One of the biggest problems is that there is something called an exit tax. A lot of the units built 20 years ago, under the old tax code, were built by syndicators with deep pockets. They were able to take big tax breaks on early losses. In 1986, the tax law changed and eliminated that source of funding. But it has created a Catch-22 because investors can't get out of these units without facing the exit tax and they won't invest any more money to repair these 20-year-old properties. The whole idea was to turn these assets over--find another buyer and go on.

GlobeSt.com: So there is a market if you could get the old owners out?

Reid: Given the right systems, there is no shortage of capital.

GlobeSt.com: We've covered the federal and national scenario. What does it look like on a local level?

Reid: There are a lot of local barriers to building affordable housing: NIMBY, outmoded zoning codes, outmoded building codes that don't account for newer, less expensive building materials. And taxing too comes into the picture again because the construction industry is hit hard with impact fees.

GlobeSt.com: So what is NHC's response to these various barriers?

Reid: On the Federal level, we've been up to Congress, but the treasury department is opposed to anything that says reduced taxes. Our position is that you'll never collect that tax money because people won't sell. So we try to do it on a housing-policy basis and give exit-tax relief to get old owners out. There are people who are still willing to buy and put more into it.

The individual states can also do more to relieve this problem, such as enforcing regional planning to avoid five-acre lots.

GlobeSt.com: I don't see the connection.

Reid: Because of urban sprawl, more municipalities are dictating minimum lot sizes of five acres and owners of these properties don't want affordable housing adjacent to them. On the local level more can also be done to create a little more density in the inner areas, and more can be done to foster inclusionary zoning whereby a developer builds 50 houses or more and he can set aside 15% for affordable.

GlobeSt.com: What is NHC doing on a local level to relieve the situation?

Reid: It's very easy to sit around and talk to ourselves or simply preach to the choir. But we've launched a series of roundtables in various metro areas in an effort to reach out to non-housing group. We're reaching out instead to major local employers--that's where the primary leverage resides. One group that's starting to get involved on a local basis--although not yet on a national level--are the chambers or commerce, which are starting to support housing initiatives.

GlobeSt.com: Is this enough to turn the crisis around in 2002?

Reid: In 2002 it will be worse. It's hard to put numbers on it, but this is the worst housing crisis that we've had since the '30s, and it's not going to get better because we're not building units. And all the while the cost of housing continues to rise.

The essential problem is this, and neither political party has dared to tackle it: There is no national will on housing. On a list of 10 priorities, it's number 20. We have no problems increasing the defense budget--and certainly in times like this, we should. But don't then pass a $1.3-trillion tax cut when there is a major infrastructure need that we've been putting off for 20 years.