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Builders Mark National Homeownership Month With Efforts to Meet Workforce Housing Needs

“The economic, financial and personal benefits of owning a home should be available to everyone,” said NAHB President Bobby Rayburn. “Working families are the backbone of our country, and during National Homeownership Month, the members of NAHB are renewing the commitment to meeting their housing needs.”

Although the nation’s homeownership rate now stands at a record 68%, a recent study by the National Housing Conference (NHC) found that the median income of the nation’s elementary school teachers, police officers, licensed practical nurses, retail salespersons and janitors is below the $50,000 needed to qualify for a median-priced $156,000 home. In cities and the surrounding suburbs, these workers only have about a 30% chance of owning a home in the community they serve.

Working to address this problem, NAHB recently joined with Fannie Mae and other organizations to launch a major workforce housing initiative that would help revitalize 1,000 communities across America by expanding the stock of affordable housing for working families.

NAHB also launched the new Innovation in Workforce Housing Awards to recognize outstanding examples of workforce housing and showcase creative techniques to provide decent and affordable homes for workers in the areas in which they are employed.

For more information on the unique contribution of homeownership to individual families and the nation, click here.

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