Agents of Change
Every day, I see how rising housing costs are making it increasingly difficult for hard-working families to make ends meet. For decades, home prices have been outpacing household incomes, and we are now seeing a whole generation being locked out of the promise of homeownership. Spiraling housing prices have also left millions of families struggling to keep a roof over their heads while affording basic necessities, such as food and medicine.
In the U.S., home costs make up one-third of the consumer price index — the most widely-followed inflation gauge. Before the pandemic even began, 1 in 7 U.S. households were spending half or more of their income on housing. Inflation is eroding families’ ability to save, pushing many homeowners and renters to the brink of eviction and foreclosure — and locking potential new homebuyers out of the market.
We have been underbuilding for a decade. Estimates are that we are between 3 and 6 million units short of what is needed in this country. The remedy will require us to continue providing subsidies — like down-payment assistance. However, if we do that and don’t address the supply issue, we will make the problem worse.
The situation is similar to what has happened with college tuition. By offering students financial aid without creating more seats in classrooms, we have created fierce competition for few too opportunities. Therefore, students still come out of college with massive debts.
I recently spoke to a gathering of Habitat for Humanity organizations and pointed out that housing costs in markets that were once considered affordable put home buying out of reach for many. Dallas was one of those markets. The executive director of our affiliate there told me that in just the three weeks following the conference, the situation had gotten dramatically worse. Habitat homes are appraising for 40% more than just two years ago, and incomes have only increased slightly.
Throughout the country, the rising costs of land and labor, COVID supply-chain challenges, and regulatory requirements are making it very expensive to build homes. In addition, private investors purchasing homes for rental have further narrowed supply. And there is no magic bullet.
We can’t rein in housing inflation until we correct the systemic housing shortage, particularly our under-supply of decent and affordable homes. The lack of modest, starter houses is affecting every major region of the country and is having an outsized impact on marginalized communities in particular.
The roots of racial inequity in housing run long and deep, bolstered by a web of government policies and private actions that mutually reinforced the exclusion of people of color from homeownership. In 1910, Baltimore, Maryland, enacted the first formal local ordinances that created all-Black and all-white street blocks in response to the growing Black migration from the South. These ordinances spread across the U.S. until the Supreme Court outlawed the practice in 1917.
In Euclid v. Ambler in 1926, the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed the practice of exclusionary zoning, which focused on the creation of economic zoning policies. Because many Black families could not afford to buy around the expensive housing restrictions, such “race-neutral” economic zoning policies had a racially discriminatory effect.
Then, in the 1930s, the Federal Housing Administration refused to guarantee mortgages for homes in communities where households of color lived or in those communities redlined in the color-coded maps developed by the federal Home Owners’ Loan Corporation. The maps redlined neighborhoods occupied predominantly by households of color or those situated close to unhealthy environmental hazards (i.e., “smoke, odors, and fog”) and deemed them financially risky for lending. Private lenders followed their lead and refused to extend mortgages to Black potential homebuyers.
On the local level, many homeowners and local communities adopted racially-restrictive covenants that forbade any buyer from reselling a home to Black buyers. Though struck down as illegal in 1948, the policies remained on the books of many communities for decades.
Homeownership is one of the primary ways that families build wealth, but today, we're still seeing a huge number of families of color being shut out of the chance to become homeowners. Only 44% of Black families own their homes compared to 73.7% of white families. The wealth gap in the U.S. can very often be traced to housing issues.
So, what are followers of Jesus called to do about societal challenges like affordable housing and racial equity?
Seek Wisdom
Let’s start with what Scripture tells us about wisdom. James 3:17-18 says “But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness.”
Nothing about plotting to exclude, working around the law, or demeaning others fits at all with these descriptions. Many reasons exist for why God’s people have allowed housing to become such a divisive tool.
It’s hard to fight years of injustice and layers of policy.
Until the summer of 2020, many people had no idea that practices such as redlining were commonplace in some communities.
Often people are fearful that in making life better for others, they will lose something they hold dear.
