WHAT CAN NORTH CAROLINIANS DO ABOUT THE HIGH COST OF HOUSING?

Whether owners or renters, Americans feel the pain of high inflation in the cost of basic shelter. The stories we hear about families searching for a home are very concerning to all of us. In North Carolina the estimated shortfall is that 900,000 homes are needed by 2030 to meet the requirements of the growing population.

President Biden has released a plan to address the housing shortfall in the next five years. He proposes several administrative steps that he can take to ease the housing crunch while other measures will require Congressional action.

Many communities have zoning and land-use policies that discourage the development of affordable housing. Biden proposes giving higher scores on housing development applications to jurisdictions that have reformed zoning and land-use policies to encourage building more affordable housing.

Biden proposes providing new financing mechanisms to build and preserve housing where financing gaps currently exist (i.e. manufactured homes, Accessory dwelling units (ADUs), 2-4 unit properties, and smaller multifamily buildings).

In many communities large institutional investors are buying up housing and raising rents significantly.  Biden proposes to ensure that more of the government-owned supply of homes and other housing goes to owners who will live in them.

He proposes to work with the private sector to address supply chain challenges and improve building techniques so that construction can be finished in 2022, ensuring the most new homes built in any year since 2006.

North Carolina

In North Carolina, the 2022 additions to the NC budget signed into law by Gov. Cooper include several measures to assist with the housing crisis in North Carolina.

The budget includes an additional $20M increase in funding over the 2021 budget for housing, including raising the Workforce Housing Loan Program to $200M and adding $10M to the North Carolina Housing Trust Fund (HTF). This will increase the funding from $7.7M to $17.7M, its highest level since 2007.

Local Measures

Local governments in Charlotte and Wake County have taken some measures to ease the housing crisis in their jurisdictions.

Charlotte is the first city in North Carolina to pass a ban on "source of income discrimination" for renters. The Charlotte City Council voted 9-2 to prevent discrimination based on source of income in complexes that have received city funding. Developers or housing providers who deny renters trying to use housing choice vouchers as a form of payment could receive a warning or fines. This measure will ensure fair treatment of those seeking to use housing vouchers in securing affordable rentals.  

Wake County is seeking more landlords to join its Lease 2 Home Program. The program creates affordable rental opportunities for people who don’t have a permanent place to live by offering incentives to landlords who will rent to these individuals. Since the program started a few months ago, the county has been able to offer 150 housing options, and 78 landlords have signed on to participate.   

Vote for Democrats – Continue the Momentum on Affordable Housing!

For county level housing information click on this link.