Vouchers. Rental housing is the last "free market" commodity. The FIRED industry needs regulation, not just more money, if housing is to become affordable.

 
Housing Oligarchs need tax dollars! 11/05/2022. Politico. The Fed crashed the housing market. Builders and banks want help. The housing slump is the economy’s biggest casualty so far from a series of Federal Reserve rate hikes designed to tame inflation. Lobbyists are scrambling to get help from Washington to goose the housing market as demand tanks in response to rising interest rates and high prices. Groups representing builders, realtors and lenders are urging Congress and the White House to intervene to spur more home construction and boost affordability. It’s an increasingly urgent plea, with mortgage demand down more than 40 percent from a year ago and rates topping 7 percent for the first time in two decades. This story proves that the dead horse is out of the barn (mixed metaphor intended)! RHINO wonders if subsidizing developers to build more housing makes sense at this point. Without rental subsidies, tenants will still be stuck in unaffordable leases and developers will sell to middle class and investor homebuyers who will benefit from declining mortgage rates. The housing finance system. The Fed's monetary policy is a dull blade that undercuts everyone. FHFA has sharper blades to prevent rent and price inflation. For a more balanced perspective check out Addressing the Affordable Housing Crisis Requires Expanding Rental Assistance and Adding Housing Units 

March 15, 2021. Shelterforce. Did the Comprehensive Community Initiatives of the 1990s, early 2000s Bring About Change? "Once a must-have for foundations, Comprehensive Community Initiatives found mixed success.