In the eyes of the panelists, the housing crisis in Michigan is clear: there is not enough affordable housing in the state. Michigan’s income has remained relatively flat, while housing costs have continued to rise, making it difficult for Michiganders to become homeowners.
“We are just short of four million units of housing across the country at this point. So it’s a supply a supply and demand problem right? And it is until we deal with that supply problem,” Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) said. “We can have all the policies we want at the federal level… but it doesn’t change your situation of trying to buy a house until you increase supply.”
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Partnership across the local, state, and federal levels is vital to solving the state’s crisis. Each community has different needs and will not always agree, but the way to find common ground is to have the right conversations, share the vision, and advocate collaboratively so that Michigan might see positive change.
“…We can’t expect to fix any of these problems in isolation,” Laura Grannemann of the Rocket Community Fund and the Gilbert Family Foundation said. “We’re going to have to learn how to walk and chew gum at the same time, and that means thinking really creatively about how to layer solutions together, how to take a big swing, a big bite at the apple, and work creatively together across the public, private, philanthropic sector to make a real change.”
Amy Hovey of the Michigan State Housing Development Authority further emphasized the benefits reaped when collaboration is prioritized, saying, “Where we are most successful is where we partner. It is where they have the businesses, the local government, the educational systems, the hospitals, all coming together to look at their housing issues and work on it together.”
Affordable housing has a large impact on Michigan’s economy, its ability to grow, and attract talent and families to the state. Without the state being pro-growth, the state cannot improve its economy.
“We have a different problem. And if we do not figure out how we can be a way where young families can live here, then people are gonna leave. They’re gonna go somewhere else,” Slotkin said. “It is existential for us as a state to grow, and that means being more open to having new kinds of housing.”
The panelists left listeners with a call to action. Get involved and demand a strategic housing plan in your community, encouraging a pro-growth mindset. Listeners should remember “You really need people to come together and formulate a plan, support that plan, provide a vision. It’s easier for us to invest when there is a vision and a plan,” Hovey said.
This session was hosted by Michigan State Housing Development.
