Kamala Harris has big plans to address North Carolina’s housing crisis

Kamala Harris helped deliver funding to get more seniors and working families in Mecklenburg County into affordable homes. Her plans for addressing the housing crisis if elected President will impact many North Carolina families.

More seniors and working families will have affordable homes in Mecklenburg County, due to more than $158 million in funds from the Biden-Harris administration that the Board of County Commissioners has distributed to local organizations and community projects over the past two years. Now, as she campaigns for president, Kamala Harris is promising to double down on those efforts and has proposed plans to solve North Carolina’s housing crisis.

Harris wants to build 3 million new homes by 2028, which would dramatically expand the housing supply for aspiring homebuyers. She’s proposed a three-prong plan in order to reach that goal: a $40 billion tax credit to make building new housing more economically practical for builders; expanding a credit which provides incentives for both state and local investment in housing; and streamlining the permitting and approval processes to ensure more homes get built.

“There’s a serious housing shortage in many places. It’s too difficult to build, and it’s driving prices up. As president, I will work in partnership with industry to build the housing we need, both to rent and to buy. We will take down barriers and cut red tape, including at the state and local levels,” Harris said in an August speech in North Carolina.

Harris has also vowed to create a plan to provide lower-income first-time homebuyers with up to $25,000 in down payment support in order “to help more Americans experience the pride of homeownership and the financial security that it represents and brings.”

Investing in affordable housing for North Carolina

Harris, long a champion of housing rights as vice president, as Attorney General of California, and as a US Senator, touted the importance of addressing the housing crisis earlier this year.

“For people all across our nation, a home represents financial security, the opportunity to build wealth and equity, and a foundation for a better future for themselves, their children, and future generations,” Harris said. “[Federal funding] will build more affordable homes and support renters and homeowners while also lowering costs, building wealth, and creating jobs.” 

The housing crisis remains a major issue in North Carolina, but funding from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) has provided a groundwork for Harris to build off of. 

All told, there are 27 affordable housing projects being funded by the American Rescue Plan Act in Mecklenburg County. Here are some highlights from 2023:

• $6 million for West Boulevard Corridor: West Side CLT will create 120 new units for seniors (55+), with rent as low as $414 per month, and preserve 53 units for single families.
• $6 million for Mount Moriah Senior: Laurel Street Residential and Mount Moriah Missionary Baptist Church will create 70 new units for seniors.
• $5 million for Creekridge On The Park: Dominium will create 150 new units for workforce housing.
• $1.7 million for Hope Springs Infrastructure: Habitat for Humanity Charlotte Region and Greater Bethel AME Church will create 29 new units for single families.
• $1.6 million for Lakeview Apartments: Urban Trends Real Estate will create 36 new units.

Approved projects pass a vigorous vetting process to ensure they are effective, equitable, and will improve the quality of life for Mecklenburg residents, and the new housing units could provide sorely-needed housing opportunities for vulnerable populations such as seniors and families with children.

North Carolina benefits from the American Rescue Plan Act

The Democratic-backed American Rescue Plan Act passed in 2021 to provide vital financial support to communities and families suffering from the COVID-19 pandemic and its consequences. No Republicans voted in favor of the bill, and Vice President Kamala Harris cast the tiebreaking vote in the US Senate to pass it into law.

North Carolinians have experienced many benefits from the American Rescue Plan Act, ranging from the unemployment rate falling to huge healthcare savings. Local governments received recovery funds to support residents and invest in their future, and Mecklenburg County won a national award for how it managed the distribution of $215.6 million to local organizations that address local issues — a process which involved leaders taking feedback from the community. 

The ARPA funds have been transformative to nonprofits. 

Charis Blackmon, the Executive Director of West Side CLT, last year praised ARPA funding as “the largest gift we’ve received to date from a single funding source. The support provided by the County has been catalytic in our efforts to preserve and create perpetual affordability. [Without that support,] these homes likely would have been lost, families displaced, and affordability erased.” 

Get updates on projects in your community

Mecklenburg County continues to use ARPA funding to support and promote community projects, and that progress can be tracked here.