Lt. Governors Work to Make Homes More Affordable

While people young and old may understand the personal benefits of being a homeowner—tax deductions, stable monthly mortgage payments, increased privacy—many people frequently fail to realize the societal impact of taking the step into homeownership. Fortunately, we have a number of public servants dedicated to the increased awareness of the importance of home building and the communal benefits therein.

At the annual meeting of the National Lieutenant Governors Association, which took place in Grand Rapids from July 6-8, Lieutenant Governor Brian Calley (MI) joined the lieutenant governors of eight other states in a proclamation which highlights “the importance of our nation’s home building industry in spurring and sustaining economic recovery.”

The bipartisan proclamation, led by Lieutenant Governors Rebecca Kleefisch (WI) and Nancy Wyman (CT), declares homeownership “the bedrock of the American Dream and the foundation on which strong communities, states and the nation are built.”

The proclamation also shares figures regarding home building and its contribution to society, which showed that “the construction of 100 typical new single-family homes creates more than 297 full-time jobs, and generates $16.2 million in wages and salaries, and $11.1 million in taxes and other government revenue.”

The lieutenant governors also placed importance on lowering the cost of home building, which dramatically drives up the cost of a new home. The proclamation reveals that the cost of government regulations on home building has increased 29.8 percent since April 2011, while disposable income per capita has increased only 14.4 percent during the same period, “making the cost of regulation in the price of a new home rise more than twice as fast as the average American’s ability to pay for it.” The sponsors ultimately called for a focused approach to housing issues that seeks to avoid legislation that will increase the cost of housing beyond the means of American families.