Study Details | Pathways to Work

101026-Study of Hardest Hit

Study quality:

Moderate

Reason for the rating: This study received a moderate study quality rating because it is a quasi-experimental design that establishes that the intervention and comparison groups are similar at baseline and adjusts impact estimates to account for any minor differences in the groups.

Intervention: Hardest Hit Fund - Ohio Mortgage Payment Assistance

Population and employment barriers:

Employment status (Unemployed)

Services provided:

Housing supports and subsidies, Performance- or behavior-based financial incentives

Setting: Tested in multiple settings

Study design

Design:

Quasi-experimental design

Study group formation:

The authors used data from all applicants to the Ohio HHF program between 2010 and 2015. Applicants were excluded if they had incomplete employment data, did not meet basic income and unemployment eligibility for the Mortgage Payment Assistance program, or received the assistance more than a year after their initial UI claim. The study matched those who received Mortgage Payment Assistance with those who applied for the assistance and were eligible but did not complete the application process.

Time period of study:

The Ohio HHF program was first launched in 2010, and this study follows individuals who received the intervetnion from program launch through quarter four of 2015.

Primary outcome domains examined:

Increase short-term employment, Increase long-term employment, Increase short-term earnings, Increase long-term earnings

Study funded by:

John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Grant No: 13-103361-000-USP

Results

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Outcome domain	Measure	Timing	Study quality by finding	Impact	Units	Sample size
Increase short-term earnings	Quarterly earnings	6 Quarter after MPA	Moderate	1.25	2015 Dollars	3,038
Increase long-term earnings	Quarterly earnings	18 Quarter after MPA	Moderate	1.74	2015 Dollars	3,038
Increase short-term employment	Ever employed, quarterly	6 Quarter after MPA	Moderate	2.68	percentage points	3,038
Increase long-term employment	Ever employed, quarterly	18 Quarter after MPA	Moderate	5.21	percentage points	3,038

Short-term outcomes are those measured 18 months or fewer after participants are first offered services. Long-term outcomes are those measured between 18 months and 5 years after participants are first offered services. Very long-term outcomes are those measured 5 years or more after participants are first offered services.

Findings quality key:

High
Moderate

Study quality terms?

The findings quality describe our confidence that a given study’s finding is because of the intervention. We do not display findings that rate low.

Findings key:

A moderate-to-large favorable finding that is unlikely to be due to chance
A moderate-to-large favorable finding that might to be due to chance
A small favorable finding that is unlikely to be due to chance
A small favorable finding that might be due to chance
A favorable finding that is unlikely to be due to chance, but we cannot determine the standardized effect size
A favorable finding that might be due to chance, but we cannot determine the standardized effect size
A moderate-to-large unfavorable finding that is unlikely to be due to chance
A moderate-to-large unfavorable finding that might to be due to chance
A small unfavorable finding that is unlikely to be due to chance
A small unfavorable finding that might be due to chance
An unfavorable finding that is unlikely to be due to chance, but we cannot determine the standardized effect size
An unfavorable finding that might be due to chance, but we cannot determine the standardized effect size
A finding that is unlikely to be due to chance, but we cannot determine the standardized effect size or direction
A finding of no effect that might be due to chance

Favorable findings are impacts in a direction that is socially desirable. Statistical significance indicates the likelihood that a study finding is due to the intervention, rather than due to chance. Findings are described as moderate-to-large if the intervention produced a sufficiently large change in the outcome. An impact receives this designation if the standardized effect size is equal to or greater than 0.25 or equal to or less than -0.25.

Sample characteristics

The primary sample analyzed for this study were individuals who applied for or received mortgage payment assistance within two quarters of their initial unemployment claim. These individuals had an average annual income of about 28% of the area median income and over 89% reported themselves as unemployed.

Age

Mean age

50 years

Sex

Female	48%
Male	53%

Participant race and ethnicity

Black or African American	18%
White	78%
Hispanic or Latino of any race	3%
Unknown, not reported, or other	2%

The race and ethnicity categories may sum to more than 100 percent if the authors reported race and ethnicity separately; in these cases, we report the category White, rather than White, not Hispanic.

Participant employment and public benefit status

Were unemployed

90%

Intervention implementation

Implementing organization:

Ohio Housing Finance Agency

Program history:

The federal Hardest Hit Fund was launched in 2010 under the U.S. Treasury's Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP). States received HHF funds which they could then deliver to households based on their own customized parameters. The largest HHF program was the Mortgage Payment Assistance (MPA) program, which fully covered unemployed homeowners mortgage payments for up to 18 months. The HHF program concluded at the end of 2017.

Intervention services:

The intervention group consisted of unemployed applicants for Hardest Hit Fund (HHF) assistance in Ohio who were eligible for and received Mortgage Payment Assistance. The Mortgage Payment Assistance program fully subsidized recipients' monthly mortgage payments for up to 18 months. The program made payments on behalf of the borrower, including escrowed taxes and insurance, for up to 18 months. The MPA program was commonly coupled with a second HHF program that brought delinquent mortgages current.

Mandatory services:

None

Comparison services:

The comparison group consisted of unemployed applicants for Hardest Hit Fund assistance who were eligible for and received Mortgage Payment Assistance. - and did not receive other types of hardest hit fund assistance.

Service receipt duration:

From September 2010 through August 2011, the maximum duration of the MPA program was 15 months for a given household. This maximum duration was extended to 18 months in September 2011. The authors do not report average duration of MPA benefits for the analytic sample, but the average monetary assistance received was $11,837.

Intervention funding:

U.S. Treasury's Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP)

Study publications

Pierce, Stephanie Casey, Julia K. Brown, Stephanie Moulton, and Yung Chun (2025). Labor Outcomes of Mortgage Payment Subsidies for Unemployed Homeowners, Journal of Housing Economics 67: Article 102040. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhe.2024.102040

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Study of Hardest Hit Fund - Ohio Mortgage Payment Assistance