HOUSING WATCH : Opening the Door

What is affordable housing? By definition, it is a decent apartment that rents for less than a third of family income. But for many of the poor, it is an impossible dream.

Large families require apartments with several bedrooms--apartments that are scarce; poor single men and women face a shortage of rooms in the residential hotels that have become havens from homelessness; many farm workers and poor rural families can’t find decent refuge in their areas.

The needs are great and urgent, but traditional federal support for new construction or rehabilitation collapsed in the last decade.

Several private corporations have chipped away at the problem with annual investments in the range of $1 million to $2 million, but none have made the unprecedented and laudable commitment announced by Bank of America.

B of A has committed an impressive $70 million to ease the housing needs of the working poor and the homeless in California and several other Western states.

The funds will be channeled to nonprofit developers by the Local Initiative Support Corp., a housing and community development intermediary.

This isn’t pure charity. It’s smart business.

The bank can count on low-income housing tax credits that will reduce federal tax bills. Fortunately, Congress recently extended these important tax credits. And there is another benefit: Residential construction is a proven generator of jobs.

B of A’s savvy investment is expected to help as many 2,500 families. Who will help the others?