For Christians, providing hospitality and shelter opportunities are at the heart of what it means to love our neighbors. And Jesus was clear that our neighbors are those in need. One of our mission principles at Habitat is that no one lives in dignity until everyone lives in dignity. We believe that is what a just and good society would look like.
Walking alongside the poor is the central economic concept in the Bible; therefore, followers of Jesus are called to share their resources, to be good stewards, and to trust in God’s provision.
Be Bold
People of faith have a responsibility both to provide hope and to take action on behalf of those who struggle in desperate circumstances. And the Church can act on many levels.
The first concerns local influence. We must lead the way to battle NIMBY attitudes (not in my backyard) or BANANA proclamations (build absolutely nothing anywhere near anything). Walls go up really fast in communities of opportunity when we talk about building more affordable housing. But if we have done the work to build relationships, to foster trust, and to promote attitudes of authentic community, it becomes much easier to convince people to move to “yes in my backyard.”
The best model in which all of us can flourish is to create mixed-income, mixed-use communities where people can live close to the places they work. It's better for the environment, and it’s better for social mobility and opportunity. But, in the last 50 or 60 years, we've moved in the opposite direction in the way we have organized our cities. There’s an urgency to figure this out.
Zoning continues to be a barrier for creating more housing opportunities. Churches and other community groups can advocate for land-use policies that increase affordable homeownership development opportunities.
One of the things that first attracted me to Habitat was the fact that we are not against things; we are for opportunities to help all people build a better life. The way we do our work is as important as what we do. Our mission is housing, and joining together to raise the walls of a home builds bridges and creates community.
“As the physical walls of the home go up, the invisible walls that separate us as people come tumbling down, and new hope is built in the heart of the community.”
–Archbishop Desmond Tutu
Be Generous
One of the giant impediments to building more housing is finding land to build on, so there's a possibility of actually creating social enterprise and helping create housing opportunities. Many churches have land that could be dedicated to creating sites for housing.
For example, after years of discernment, in 2018, the affordable housing task force at Longview Presbyterian Church in Longview, Washington, connected with the local housing organization and began working on a plan for developing two acres of land adjacent to the church property. With unanimous approval from the Olympia Presbytery, the congregation decided to provide space for 48 affordable housing units, about half of which would be reserved for people transitioning from homelessness.
Across the country near Washington, D.C., the congregation of Arlington Presbyterian Church had dwindled from 1,000 members strong in the 1950s to only about 60 parishioners in recent years. After talking with neighbors about what they needed most, church members decided to tear down their building and sell the land to make way for 173 units of low-income housing and ground-floor retail space.
Local congregations can also be conveners, bringing together community residents, business and government leaders, and nonprofit groups to design plans for thriving communities that are welcoming for all.
Earlier, I mentioned the power of the Church to influence local opinions about issues such as zoning. Churches also have a powerful voice that can help raise awareness on a wider level concerning the need for adequate and affordable housing. By formally recognizing housing as a human right, the Church, as a credible institution, can marshal others to action. Clear appeals from the faith sector can influence policy changes that would help low-income families access housing and the financing for housing. Churches can also hold their parishioners, their communities, and their lawmakers at every level accountable for offering compassionate support to those struggling in unthinkable living conditions.
Solutions won’t be easy, but the timing is perfect. The COVID-19 crisis has revealed and exacerbated the suffering of many who were already living in desperate situations. Recently, Habitat organized our advocacy conference during which we met with more than 400 members of Congress. I was really struck that the urgency of the housing crisis finally was starting to resonate. Habitat, as housing practitioners, and we, as the Church, have the attention of the nation. We cannot afford to be complacent.
Pray
We ask God for open minds and open hearts. We pray for the desire to serve our neighbors in the ways that best meet their needs and for strength to stand up for the things we know are right. Keeping our thoughts fixed on God’s purposes enables us to be creative and to be committed. So, we will ask for wisdom, boldness, and generous hearts as we seek to be faithful followers of Jesus.
Article originally hosted and shared with permission by The Christian Economic Forum, a global network of leaders who join together to collaborate and introduce strategic ideas for the spread of God’s economic principles and the goodness of Jesus Christ. This article was from a collection of White Papers compiled for attendees of the CEF’s Global Event.