Housing

Home ownership continues to be the cornerstone of the American Dream and an important step for families attempting to climb the economic ladder. While the overall housing sector performed well last year for market rate properties, but there is still room for improvement.  We are facing a severe shortage of affordable housing and a spike in evictions.  Unfortunately, Indianapolis has one of the highest eviction rates in the country.  

Housing insecurity in Indy is at an all-time high. We have a severe shortage of affordable housing. We’re also experiencing a record number of evictions – some of the highest in the country. This needs to change.  

Working families who rent their homes shouldn’t be at such high risk to lose the roof over their heads. Many of these eviction laws are state and local, not federal, but they need to change.  

At the federal level, the Trump administration plans to cut 40 – 50 percent of HUD’s workforce is inexcusable, just like the brutal cuts to federal housing and rental assistance programs for families, seniors and people with disabilities.  

Another challenge is that new construction has not kept pace with growing demand, especially for affordable housing. Builders encounter challenges such as rising material costs and labor shortages, which limit the pace of new development. The new Trump tariffs will only make this worse, especially for construction materials.  

This shortage has created a demand-supply gap, especially for homes priced between $200,000 and $350,000. These are the problems that need to be addressed, and adding unnecessary tariffs only exacerbates the problem. 

I strongly support more federal resources to expand the supply of affordable housing, and more resources to fight housing insecurity, temporary housing and other critical services, including wrap-around services to prevent homelessness.    We must also provide robust resources to fight housing discrimination in Indiana, including resources like the Fair Housing Center of Central Indiana, which can help with housing counseling and other tools exercise your right to fair housing.