Keeping the American Dream Alive

In a recent survey by Lending Tree, 94% of Americans identified owning a house as a part of the American Dream. But just over half of those who don’t own a home “say they’re worried they never will.” Among their concerns: high home prices, saving for a down payment, student loan debt, and other barriers.

Affordable housing is the top priority that I hear about when visiting communities across the First Congressional District. And I’m sure you hear about this issue at the community level in your corner of the state as well. 

In recent years, a wide variety of factors have inflated the cost of buying a home. Some of those inflationary factors that are making our housing shortage worse range from free-flowing federal spending during the pandemic to local red tape and fees. Add on top of that a growing population and high home mortgage interest rates – there are numerous factors that have helped make it harder to buy a home now than it has been in a long time. 

It doesn’t have to be this way. Our country and our communities need policies that encourage the construction of new homes and lower the cost of buying one. Many factors contributed to making housing expensive – and it’s going to take lots of creative solutions to unwind this problem. 

One thing I’ve seen firsthand: When communities decide to invest in housing it makes a difference. You can see results from such efforts right here in the First Congressional District. Over the summer, I visited projects in places like Milford and Plattsmouth who are using creative solutions to meet the housing needs of the next generation. Columbus is another great example of success – the city’s population has jumped. Some would point to the community’s ongoing commitment to build workforce housing as a driver for that growth. 

States are also playing an important role – Nebraska has been doing great work in this area with programs like the Rural Workforce Housing Fund, which invested nearly $23 million more in rural communities earlier this year. 

Workforce housing is an issue I’ve been focused on for some time – and I’m continuing that work in Congress today. If communities are going to continue to build, we need programs that have flexibility to attract creative projects but have transparency and accountability for cost and affordability. Here’s a few of the approaches I have been taking. 

Earlier this year, I introduced the Yes In My Backyard Act (YIMBY) along with Rep. Derek Kilmer (D-Washington State). The YIMBY Act will help boost America’s housing supply and strengthen the Community Development Block Grant program, which has served our country well for many years. To this end, it will help cut red tape, ensuring that the federal tax dollars invested in housing are maximized.

Recently, I co-sponsored the Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act. This legislation would have the effect of helping build two million new affordable houses. Rather than providing funding with lots of red tape and a new program that grows bureaucracy, this federal tax credit is a simpler way to help incentivize the industry to grow. 

And I’m working on more ideas. Over the summer, I established a Capital City working group that includes the Lincoln Chamber, NIFA, the League, Urban Development, Lincoln Community Foundation, Lincoln Housing Authority, Neighborworks, Nebraska Housing Developers Association, individual developers, and other stakeholders. This group will help provide feedback and inform my ongoing efforts on behalf of the unique needs of the City of Lincoln.

The road to deliver affordable housing options for every American family will be a journey that may take years. And it’s going to take a variety of solutions, including innovation from both the public and private sector, to address our housing crisis. It’s critical that we work on this – we’ve got to keep the dream of owning a home alive in America. 

If you have ideas you’d like to share, feel free to share them. Contact information for my office can be found at https://flood.house.gov. I look forward to hearing from you.