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Public housing in Puerto Rico is a subsidized system of housing units, mostly consisting of housing projects (Residenciales in Spanish), which are provided for low-income and impoverished families in Puerto Rico, a territory of the United States. The system is mainly financed with federally funded programs from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the US Department of Agriculture (USDA).
Puerto Rico's Department of Housing, created in the 1970s, succeeded the Urban Renewal and Housing Corporation, or Corporación de Renovación Urbana y Vivienda (CRUV, its Spanish acronym), which was created in the late 1950s to succeed the Puerto Rico Housing Authority, created by Gov. Luis Muñoz Marín and headed by Gen. César Cordero Dávila, to consolidate several state and municipal housing agencies. Puerto Rico Housing and CRUV were responsible for the design and construction of many of the older "residenciales" in Puerto Rico. Famed architect Henry Klumb provided early support for those efforts and one of his protegés, George McClintock was the first Architect-in-Chief of Puerto Rico Housing in the early-to-mid 1950's. Among Klumb's designs are the 1945 design work for the Cataño, San Lorenzo, Lares and Aguadilla Puerto Rico Housing projects, Naranjito Public Housing Project in 1957, Comerío Public Housing Project in 1958, and Residencial Las Virtudes, designed and built between 1969 ad 1976. Klumb had previously done work for several municipal housing agencies, including Mayagüez' and Ponce's.
José Enrique Arrarás was the first Secretary of Housing in 1973, appointed by Gov. Rafael Hernández Colón.
Operating funds are provided by HUD for tenant rent subsidizing and for the construction, acquisition, maintenance, and operations of public housing projects, which are in turn administered by several entities throughout the island called Public Housing Agencies (PHAs). The main Public Housing Agency in Puerto Rico is the Public Housing Administration (Administración de Vivienda Pública, or AVP, in Spanish) under the Puerto Rico Department of Housing (Departamento de Vivienda in Spanish). Other Public Housing Agencies include certain municipalities which are authorized by HUD and commonwealth law to operate housing projects independent of the main state PHA. All PHAs can contract a Management Agent (usually a for-profit enterprise) to manage day-to-day operations, including processing tenant complaints, housing unit repairs, and overall project maintenance.
HUD also allows private non-profit organizations and for-profit enterprises to manage housing projects as PHAs, offering program funding and tax incentives in order to compensate for operating costs. However, these types of public housing projects are not as common in Puerto Rico as those which are managed by the state.
The PHA is responsible for providing adequate living arrangements for program tenants, in compliance with Housing Quality Standards (HQS) set by HUD. Additionally, the PHA must manage all federal funds received in an efficient and reasonable way, in compliance with HUD prescribed guidelines and with Chapter 24 of the US Code of Federal Regulations (CFR). Management Agents are also required to comply with these standards.
The USDA provides federal loan programs (including direct loans or loan guarantees) to PHAs for the construction of new public housing projects or acquisition of existing living complexes to convert into public projects.
The tenant rent subsidizing system allows low-income and impoverished individuals and families to reside in a subsidized housing unit just as long as their income status complies with federal regulations. Families wanting to participate must first be included in a Waiting List, which includes all citizens applying for subsidized housing by order of application date. Families must therefore “wait until their turn” for eligibility as the PHA selects families by that order, a process which in Puerto Rico may take several years. Applicants must provide evidence of low-income status (HUD recommends a copy of a filed income tax return) and are Givennnnn a housing unit for which HUD will subsidize its rent.
The public housing system in Puerto Rico has received much criticism both within and outside the island. Critics state that a relatively larger portion of the island’s population participates in this housing system than in the United States, because the program fosters indolence instead of progress. They argue that participants do not see the need of obtaining housing on their own, seeing as it would require obtaining additional wealth through extra work, a fact which is less appealing when considering that this additional wealth would make them ineligible for other federal assistance programs, such as the Temporary Aid for Needy Families and the Nutritional Assistance Program (PAN in Spanish). This situation has led some to state that these programs are actually incentives for low-income families in Puerto Rico to remain in their social status, while some have even gone as far as naming Puerto Rico the “Welfare Island”.[1]
Supporters of the system argue that Puerto Rico’s annual income per person is $12,000 (2004),[1] a figure which is much lower than in the United States and which explains why a relatively larger portion of the island population participates in the system. Furthermore, land values have increased dramatically within the last two decades while unemployment and inflation rates are high, making it difficult for impoverished families to obtain housing on their own.
The following is a list of public housing projects located in Puerto Rico, and includes those that are managed by the state, by municipalities, and by private non-profit and for-profit entities:
Public Housing Authorities are government agencies designated by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development to administer federally subsidized housing units.
