A housing authority or ministry of housing is generally a governmental body that governs aspects of

housing Housing refers to a property containing one or more Shelter (building), shelter as a living space. Housing spaces are inhabited either by individuals or a collective group of people. Housing is also referred to as a human need and right to ...

or (called in general "

shelter A shelter is an architectural structure or natural formation (or a combination of the two) providing protection from the local environment. A shelter can serve as a home or be provided by a residential institution. It can be understood as both ...

" or "living spaces"), often providing

subsidies A subsidy, subvention or government incentive is a type of government expenditure for individuals and households, as well as businesses with the aim of stabilizing the economy. It ensures that individuals and households are viable by having acce ...

and low rent or free

public housing Public housing, also known as social housing, refers to Subsidized housing, subsidized or affordable housing provided in buildings that are usually owned and managed by local government, central government, nonprofit organizations or a ...

to qualified people. The existence of government agencies specifically concerned with ensuring that housing is available to people living in the country is a comparatively modern development, with the first such agencies being established in U.S. cities in the 1930s, the height of the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

Specific housing authorities

Hong Kong Housing Authority The Hong Kong Housing Authority (HA) is the main provider of public housing in Hong Kong. It was established in April 1973 under the Housing Ordinance and is an government agency, agency of the Government of Hong Kong. In the same year, the R ...

* Singapore

Housing and Development Board The Housing & Development Board (HDB; often referred to as the Housing Board; ; ; ), is a Statutory boards of the Singapore Government, statutory board under the Ministry of National Development (Singapore), Ministry of National Developmen ...

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) is a ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It is responsible for housing, communities, and local government in England. It was established in May 2006 ...

(UK, since 2006) *

Ministry of Housing and Local Government The Ministry of Housing and Local Government was a United Kingdom government department formed following the Second World War, covering the areas of housing and local government. It was formed, as the Ministry of Local Government and Planning, ...

(UK, historic) *

United States Department of Housing and Urban Development The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government. It administers federal housing and urban development laws. It is headed by the secretary of housing and u ...

United States Housing Authority The United States Housing Authority, or USHA, was a Alphabet agencies, federal agency created during 1937 within the United States Department of the Interior by the Housing Act of 1937 as part of the New Deal. It was designed to lend money to the ...

(United States, historic) **

Boston Housing Authority The Boston Housing Authority (BHA) is a public agency within the city of Boston, Massachusetts that provides subsidized public housing to low- and moderate-income families and individuals. The BHA is not a municipal agency, but a separate local ...

Chicago Housing Authority The Chicago Housing Authority (CHA) is a municipal corporation that oversees public housing within the city of Chicago. The agency's Board of Commissioners is appointed by the Mayor of Chicago, city's mayor, and has a budget independent from that ...

Home Forward Home Forward, established in 1941 as the Housing Authority of Portland, is a housing authority that serves Portland, Oregon, and nearby municipalities in Multnomah County, Oregon, United States. Home Forward maintains properties in Portland, Gres ...

, formerly the Housing Authority of Portland **

Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles The Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles (HACLA) is a state-chartered public agency. Established in 1938, HACLA provides the largest stock of affordable housing in the city Los Angeles, California and is one of the nation's oldest public ...

New York City Housing Authority The New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) is a public development corporation which provides public housing in New York City, and is the largest public housing authority in North America. Created in 1934 as the first agency of its kind in the ...

San Francisco Housing Authority The San Francisco Housing Authority is a local public housing authority for the City and County of San Francisco that was established in 1938 after the Housing Act of 1937 was enacted by the U.S. Federal Government. The agency is responsible for ...

Housing and Property Development Authority The Rivers State Housing and Property Development Authority (RSHPDA) is a government agency that has the task of preservation and delivery of affordable housing in Rivers State Rivers is a states of Nigeria, state in the Niger Delta region of so ...

, Nigeria *

Toronto Community Housing Corporation Toronto Community Housing Corporation (TCHC) is a public housing agency in Toronto, Toronto, Ontario. It is the largest social housing provider in Canada with over 58,000 units across 2,100 buildings and approximately 105,000 residents. It is the ...

Department of Building and Housing (New Zealand) Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

, formerly the Ministry of Housing, New Zealand *

Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage The Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage () is a department of the Government of Ireland. It is led by the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage. Departmental team The official headquarters and ministerial office ...

, Republic of Ireland *

Northern Ireland Housing Executive The Northern Ireland Housing Executive is the public housing authority for Northern Ireland. It is Northern Ireland's largest social housing landlord, and the enforcing authority for those parts of housing orders that involve houses with multiple ...

* Ministry of Local Government Development, Malaysia

Specific housing authorities

See also