By: Colin Allen, Executive Director of the American Property Owners Alliance
Mar 17
Over the last two months, the housing market continues to shift. The current landscape poses challenges for buyers and sellers at all stages in the homeownership journey. With low availability of homes on the market coupled with rising mortgage rates, buyers face challenges. As the cost of living continues to rise, renters and homeowners alike are facing economic obstacles.
Read below for ways that The Alliance is involved in addressing the housing supply and affordability crisis, advocating on behalf of property owners, and restoring tax incentives for homeowners.
Tackling the Housing Supply & Affordability Crisis
The housing affordability crisis remains top of mind for buyers, housing providers, and current owners. Across the nation, there’s a missing middle of housing – or lack of diverse housing options beyond single family homes and large apartment buildings convenient to public transportation and other community services. The Alliance is working to make housing more affordable and accessible while protecting property rights and continuously advocating for policies that will alleviate the crisis.
Proposals like rent control ordinances decrease the supply of low- to mid-range housing units over time because developers are less likely to build in rent-controlled areas. Policies supporting rent control also place a large financial burden on small housing providers, creating additional challenges to maintain buildings and invest in updates on top of current inflation. The Alliance supports more effective and sustainable alternatives for closing the missing-middle gap such as modernizing zoning and creating new tax credits so builders can quickly increase housing stock and turn unused office spaces into residential units creating more affordable properties for renters and buyers.
From housing grants to new incentives to build and rehabilitate middle income homes, solutions exist, and we’re committed to pushing for ways to make homes more affordable. Read more about our thoughts on the rent control discussion and about three solutions to increase access to homeownership and revitalize communities.
Advocating for Property Owners
As an alliance committed to protecting the interests of current and aspiring property owners, we recently joined the National Association of REALTORS® and a host of other organizations to oppose property tax foreclosure laws which allow local governments and private businesses to keep home equity beyond what is owed in taxes, interest, and penalties rather than returning that equity to the original owner.
Homeownership is one of the best tools to build equity and wealth. We denounce the unconstitutional practice of home equity theft, meaning the unfair collection of home equity above what is owed in unpaid property taxes as part of a foreclosure settlement, as it strips families of significant savings and wealth built through property ownership.
Property ownership strengthens our communities and boosts the economy. Read more about our request to the Supreme Court to protect property owners and their financial security.
Coming Up: Tax Season
Tax season is here, and some policies to propose a national sales tax on the use or consumption of taxable property or services have been introduced through the Fair Tax Act of 2023.
The Fair Tax Act would restructure the nation’s tax system and significantly increase the national debt. While this bill would eliminate the IRS and the income tax, it would impose a 23%, or higher, tax on your home at the time of sale. As an alliance committed to protecting property owners’ rights, we have serious concerns with the potential impacts of this Act. Learn more about this legislative proposal.
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Thank you for your time,
Colin Allen, Executive Director
About the American Property Owners Alliance
The American Property Owners Alliance is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization created to protect and support property owners. The Alliance educates property owners on federal issues, laws and policies; to advocate for owners’ rights and interests; and to mobilize when necessary to secure those rights and interests. The Alliance is primarily funded by NAR but operates independently from the association with its own board of directors and separate bylaws.
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