NewDEAL Forum Launches New Report: Housing Policies that Work to Lower Costs

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The NewDEAL Forum today released a new report from its Housing Task Force, capturing key lessons learned from the group's convenings, guiding principles for action, and examples of impactful policies that state and local leaders can use to address one of the most urgent challenges facing Americans: the cost of housing.

From rural communities to growing metros, families are being squeezed by rising rents, higher ownership costs, and a housing supply that has not kept pace with demand. The Task Force offers a roadmap, with dozens of policy options that are already working and that fit the needs of diverse areas across the country, offering hope that progress is possible when leaders act boldly and pragmatically. Model policies in the report are drawn primarily from the members of the Forum’s sister organization, NewDEAL -- a national network of 230 innovative, rising policymakers.

“As elected officials, we hear from constituents all the time about how the cost of housing is straining their budgets and holding them back — including the need for affordable housing for teachers, nurses, first responders, and others on whom our communities rely,” said the Housing Task Force co-chairs Nevada Treasurer Zach Conine, Louisiana State Senator Royce Duplessis, and Phoenix Vice Mayor Kesha Hodge Washington. “NewDEAL Leaders are leading the way. They are encouraging the construction of more housing units, employing innovative policies and novel building methods to increase housing stock, and tearing down red tape so that more people can find the affordable housing they need.”

“Housing affordability is one of the defining economic challenges facing families and communities across the country,” said Jonathon Dworkin, Executive Director of the NewDEAL Forum. “This task force has identified high-impact opportunities for state and local policymakers to expand housing supply, modernize outdated systems, and work across sectors to ensure more Americans can find affordable places to live.”

Over the past year, through virtual and in-person convenings with industry experts, thought leaders, and elected officials, four guiding principles for addressing housing affordability emerged:

• Increasing housing supply is critical to addressing affordability.

• Housing should be centered in all policy discussions.

• Success comes from an all-of-the-above strategy that encourages innovation and incorporates housing into broader policy goals.

• Meeting the scale of the challenge requires building coalitions across sectors and levels of government.

Four Key Lessons Learned

• More Housing = Greater Affordability
  The report emphasizes that increasing overall housing supply is among the most effective tools for reducing upward price pressures and expanding opportunity across markets.

• Housing Must Be Core to Policy Conversations
  Housing affordability is deeply connected to economic competitiveness and climate resilience — including the impacts of rising insurance costs and storm damage.

• Elected Officials Need an “All-of-the-Above” Strategy
  Progress requires pulling multiple levers at once — including policy reform, financing tools, and regulatory changes — and building a mix of all housing types.

• Build Broad Coalitions
  Housing solutions scale faster when cities, counties, states, nonprofits, and industry partners work together, creating durable pathways for innovation and long-term affordability.

• Highlighted Approaches
  The report also explores common barriers holding back housing production and affordability — including burdensome and outdated regulations, limited land availability, rising homeowners insurance costs, and siloed housing policy — and highlights strategies that leaders are deploying to overcome them.

An extensive city spotlight on the success of Phoenix, Arizona, illustrates how local leadership has used an all-of-the-above strategy focused on increasing housing production, reducing red tape, strengthening tenant protections, and leveraging targeted resources to accelerate housing delivery.

“This document provides a roadmap for elected officials across the nation to use to make affordability not just a slogan, but an action plan,” the Housing Task Force co-chairs said.

About the NewDEAL Forum

The NewDEAL Forum is a Washington-DC based non-profit organization that identifies and elevates innovative, future-oriented state and local policies that can improve the lives of all Americans. By facilitating the identification and spread of policy ideas, the NewDEAL Forum seeks to foster economic growth, reduce barriers to opportunity and promote good government in communities, cities, and states throughout the country.

###