Housing for All: a plan to urgently lower costs and make home ownership a reality for more Californians

We urgently need to drive down costs, here’s how to do it. [Katie Porter for Senate]( Today I’m releasing my Housing for All plan—to urgently build more homes, bring down and stabilize rental costs, and increase homeownership opportunities for Californians. Housing is the top issue for Californians, but career politicians in Washington have been too slow to provide solutions. I saw this firsthand as a consumer protection attorney on the front lines of the foreclosure crisis, and now as a parent who doesn’t want my kids to leave California just because they can’t afford to live here. My Housing for All plan is below—[if you’d prefer to watch me break it down on my whiteboard, click here.]( - Create a Select Committee on Housing: Despite a decades-long housing crisis, Congress has no committee solely focused on increasing housing and reducing costs. I’ll create and lead a committee that delivers the housing solutions that California’s communities and families need, not just what boosts Wall Street’s profits. - Urgently increase the supply of homes for purchase: It’s virtually impossible to develop starter homes profitably and at scale, so I’ll push for improved tax credits and government loan guarantees, which will spur Wall Street to provide financing for homes that working people can actually afford. - Washington must close the housing gap for low-income families: High costs push people into homelessness or housing instability. We should fully fund housing rental vouchers for the most severely housing-burdened families. To address the wealth inequalities that limit first-time homeowners, particularly people of color, we should make a federal investment in tools like down payment assistance and interest rate buy-downs. - Unleash private capital for home construction: In the 1930s, Congress established government-sponsored enterprises (today known as Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and Ginnie Mae) to connect Wall Street capital to everyday Americans, who previously could not get mortgages. The result was a rocketing homeownership rate. We should expand these structures to guarantee the construction of one-to-four unit starter homes. With strong oversight, these agencies can tap into global capital markets to scale up the construction of modest-density homes that working people can afford to buy. - Break down local barriers: Solving the housing crisis requires all levels of government to engage. I’ll give incentives to communities that make it cheaper to build all the kinds of housing Californians need. Costs go up when cities require certain home styles or building materials, or impose oppressive rules like mandatory parking requirements. - Unlock government land: I’ll press federal, state, and local agencies to release large swaths of buildable land that they own. - Encourage innovative homebuyer programs: Innovative mortgage lending programs can stop house prices from spiraling out of control. I’ll make it easier to form “land trusts,” in which communities and homebuyers share in the value of home appreciation. The land trust’s share of the appreciation is then used to lower entry costs for future homeowners in the development, creating a virtuous cycle of affordable homeownership for the future. - Develop leases for Californians with fixed incomes: I’ll support new kinds of leases that help Californians who aren’t served well by traditional rental agreements. Seniors should be able to put down a small portion of their retirement savings in exchange for locking in long-term rental rates that don’t outpace Social Security’s cost of living adjustments. We should also develop a government-backed program for four-year leases that allow college students to lock in rental costs during their time in college. - Invest in modern home manufacturing technologies: We have been manufacturing homes the same way for decades. I’ll make it easier for builders to develop and use the latest manufacturing techniques, like 3-D printed homes, which can reduce the cost of producing homes by 30% or more, and create high-paying, union jobs. These modern techniques are energy-efficient and use climate-resilient materials. - Protect homebuyers from Wall Street greed: Increasingly, Wall Street firms are buying up houses, driving up rental prices and preventing families from buying a home. I’ll tax firms that buy up large numbers of homes so that we put an end to this trend. [Can you please be one of the first people to endorse this plan?]( [Endorse Katie’s Housing For All Plan]( I’ve made housing the top issue of my campaign since day one because Californians can’t wait any longer. Washington must act, and I’ll lead the fight to get this done. I’m so grateful to have you on our team. Katie Porter P.S. I have no problem standing up to Wall Street to get this done because I don’t take a dime from corporate PACs or Big Bank CEOs. I will only be elected to the U.S. Senate because of grassroots support, and so anything you can give today will be especially meaningful. [Donate ›››]( Katie is running for the U.S. Senate because Californians deserve a warrior fighting for them in Washington. Our campaign is people-powered, we don’t take a dime from corporate PACs, federal lobbyists, or executives from Big Oil or Big Pharma. 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