Everyone should have the ability to live in safe, clean housing. Unfortunately, Northwest Florida is rapidly becoming a place where that is not possible. “Florida has become one of the most costly places to live in the country. And here in the Panhandle, we are losing affordable housing options everyday," says Schiller.
The COVID pandemic has created a perfect storm when it comes to the availability of affordable housing in our state. Inflation has hit in all areas of life - especially housing in our district. For example, the median price of a home in Pensacola has increased $70,000 in just two years. The average rent has risen over $200 per month since 2019.
Further strains are being placed on an inflated housing market by the flexibility of remote jobs that are allowing people to move to our area in record numbers. This housing boom is also happening on the heels of Hurricane Sally wiping out many of the affordable housing options that existed at the time. And new projects in the affordable housing sector have been slow to start because of supply chain issues caused by COVID.
According to HUD, affordable housing is defined as housing on which the occupant is paying no more than 30% of their household income to housing costs – including utilities. When the median rent in our area is around $1500 per month, many working class families who are supported by decent paying jobs, may still not be able to afford housing in our market.
Developers are building high-rent or luxury properties almost exclusively. Eager to take advantage of the skyrocketing housing prices, many landlords throughout the Panhandle are deciding to sell their properties, rather than re-rent to tenants. This leads to tenants, who have consistently paid their rent and maintained their properties, being given only a couple of months to find a new place to live - yet there are fewer and fewer places available for them to go. Hard-working families who have rented for years are now facing home insecurity with few alternatives.
Federal housing laws mandate that markets must provide a certain portion of affordable housing options and these laws do exist in Florida, but many are being ignored. Peggy says, “It’s time to start reigning in unfettered development, enforce existing housing laws, and help facilitate the growth of affordable housing options so that more of our citizens have the opportunity to continue to live, contribute, and thrive in our district.”
Original source can be found here.
