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A city program gives money to Austinites displaced by development. It's not enough, one study says.
By Luz Moreno-Lozano
September 22, 2025 at 3:07 PM CDT
When Austin residents are forced to leave their homes because of new development, the city offers some assistance. But a new study finds it may not go far enough.
In 2016, the city started requiring developers to provide advanced notice and relocation resources, including financial assistance, to certain residents being forced to leave their homes. The ordinance covered families living in apartments, mobile home parks and other types of multifamily properties facing redevelopment. In 2017, the state of Texas passed legislation that prohibits cities from mandating financial assistance from developers in this way. So the city in 2023 created its own tenant relocation assistance program, which gives money directly to families.
But city leaders wanted to better understand how residents are impacted financially by forced relocation. In 2023, the Austin City Council commissioned a study conducted by Portland-based research firm ECOnorthwest. It found that moving costs can range from $3,100 to $15,000 depending on the size of the household. Austin’s program provides up to $6,000 per household.
Jade Aguilar with ECOnorthwest said the city’s compensation package is likely not meeting the needs of larger households, especially families living in mobile home communities. She presented the findings to City Council last week.
"[The city should] consider adjusting the current compensation award by the size and type of housing," Aguilar said. "We saw that the range of cost was different depending on the household size."
She said the findings also showed that providing more advanced notice of redevelopment could go a long way. The city currently requires 120 days' notice for multifamily units and 270 days for mobile home communities.
“Ideally it would help to extend the notification timeline for the tenants because it is a challenge to find housing, and the more time they have to be locating that [housing], the better,” Aguilar said.
Susana Almanza is director of the Austin-based nonprofit PODER, which works with families facing displacement. She said those living in mobile home communities can be especially vulnerable to forced relocation, and the financial burden can be devastating. Not only are those families moving all their belongings, many are also choosing to relocate their homes.
“Mobile homes are one of the most affordable types of housing,” Almanza said. “And these are people who have invested in purchasing their home. In these days where Austin is so unaffordable, you have people who felt like they own something.”
In addition to assisting with moving costs and advanced notice, Almanza said the city could better serve residents facing displacement by providing assistance in multiple languages and helping communities stay together.
“When you displace families, the children have made friends along the way,” she said. “And then all of a sudden they are separated from their friends.”
The city budgets around $700,000 a year for the tenant relocation assistance program. City staff said that often, all of that money doesn't get used.
In 2016, the city started requiring developers to provide advanced notice and relocation resources, including financial assistance, to certain residents being forced to leave their homes. The ordinance covered families living in apartments, mobile home parks and other types of multifamily properties facing redevelopment. In 2017, the state of Texas passed legislation that prohibits cities from mandating financial assistance from developers in this way. So the city in 2023 created its own tenant relocation assistance program, which gives money directly to families.
But city leaders wanted to better understand how residents are impacted financially by forced relocation. In 2023, the Austin City Council commissioned a study conducted by Portland-based research firm ECOnorthwest. It found that moving costs can range from $3,100 to $15,000 depending on the size of the household. Austin’s program provides up to $6,000 per household.
Jade Aguilar with ECOnorthwest said the city’s compensation package is likely not meeting the needs of larger households, especially families living in mobile home communities. She presented the findings to City Council last week.
"[The city should] consider adjusting the current compensation award by the size and type of housing," Aguilar said. "We saw that the range of cost was different depending on the household size."
She said the findings also showed that providing more advanced notice of redevelopment could go a long way. The city currently requires 120 days' notice for multifamily units and 270 days for mobile home communities.
“Ideally it would help to extend the notification timeline for the tenants because it is a challenge to find housing, and the more time they have to be locating that [housing], the better,” Aguilar said.
Susana Almanza is director of the Austin-based nonprofit PODER, which works with families facing displacement. She said those living in mobile home communities can be especially vulnerable to forced relocation, and the financial burden can be devastating. Not only are those families moving all their belongings, many are also choosing to relocate their homes.
“Mobile homes are one of the most affordable types of housing,” Almanza said. “And these are people who have invested in purchasing their home. In these days where Austin is so unaffordable, you have people who felt like they own something.”
In addition to assisting with moving costs and advanced notice, Almanza said the city could better serve residents facing displacement by providing assistance in multiple languages and helping communities stay together.
“When you displace families, the children have made friends along the way,” she said. “And then all of a sudden they are separated from their friends.”
The city budgets around $700,000 a year for the tenant relocation assistance program. City staff said that often, all of that money doesn't get used.