Vice President Kamala Harris last month announced an ambitious plan to construct 3 million new housing units over the next four years. The proposal, which she made one of the key issues of her presidential campaign, aims to address the severe housing shortage that has pushed homeownership out of reach for millions of Americans and exacerbated the generational wealth gap.
Harris' plan, announced on August 16, includes the first-ever tax incentive for building starter homes, an expansion of tax incentives for affordable rental housing construction and a $40 billion innovation fund to empower local governments. The cornerstone of the proposal is a $25,000 down-payment assistance program for first-time homebuyers, expanding on the Biden administration's earlier initiatives.
"I know what homeownership means. It's more than a financial transaction; it's so much more than that — it's more than a house," Harris said during a campaign speech in Raleigh, North Carolina, cited by MarketWatch. "Homeownership and what that means, it's a symbol of the pride that comes with hard work, it's financial security, it represents what you will be able to do for your children."
The plan comes at a critical juncture, with both major party candidates addressing housing as a key campaign issue for the first time in decades.
“Both presidential candidates are talking about housing, and not just housing, they're talking about adding housing supply,” Jim Tobin, CEO of the National Association of Home Builders, told Salon. “I've been in Washington, D.C. for 30 years now, and this is the first time in my career that I can remember housing being a major presidential campaign........