It used to be that a living wage was enough to begin building equity in a starter home. This was how we defined affordable housing. As the individual or family income grew so did the opportunity to grow equity in housing. Now, the term affordable is being redefined from a starter home to multifamily living, better known as apartments. When affordable and attainable housing is defined as apartments, this no longer provides for the opportunity to build equity through home ownership. In 2021, according to the National Association of Realtors, 98% of all new homes in the United States sold for over $400,000. At the same time, the US Department of Housing & Urban Development reported that the median family income in the United States was $79,900. To make matters worse, housing and rental prices are rising faster than family incomes. When taken together, it's rather obvious that buying a new home in our current situation is going to be difficult, if not impossible for many. As a US Congresswoman from Montana, I will work with representatives of other states to address needs for affordable and workforce housing, and I will stand up for Montanans by making sure our voices are heard. What We Can Do -Work with local and state governments to incentivize infill development -Work with state governments to provide and increase workforce housing tax credits -Work with employers to incentivize increased wages -Raise the federal minimum wage to $15 -Examine regulations to determine if or what regulations are driving costs up - Work with state and local governments to reasonably reduce the per-unit land cost - Bring manufacturing back to the United States - Increase social value of American made products - Work to decrease Cost-Burdened households by assisting with high housing costs - Work with state and local governments to increase public transportation opportunities and usage - Examine and address price gouging or corporate greed where applicable Source: https://www.pennyronning.com/affordable-housing 7/25/2022
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