With over half a million people in the United States homeless, citizens from all over the nation have made a cry out for help from the local, state, and federal governments. The problem is due to the high demand and low supply of suitable housing. With the costs rising faster than the living wage, it only makes sense that the government rethinks who it gives money to.
You may not think that the government has that type of pull over the states, and in a way you would be correct.
Free market conservatives may not like the federal government having a large role in this situation, however this is what the current laws allow. The federal government does have the ability to have influence, though, which is what we will be discussing today.
Use Federal Leverage to Change Zoning Restrictions
The Federal government cannot make the state and local laws and regulations. The law leaves the particular policies to be determined on a local level. They cannot even push the local governments into making changes that they need done, but they can use the leverage that they have over the states. The federal government could attach strings to funding packages that the states get, giving them funding for any specific project only if the states push zoning restrictions in. This can make it easier for builders to develop apartments and complexes that can house a substantial amount of people into areas that have been preventing everything except single home dwellings from being built.
Subsidize Housing for Qualified Renters
Low-income citizens (the ones that spend more than 30% of their income on rent) already have a means to get into federal subsidized housing. This means that the rent they pay is based on the income they have. The less they make, the lower the rent that they must pay. This keeps them under the federal guidelines of paying no more than 30% of household income. It allows families the extra money needed to make sure that they can get online home and contents insurance to cover their belongings, as well as pay all their bills and have some extra money for food and other necessities.
The problem is that there is only so much funding available for the program, which leaves families living on the street until their name comes to the top of the waiting lists. Waiting lists that can be over a year out, even if there is housing to accommodate them.
Increase The Low-Income Tax Building Credit
Substantial increases were made during the last couple of years, but there is still room for improvement. If the federal government increased the amounts of the tax breaks given to builders that focus on low-income housing, such as apartments, more builders would shift their building efforts towards them. Builders are like all other businesspeople, any money that they can save is extra money in their pockets so they will jump at any chances that they can get. We can incentivise our business leaders.
Reduce Import Tariffs for Building Supplies
One huge setback that builders have been dealing with are the tariffs that the federal government has imposed upon building supplies that are being shipped in from other countries. This increases the costs to the supplier, which increases the costs to the builders, and it increases the prices for everyone underneath them. If the government reduced, or removed, import tariffs for building supplies it would be easier, and cheaper, for builders to pound out affordable housing.
Final Thoughts
These are just a few examples of what the government could do to help make housing more affordable. They do not have any direct say on how the states choose to manage the problems locally, but they can use their weight (so to say) to get the local governments to conform to their wills.
If the federal people increased tax breaks for states, cities, builders, and the citizens within those areas, the housing shortage would soon be a thing of the past, and the families that have nowhere to hang their hats would be placed into an affordable apartment that could help keep them warm at night.