| PHA Code (RQ Number) |
Name | Government type |
Type of public housing |
Total rentable units |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RQ005 | Puerto Rico Public Housing Authority | State | Low-Rent | 53,610 |
| RQ006 | Municipality of San Juan | Local | Section 8 | 5,127 |
| RQ007 | Municipality of Caguas | Local | Section 8 | 1,291 |
| RQ008 | Municipality of Ponce | Local | Section 8 | 1,608 |
| RQ009 | Municipality of Mayagüez | Local | Section 8 | 842 |
| RQ010 | Municipality of Moca | Local | Section 8 | 67 |
| RQ011 | Municipality of Bayamón | Local | Section 8 | 2,207 |
| RQ012 | Municipality of Aguadilla | Local | Section 8 | 265 |
| RQ013 | Municipality of Trujillo Alto | Local | Section 8 | 679 |
| RQ014 | Municipality of Carolina | Local | Section 8 | 741 |
| RQ015 | Municipality of Dorado | Local | Section 8 | 277 |
| RQ016 | Municipality of Guaynabo | Local | Section 8 | 383 |
| RQ017 | Municipality of Guayama | Local | Section 8 | 264 |
| RQ018 | Municipality of Cayey | Local | Section 8 | 239 |
| RQ019 | Municipality of Peñuelas | Local | Section 8 | 240 |
| RQ020 | Municipality of Arecibo | Local | Section 8 | 928 |
| RQ021 | Municipality of Guayanilla | Local | Section 8 | 146 |
| RQ022 | Municipality of Toa Baja | Local | Section 8 | 244 |
| RQ023 | Municipality of Corozal | Local | Section 8 | 139 |
| RQ024 | Municipality of Morovis | Local | Section 8 | 53 |
| RQ025 | Municipality of Humacao | Local | Section 8 | 276 |
| RQ026 | Municipality of San Sebastian | Local | Section 8 | 139 |
| RQ027 | Municipality of Loíza | Local | Section 8 | 5 |
| RQ028 | Municipality of Manatí | Local | Section 8 | 182 |
| RQ029 | Municipality of Maricao | Local | Section 8 | 35 |
| RQ030 | Municipality of San Germán | Local | Section 8 | 88 |
| RQ031 | Municipality of Quebradillas | Local | Section 8 | 141 |
| RQ032 | Municipality of Vega Baja | Local | Section 8 | 277 |
| RQ033 | Municipality of Utuado | Local | Section 8 | 197 |
| RQ034 | Municipality of Comerio | Local | Section 8 | 118 |
| RQ035 | Municipality of Hormigueros | Local | Section 8 | 103 |
| RQ036 | Municipality of Fajardo | Local | Section 8 | 78 |
| RQ037 | Municipality of San Lorenzo | Local | Section 8 | 107 |
| RQ038 | Municipality of Juana Díaz | Local | Section 8 | 115 |
| RQ039 | Municipality of Hatillo | Local | Section 8 | 73 |
| RQ040 | Municipality of Camuy | Local | Section 8 | 156 |
| RQ041 | Municipality of Gurabo | Local | Section 8 | 143 |
| RQ042 | Municipality of Coamo | Local | Section 8 | 60 |
| RQ043 | Municipality of Añasco | Local | Section 8 | 110 |
| RQ044 | Municipality of Guanica | Local | Section 8 | 54 |
| RQ045 | Municipality of Yabucoa | Local | Section 8 | 117 |
| RQ046 | Municipality of Las Marías | Local | Section 8 | 40 |
| RQ047 | Municipality of Naguabo | Local | Section 8 | 121 |
| RQ048 | Municipality of Sabana Grande | Local | Section 8 | 156 |
| RQ049 | Municipality of Villalba | Local | Section 8 | 84 |
| RQ050 | Municipality of Río Grande | Local | Section 8 | 78 |
| RQ052 | Municipality of Ciales | Local | Section 8 | 74 |
| RQ053 | Municipality of Toa Alta | Local | Section 8 | 181 |
| RQ054 | Municipality of Barceloneta | Local | Section 8 | 125 |
| RQ055 | Municipality of Adjuntas | Local | Section 8 | 52 |
| RQ056 | Municipality of Vega Alta | Local | Section 8 | 76 |
| RQ057 | Municipality of Patillas | Local | Section 8 | 83 |
| RQ058 | Municipality of Santa Isabel | Local | Section 8 | 70 |
| RQ059 | Municipality of Aibonito | Local | Section 8 | 58 |
| RQ060 | Municipality of Barranquitas | Local | Section 8 | 180 |
| RQ061 | Municipality of Cabo Rojo | Local | Section 8 | 107 |
| RQ062 | Municipality of Cidra | Local | Section 8 | 190 |
| RQ063 | Municipality of Las Piedras | Local | Section 8 | 125 |
| RQ064 | Municipality of Naranjito | Local | Section 8 | 123 |
| RQ065 | Municipality of Lares | Local | Section 8 | 73 |
| RQ066 | Municipality of Isabela | Local | Section 8 | 86 |
| RQ067 | Municipality of Rincón | Local | Section 8 | 34 |
| RQ068 | Municipality of Arroyo | Local | Section 8 | 217 |
| RQ069 | Municipality of Salinas | Local | Section 8 | 97 |
| RQ070 | Municipality of Ceiba | Local | Section 8 | 41 |
| RQ071 | Municipality of Lajas | Local | Section 8 | 69 |
| RQ072 | Municipality of Florida | Local | Section 8 | 45 |
| RQ073 | Municipality of Aguada | Local | Section 8 | 121 |
| RQ074 | Municipality of Vieques | Local | Section 8 | 116 |
| RQ075 | Municipality of Canóvanas | Local | Section 8 | 34 |
| RQ076 | Municipality of Jayuya | Local | Section 8 | 4 |
| RQ077 | Municipality of Juncos | Local | Section 8 | 55 |
| RQ080 | Municipality of Orocovis | Local | Section 8 | 47 |
| RQ081 | Municipality of Luquillo | Local | Section 8 | 69 |
| RQ082 | Municipality of Aguas Buenas | Local | Section 8 | 161 |
| RQ083 | Municipality of Yauco | Local | Section 8 | 95 |
| RQ901 | Puerto Rico Department of Housing | State | Section 8 | 8,510 |
| RQ911 | Puerto Rico Housing Finance Company | State | Section 8 | 2,577 |
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