America’s Housing Crisis Is a Job for Congress
A bipartisan Senate bill meant to spur homebuilding would address the key problem: lack of supply.
A good start.
Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg
One of the many criticisms the president has levied against the Federal Reserve is that high rates are making it too expensive for Americans to buy a home. In fact, if affordability is the goal, he should be pressing Republicans in Congress to pass a new piece of bipartisan legislation that would do more to address the problem.
Sky-high housing costs are a top concern for many Americans. In the wake of the pandemic, median home sale prices reached their highest level in at least 50 years compared with household income; rents outpaced earnings as well. Relatively high mortgage rates — the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rose to an average of 6.72% at the end of July, from 4.46% over the previous decade — have certainly contributed to the affordability crisis.