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HOUSING

Problem

Housing has shifted from a human need to a financial asset, displacing people in the process.

The Reality

  • U.S. short 3.8–5 million homes

  • Rents up 25%+ in 5 years

  • Half of renters are rent-burdened

  • 20 million households are spending more than they can afford

  • 1M+ Americans experience homelessness annually

Oregon snapshot

  • 110,000+ affordable units are missing

  • Rents up 35%+ in Portland since 2014

  • Need $60k+ to afford a typical 2-bedroom

  • One of the highest unsheltered rates in the U.S.

  • Displacement hits Black, Indigenous, and NHPI communities hardest.

  • Rural towns face:

    • Fewer units

    • Aging buildings

    • Zero construction pipeline

    • STR/Airbnb pressure

Why the system is failing

  • Decades ago, public housing construction stopped—it urgently needs to be restarted.

  • Wages have fallen far behind land and rent costs, escalating the crisis.

  • Zoning blocks density

  • Hedge funds + REITs buying housing stock

  • Evictions and speculation funnel families into instability

  • With housing treated as a commodity, people's security is urgently at risk.

This crisis is not accidental — it’s policy-driven.

Solutions

1. Build and preserve millions of homes

  • Federal social housing: publicly owned, permanently affordable, union-built

  • Finance up to 3M new units nationwide.

  • Convert LIHTC to predictable, guaranteed funding.

  • Require affordable units in new development.

  • Invest in rural + tribal housing.

  • Buy distressed properties → convert to nonprofit/public.

  • Maintain and rehab existing units to stop affordable losses.

Impact: More homes for people, fewer for investors.

2. Make renting affordable right now

  • Universal vouchers — everyone eligible actually receives them.

  • Limit extreme rent hikes tied to inflation or income.

  • Emergency rental + family stability funds

  • Right to counsel for tenants.

  • Ban predatory junk fees (applications, late-fee stacking, move-in charges)

Impact: Prevents displacement and reduces homelessness.

3. Stop Wall Street from dominating housing

  • Ban hedge funds/private equity from buying single-family homes.

  • Force mega landlords to sell back to residents/nonprofits.

  • Tax speculative vacancy + empty luxury units

  • Create a transparent national database of large landlords.

Impact: Homes return to families, stabilizing prices.

4. End homelessness by ending housing precarity

  • Housing First nationally

  • Fund permanent supportive housing with mental/behavioral health services

  • Addiction and recovery treatment without waitlists

  • No more discharges to the street from:

    • Foster care

    • Jail/prison

    • Hospitals

    • Rehab

  • Expand rapid rehousing with real pathways to permanency.

Impact: Reduces chronic homelessness and cycling.

5. Modernize zoning + land use

  • Tie federal dollars to pro-housing outcomes.

  • Legalize:

    • Duplexes/triplexes/ADUs

    • Apartment homes near transit

    • Manufactured + modular homes

  • Reward cities that meet housing production benchmarks

Impact: More homes are needed in the desired locations.

6. Build community ownership and pathways to buy

  • Down payment support for first-generation buyers

  • Zero-interest mortgages for working families

  • Grants for repairs, heat pumps, accessibility upgrades

  • Expand:

    • Community land trusts

    • Co-ops

    • Tenant purchase opportunities

Impact: Wealth stays in communities, not outside investors.

Bottom Line

America’s housing crisis is the result of policy choices — not personal failure or market mystery.

We solve it by:

  • Building millions of deeply affordable homes

  • Protecting renters right now

  • Taking housing out of Wall Street’s hands

  • Ending the pipeline into homelessness

  • Modernizing zoning for the 21st century

  • Creating real paths to ownership and stability

Homes must serve people, not profit margins. Demand housing policies that prioritize people’s needs over investor profits.

Housing is a basic human need — and we can guarantee it if we choose to.