Somewhere here on HN I read that in russian there would be a special word for having connections with someone who knows when goods will be in stores. Maybe we need a word like that for every language.
Oh, you want Section 8? Well, fill out these 20 forms, be in the right office at the right date and time, and you'll be entered into a lottery IF the paperwork you filled out matches our unstated criteria and allotted apartments.
Oh, and if you don't get in this YEAR, there's a nice city park. And the cops only harass you every other night.
I often wonder how much damage the term "affordable housing" has done to the goal of true housing affordability.
Politicians can pretend to be working on improving housing prices, while in reality doing nothing of the sort. As far as I can tell, "affordable housing" requirements produce only false hope for lower-income residents and increased market rates.
I know where I'm from, we have an influx of foreign students, paying out-of-country education costs. I have no issue with people from wherever coming here to study. It's cool, since it brings in a lot of ethnic stuff, as we all benefit.
The downside is actually that, alongside city government allowing "luxury highrises" for the students. We're in the middle of Indiana, and these rooms are going for $1400/mo.
It's a combination of many different things; Indiana University owns a great deal of land and pay taxes on pretty much nothing, the city council refuses to say no to the luxury condo makers, the council refuses to allow low cost apartments or assist funding them, the state refuses to let bloomington to annex more land. And of course, NIMBYs are in many neighborhoods, but this is only one facet.
What's "affordable housing"? The common refrain is 'The Market will tell us'. Well, the market also says "if you can't find a good job, you're gonna live in the city park".. So I don't put much trust in that market religion. Takes people in decision making roles to solve this one - Government.