Citing overwhelming demand and a long wait list, the Housing Authority of Baltimore City announced Tuesday that it will stop taking applications for public housing on Dec. 13.

Though actions taken this year have nearly halved the list from 27,000 to 14,000, officials said the wait time -- as long as seven years on average -- is too long to take new applicants.

“This is a decision we wish we didn’t have to make but by continuing to accept applications we would be performing a disservice and creating a false sense of hope that we can accommodate applicants in the near term,” HABC president and CEO Janet Abrahams said in a statement. “The applicants at the top of our waiting list right now have been waiting on average between five and seven years. We work very hard to serve as many households as possible but simply don’t have the resources to meet the tremendous need.”

Abrahams said the problem faced in Baltimore is similar to one faced by agencies nationwide and blamed under-investment in public housing stock.

“We see this need first-hand every day when someone submits their application to our program," Norman Young, HABC's vice president of admissions and leasing, said in a statement. "Unfortunately, we can only house an applicant when a current resident moves out and that unit becomes vacant. And that vacant apartment isn’t always in a section of the city the applicant prefers.”

Those who remain on the waiting list are asked to notify housing officials if their address or contact information changes. The same applies for applicants to the Housing Choice Voucher Program, which is also wait-listed.

Abrahams said officials made efforts to contact everyone on the wait list to make sure they were still interested in public housing.