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City Manager John Bohenko has released a Summary Report on Subsidized Rental Housing in the City of Portsmouth. A press conference on the report will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Wednesday July 25th in the City Manager's conference room on the 4th floor of Portsmouth City Hall.

The report, based on recently released data from the U.S. Census and the NH Housing Finance Authority, compares Portsmouth's rental housing stock and subsidized housing stock to other NH communities. It shows that Portsmouth has the second highest percent of rental housing of all communities in the state, with 50% of the City's housing stock being rental housing. Portsmouth is second only to Manchester, where 54% of all housing consists of rental units. The report also highlights the fact that Portsmouth ranks number three with regard to the percent of its housing stock that consists of subsidized housing.

In fact, a very significant 8.83% of the City's total housing stock is subsidized. Only Concord and Franklin rank higher, each with 9.94% of their housing stock consisting of subsidized units. Portsmouth's subsidized rental housing encompasses 1,022 rental units, representing 20.69% of the City's 4,939 rental units.

Portsmouth's number three statewide ranking with regard to its subsidized housing stock is very significant for this relatively small community of 20,784 residents. According to City Manager John P. Bohenko, "Soaring real estate prices have put increasing pressure on property owners, of both subsidized and market rate rental properties, to redevelop their properties and scale rents up significantly. All time low interest rates and a crisis level shortage of affordable housing are only adding further fuel to this spiraling trend."

Portsmouth Mayor Sirrell is very concerned as well. "A statewide property tax will drive a an even wider and more permanent wedge between those who live in the City's subsidized housing, and wealthier residents able to afford the statewide tax. The impacts of the school funding issue are just going to be catastrophic for the Portsmouth we have known. My very real concern is that middle class residents and people earning lower incomes just will not be able to afford to live in Portsmouth."