Kamala Harris announces $5.5 billion to lower housing costs
- Harris said the funding would help increase affordable housing
- Only five percent of the funding would go directly toward solving the issue of homelessness
- READ MORE: Biden struggles to address spiking mortgage rates and high prices for homes across the U.S.
Vice President Kamala Harris announced Tuesday a multi-billion dollar effort to help address America’s homeless problems, as tent cities spring up in major metropolitan areas.
The $5.5 billion in funding comes from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) as the Biden administration scrambles to address skyrocketing interest rates, making housing less affordable.
‘To strengthen America’s economy, we are also helping more people buy a home. Homeownership is one of the most powerful engines of intergenerational wealth,’ Harris told voters Monday during a trip to Detroit, Michigan to promote their efforts.
US Vice President Kamala Harris delivers remarks during the second stop of her nationwide Economic Opportunity Tour in Detroit, Michigan
US Vice President Kamala Harris delivers remarks during the second stop of her nationwide Economic Opportunity Tour in Detroit, Michigan
The money primarily funds grants to help state and local governments create more affordable housing and expanding funding for economic development.
Only about five percent of the funding includes funds that will directly impact the homelessness problem, with $290 million for homeless shelters, street outreach, homelessness prevention, and ‘rapid re-housing assistance.’
A bigger priority for the administration is a $455 million grant to help connect people with HIV/AIDS to housing opportunities.
Only $30 million of the funding will be used to support transitional housing for people who are in recovery from substance abuse.
Tents line the street of
Homeless in Washington, D.C.Homeless people camping in public spaces in the nations capital.
Harris indicated the funding would be enough to help more Americans afford a home.
‘This funding will build more affordable homes and support renters and homeowners while also lowering costs, building wealth, and creating jobs,’ Harris said in a statement.
Biden and Harris continue struggling with bad headlines on home ownership as the average rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage was 7.17 percent on Thursday, according to Freddie Mac.
Biden floated a $400 a month tax credit for homeowners during his State of the Union address and called for Congress to pass his plan to fund and build 2 million affordable homes to help drive down the cost of rent and housing.
He also proposed a plan that would help first-time homebuyers a $5,000 credit each year for their first two years of home ownership.
Harris indicated the Biden administration would do more to lower the cost of housing if re-elected to a second term.
‘There’s still more work to be done,’ Harris said in an interview with a local news station in Wisconsin. ‘Including what we intend to do, you know, God-willing in the next term which includes affordable housing and making housing more affordable.’
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