…comes from the front-page of USA Today, another radical front for untamed capitalism. The tale:
Nearly 70% of Americans own their homes, a record high, but the rate of homeownership for working families with children is lower than in 1978, according to a study being released Wednesday by the Center for Housing Policy. …
Minority working families have struggled the most. Their homeownership rate has stagnated at 45%, far below white families (71%) as of 2003, the last year for which figures are available.
The effects are being felt in communities where teachers, police and firefighters can’t afford to live in the communities where they work, if they want to own homes.
Of course there is also too much focus, i.e. any, on how to get wages up so the homes become affordable once again. That’s a bogus path to take. The obvious question is why is housing becoming so much more expensive? What has changed in recent years? If you said strict land-use regs designed to pump up home prices and in turn fatten government coffers, hey, you are half-way there.
