Guest Commentary: Ideas to act on Delaware’s housing crisis

Rae Moore represents Middletown and nearby communities in the Delaware House of Representatives.

Delaware is in the midst of an affordable-housing crisis that’s only grown worse in recent years. The sad reality is most working families in our state cannot comfortably afford to own a home or save for a down payment.

Many of us don’t have to look far to see examples of this. We know people living this reality, or we’ve experienced rising rents and skyrocketing home prices ourselves.

I spent years preparing to buy my home, only to find out that, when I thought I was ready to make the biggest financial decision of my life, I still wasn’t truly prepared. I struggled to qualify for a mortgage because my $60,000 in student loans from earning my degree threw my “debt-to-income ratio” out of balance. To earn more money, I did what my generation was always told to do: Get more education. But even with a master’s degree, I couldn’t qualify for a mortgage that would afford a home in the community where I wanted to live.

Ultimately, what did it take for me to move my family into our own home? Working two jobs. How did I afford the down payment? With generous help from my family — an advantage I was fortunate to have and something so many others simply don’t.

As lawmakers, we must keep this public policy issue at the forefront of our minds. I’m committed to creating and sustaining affordable-housing resources and programs because it’s essential to help working families and the economy thrive. I know and live this as a single mother, and I want to help make that American dream of homeownership a reality for single parents and working people across the state.

We need the Delaware State Housing Authority to work with stakeholders to develop policies that address the availability and affordability of housing, including:

• A statewide housing-needs assessment, including the availability of rental housing for those who are unable to purchase a home and analysis of purchase and rental prices within reach of working families.
• Alternative housing options, such as permanent, supportive housing for persons with mental health challenges.
• Transitional shelters for our community’s most vulnerable residents in need of housing.
• A plan to work with developers on incentives to build houses that are reserved for moderate earners at below-market rate.
• A requirement that municipalities and counties allow at least 10 units per acre of undeveloped land zoned for residential uses.
• An evaluation of the state’s comprehensive plan regarding development and zoning practices to allow for an increase in the availability of affordable workforce housing with walkability to urban centers and employment opportunities.
• A fund to help reduce closing costs for low- to moderate-income earners in the form of a grant, not a loan.

To some, Delaware is the most affordable place to live, relocate or retire. In fact, according to the National Association of Home Builders, only 69% of households can afford a home worth about $193,000, which puts the average single-family house out of reach for nearly a third of families in our state. The reality is that higher prices and interest rates affect housing affordability. The housing demand is high, but affordability is almost nonexistent.

As a result, Delaware’s rental market is booming with overpriced apartments, leaving people hopeless about homeownership. However, I’m confident more people can achieve a good standard of living if we begin to address the severity of this issue now and make investments for the near-term and the future.