Housing

Housing Is A Basic Human Right

Every person in this country deserves access to safe, affordable, and dignified housing. But our current system is failing—both the people left unhoused and the millions more who are barely scraping by to keep a roof over their heads.

This is not just a crisis of affordability. It’s a crisis of political will.

The Facts

  • As of January 2024, more than 771,000 people are homeless in the United States—an 18% increase from the year before.

  • Over 35,000 veterans—people who risked their lives for this country—are living on the streets or in shelters.

  • Since 2010, median rent has risen 80% and home prices have climbed 133%, while wages have only grown 50%.

  • Nearly half of all renters and over a quarter of homeowners spend more than 30% of their income on housing—putting them on the brink of financial instability.

  • The U.S. is short between 4.5 to 7.4 million homes, and housing construction remains far below what’s needed.

This didn’t happen overnight—and it won’t be solved with half-measures. We need bold, structural reform.

A New Approach to Housing

We must rethink how we build, where we build, and who gets to live in the communities we’re creating. That means:

Modernize Zoning to Build More, Smarter

  • Automatically upzone all single-family residential lots within a ½ mile of rapid transit (rail, subway, or bus) in cities with populations over 250,000. Allow up to six housing units per lot—increasing density, reducing prices, and expanding access.

  • Legalize multi-family housing and mixed-use zoning to reflect how people actually live and commute—not just how things were built decades ago.

  • Remove outdated parking mandates that block housing construction. Cities that eliminate minimum parking requirements should receive additional HUD funding as an incentive.

Convert What We Already Have

  • Incentivize the conversion of vacant commercial spaces into residential units. With 20–24% of commercial space expected to remain vacant, we have a historic opportunity to repurpose buildings for homes instead of leaving them to decay.

Empower First-Time Buyers and Working Families

  • Offer up to $50,000 in down payment assistance for first-time homebuyers.

  • Ban hedge funds and institutional investors from buying up single-family homes. Housing is for families, not financial portfolios.

End Corporate Gatekeeping

  • Ban government subsidies for companies whose full-time workers rely on public assistance because of low wages.

  • Provide grants to developers building mixed-use and mixed-income housing, especially near transit corridors and job centers.

A Better Future Starts at Home

Affordable housing isn’t just a policy issue—it’s the foundation of stable families, thriving communities, and a functioning economy. When people have stable housing, everything else becomes possible: better health, stronger education outcomes, and real economic mobility.

We don’t need to accept rising homelessness, unaffordable rents, or entire generations locked out of homeownership. We have the tools. We have the data. What we need now is the courage to act.

It’s time to stop treating housing as an investment vehicle for Wall Street—and start treating it as a human right.

THE FACTS

  • As of January 2024, it’s estimated that there are over 771,000 homeless people living in the United States. This is an 18% increase from January 2023. To make matters worse, over 32,000 of our homeless population are veterans. These are individuals who have fought and defended our country.

  • Since 2010, the median rent has gone up 80% and the median home price has gone up 133%, while wages have only risen 50%

  • Currently, 49.7% of renters and 27.1% of homeowners have more than 30% of the income go towards the cost of housing.

  • New home construction isn’t any better. As of September 2024, there were 1.35 million units under construction, down from 2.07 million ahead of the Great Recession in 2009.

  • Estimates state that The United States is short anywhere from 4.5 to 7.4 million homes

POTENTIAL SOLUTIONS TO THE NATION’S HOUSING PROBLEM

  • Remove the red-tape that act as a barrier for development, preventing housing from being built.

  • Provide additional HUD funding to developments that no reduce parking spaces in lieu of housing, or cities that remove parking minimums

  • Change existing zoning laws, allowing more multi-family properties, mixed-use zoning, etc.

  • Offer first-time homebuyer incentives up to $50,000

  • Automatically up-zone all single family residential lots in cities with a population of 250,000 or more, that are within 1/2 mile of rapid transit (either rail, subway, or bus).

    • This would allow lots that were traditionally for single-family homes to have up to 6 units on the property. Increasing density will help create more housing available, thus lowering rents and prices in the area.

    • In addition to this, the cities would now have more taxpayers living in their city, shopping at local businesses, and helping the city’s tax base grow.

  • Offer incentives and grant funding for converting vacant commercial space into residential housing. In 2024, it was estimated that 20% of all commercial space in the United States is vacant. That is expected to hit an all time high of 24% in 2024. As our workforce evolves, and as employers downsize their commercial space due to remote work capability, we need to put this space to use and providing more housing is an excellent alternatives.

  • Ban Hedge Funds from purchasing homes, which has made many housing market unaffordable for many Americans.