By Merlisa Lawrence Corbett
With the 2024 election less than a week away, Democrats, Republicans, and Independents agree on one campaign concern: the country needs more affordable housing.
Perhaps not since the creation of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) in 1965 has affordable housing grabbed as many headlines. That's partially because the Democratic nominee for President, Vice President Kamala Harris, made affordable housing a centerpiece of her proposed "Opportunity Economy."
The Republican nominee for President, Donald Trump, has not released a comprehensive plan. There is no mention of affordable housing in his platform. However, Trump promised tax incentives for homebuyers and reduced federal regulations for the construction industry. He also links his plans to deport millions of illegal immigrants to lowering housing costs.
No matter who wins the election, the affordable housing crisis can no longer be ignored. According to Jennifer Horne, CEO of Urban Campus & Core, a Nashville-based real estate development and advisory firm, the lack of affordable housing is more than an economic issue; it's a community crisis.
"The impacts from a lack of affordable housing can be felt across every sector of a community. For example, a shortage in teachers due to housing options and commute considerations, a limited supply of essential personnel in the healthcare, childcare and hospitality sectors to name a few," Horne said. "It also impacts the ability of recent graduates or young families looking to begin building community to even enter the market."
Historical Shifts in Attitudes toward Affordable Housing
Efforts to fix affordable housing shortages are not new. President Woodrow Wilson signed the U.S. Shipping Act in 1917 to address the workforce housing problem. During the lead-up to World War II, President Franklin D. Roosevelt included funding for affordable housing as part of his New Deal to help Americans recover from the Great Depression.
However, over time, affordable housing developed into a wedge issue associated with people with low incomes, giving way to NIMBY politics. This year, that changed.
Brian McCabe, Associate Professor of Sociology at Georgetown University, told Time Magazine that housing affordability has now "trickled up" to impact the middle class.
"This is hitting first time homebuyers that can't get into the housing market. This is hitting middle class renters who are spending more than 50% of their income on rent," McCabe said. "It's not that there's never been an affordability crisis before, but it's now an affordability crisis that's hitting a much broader set of Americans."
Suddenly, real estate developers, builders, realtors, homebuyers, investors, local, state, and federal officials agree that the country desperately needs more affordable housing. This consensus on the problem creates an environment for bipartisan solutions.
"The need for affordable housing is indisputable and continues to fuel bipartisan support for solutions that can address this need. It will take a coordinated effort across the public and private sectors to design, execute, and deliver solutions that make meaningful impacts," Horne said. "I am encouraged by the support to increase resources to support homeownership and wealth creation."
Harris' plan relies on increasing the supply of multifamily and single-family housing, and working in partnership with industry to "build both to rent and to buy, and to take down barriers that stand in the way of building new housing, including at the state and local levels."
Horne supports any plan that focuses on removing barriers and engaging diverse leadership and levels of public and private sector stakeholders.
"A multifaceted approach is crucial in generating change quickly and addressing the shortage," Horne said.
Mixed-income Housing for Renters and Homeowners
Another component of Harris' plan is incentivizing affordable housing construction. She proposes tax credits and incentives for developers who create affordable units. This is aimed at encouraging more private investment in affordable housing projects, which would be crucial for markets like Nashville, where construction costs are rising.
The Vice President also mentions making rent more affordable. Her plan cites a U.S. Census Bureau report that states more than 21 million American renter households spend more than 30 percent of their income on rent—representing almost half of the country's renting households. That's more than double the share with a similar rent burden in 1960.
In that report, Molly Ross, a survey statistician with the Census Bureau, said, "Housing costs rose between 2022 and 2023 for both homeowners and renters. The median cost of housing for renters rose from $1,354 to $1,406 (after adjusting for inflation)."
This underscores the need for mixed-income housing.
"Mixed income communities are essential for the resilience of cities," Horne said. "Communities that maintain a range of housing options integrated throughout communities are better able to weather economic shits and navigate market fluctuations. It also creates the opportunity to increase supply while allowing for future owners or renters to move up economically or downsize due to life changes."
While Harris' plan has its critics, by increasing federal investments, providing tax incentives for builders, and offering financial support to first-time homebuyers, the Vice President addresses the root causes of the affordable housing crisis.
"A home for many represents a place of stability and belonging. It is the fabric of community and allows owners to plant roots and connect in a meaningful way," Horne said. "While a home can definitely be a path to economic equity, it does not have to come at a cost to others. By mixing incomes across neighborhoods and communities, it allows cities to foster inclusive growth."
Fixing the affordable housing problem requires bipartisanship, collaborative partnerships, and community engagement. Now that all stakeholders agree on the issue, they may come together with sustainable solutions.
Merlisa Lawrence Corbett is an award-winning journalist and author. She is a contributing writer and editor to Rooted.