It was frustrating to read about the “right” housing affordability strategy in the Washington Post today. The article positioned those who support affordability through increasing overall housing supply on one side against those who support government policies to address housing on the other.
Your first reaction may be, “Why can't both approaches be part of the solution?” If so, you are absolutely right.
It is 2026 and we need complex solutions to our pressing societal challenges, including the cost of living, and the biggest expense for most families: housing costs. Arguing against an approach because it doesn't immediately solve all challenges when described in its simplest form is not only frustrating, but potentially misleading.
Also, the belief that there is one magical solution that will simply and quickly solve all the housing challenges we face is equivalent to the snake-oil salesperson from centuries ago - not the modern solutions we need today. Placing compatible perspectives at odds and against one another as if it is a zero-sum game is counterproductive and helps no one.
There is nothing preventing us from encouraging the construction of more housing AND taking policy actions to ensure that more people have an affordable place to live AND ensuring that communities remain livable and strong AND addressing other issues.
For example, a community can remove barriers to building ADUs in single family neighborhoods and more "middle housing" types near transit, AND add incentives for building with universal design, AND have a housing voucher program AND have design regulations and code enforcement to ensure safety and cleanliness AND build/support subsidized housing AND ensure that housing policies are applied fairly.
These are just some of the tools in the toolbox, and we must also consider many issues adjacent to “housing policy” that influence the local landscape: those related to monetary policy, economic forces, transportation, building materials and design, demographic change, development patterns, family structures, culture, historical practices and on and on. Success means interweaving housing opportunities with related concepts such as safety, healthy living, social engagement, economic opportunity and fairness for all residents.
The real solutions come from having a wide lens and harnessing actions by policymakers, industry, non-profits / philanthropy, and families / individuals. All of these perspectives go together and actions must be informed by research to be most effective. Importantly, we must prioritize and activate solutions based on what we can do and what conditions we face.
You have seen me and teams I have worked with create an index that measures communities across interrelated issues, draft model policies, support smart growth / livable community initiatives, and most importantly, champion approaches that address today's problems, consider future impacts while recognizing the impact of actions in the past, and work with a range of partners to spread the word. Addressing our housing challenges involves everyone.
At this point in our nation’s evolution, we have many complex challenges, as the easy ones have already been solved. Our housing challenges are deep and rooted in a wide range of causes, and local conditions vary. That should not make the challenge more intimidating, but instead raise the profile of addressing it.
I once took a course where we were encouraged to "yes, and" ideas - instead of shooting a potentially good idea down in its early stages, you would build on and improve it by saying “yes” to the idea and add to it to improve it. We need that approach for all of our pressing policy challenges.
If we are serious about addressing our housing needs and addressing the root causes, we would have a real national, statewide, community, and family conversation about what we could do. Let's “yes, and” the approaches that tackle parts of the challenge, and eventually, we can tackle enough of it to make a real difference. In the meantime, let's not distract ourselves by arguing about which one tactic is the "right" answer.
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