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on July 29, 2020
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Home Renovations in Minnesota Cost More, Deliver Inferior Returns

Written by Isaac Orr
in Housing

In June, American Experiment released a groundbreaking new report taking a look at the lack of affordable housing in Minnesota. One of the findings of that report found that government regulations were pushing up the price of housing. An annual report on the value of home remodeling called the Cost Vs Value Report appears to corroborate these findings of the report: Minnesotans pay more for less. The report is interesting for a number of reasons. It shows that kitchen and bathroom remodeling projects have low returns on investment nationally, but this is especially true in Minnesota, where jobs costs are higher...

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on May 27, 2020
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How Covid-19 might make the affordable housing problem worse

Written by Martha Njolomole
in Coronavirus, Housing

Under the Covid-19 crisis, we have seen existing problems being magnified. For instance, with states imposing stay at home orders; issues have emerged with housing. States like California, have had to grapple with how to protect their homeless while keeping them safe. With increasing unemployment, there is a possibility individuals will not be able to afford housing. With the Covid-19 induced recession, there is a high probability people may not be able to afford rental payments. Construction may also fall due to a drop-down in overall investments to the economy. Considering that a lot of sectors of the economy will have to...

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on May 21, 2020
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How Met Council, Local Governments Deny Affordable Housing to the Working Poor

Written by Jeff Johnson
in Housing, Metropolitan Council

Nearly everyone acknowledges that the lack of housing available for people of low and middle income is one of the most serious problems facing the Twin Cities today. Experts use a standard measure to determine whether housing is affordable: If a household spends 30 percent or more of its income on housing expenses (mortgage or rent), then that household is considered “cost-burdened” and their housing is not affordable. By this measure, more than 27 percent of Twin Cities residents were cost-burdened in 2017, according to Minnesota Compass, using U.S. Census Bureau data. And the poorest are hit hardest. Nearly 85 percent in...

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on February 21, 2020
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Neel Kashkari on Affordable Housing-Only the private sector, through increased housing supply, will be able to address the affordable housing crisis

Written by Martha Njolomole
in Housing

I do applaud the new direction the Fed is taking to possibly focus on the supply side. During the America's Rental Housing Report Release, Neel Kashkari emphasized the need to incentivize the private sector to increase housing supply. ...

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