The message landing in downtown Columbus this week was blunt: keeping a job in Ohio no longer guarantees keeping a roof overhead. Over two days, housing advocates, service providers, and policymakers traded data, stories, and strategies that all pointed in the same direction. Working Ohioans are being priced out of rental housing and nudged closer to homelessness, even when they are doing what they have always been told to do — work hard and pay the bills.
Hundreds Pack Housing Ohio Gathering
The Housing Ohio conference, organized by the Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio, ran April 20–21 at the Hyatt Regency and, as reported by WBNS/10TV, drew roughly 800 advocates, service providers, policymakers, and housing experts. COHHIO built out a packed program of plenary talks, practitioner workshops, and networking sessions aimed at spreading best practices and new models for affordable housing. Attendees could pick from more than 40 breakout sessions on topics like eviction prevention, supportive services, and development strategies, turning the Hyatt into a crash course in how to keep people housed.
Data Show Deep Shortage Of Affordable Rentals
Speakers leaned heavily on the National Low Income Housing Coalition’s 2026 Gap Report to show just how far the crisis has spread. The report finds that Ohio is short roughly 266,000 affordable, available rental homes and has only 37 such units for every 100 extremely low-income renter households. NLIHC also reports that about 422,000 extremely low-income renter households live in the state and that roughly 73% of them are paying more than half of their income on rent. The shortages are not confined to one city either. Columbus, Cincinnati, and Cleveland each face deficits on the order of 50,000 affordable units, according to the same figures.
Working “Unhoused” Take Center Stage
Tuesday’s session centered on Brian Goldstone’s book There Is No Place For Us, with reporter Stacia Naquin leading a conversation that, as reported by WBNS/10TV, hit a nerve for many in the room. Panelists drew on Goldstone’s reporting to underscore a reality they said they are seeing every day. Many people experiencing homelessness are also working, sometimes more than one job, yet still cannot find an affordable unit or access rapid rehousing. Attendees said the challenge now is turning that reporting into local programs, with more rental assistance, stronger eviction diversion efforts, and a focus on preserving existing housing, all high on the conference to-do list.
Budget Season Looms Over Housing Plans
All of this played out as state leaders weigh budget choices that could help or hinder any solutions that came out of Columbus. As reported by the Ohio Capital Journal, the governor’s budget previously proposed a $100 million housing investment for rural development, and advocates at the conference pushed hard for protections and expanded resources for the Ohio Housing Trust Fund and eviction-prevention programs. Organizers warned that the next round of budget negotiations will determine whether the ideas sketched out in workshops stay on flip charts or turn into statewide programs.
By the time the last session wrapped, COHHIO and partner coalitions had narrowed their priorities to a short list: more state investment, stronger tenant protections, and increased support for housing-service providers. They left Columbus promising to keep the pressure on lawmakers in the weeks ahead. For full program details and resources from the conference, see COHHIO.
