Red and Blue States Voted Yes to Affordable Housing Measures

A growing share of voters in both red and blue states supported ballot measures in last week’s midterm elections to address housing insecurity, with many proposals approved with nearly 70% of the vote, according to a new analysis from Moody’s Analytics.

In Austin, voters approved a $350 million affordable housing bond in a city where affordable housing currently encompasses just 6% of total rental market share, says Moody’s senior economist Lu Chen. Average affordable housing rent stands at $1,113 per unit and market inventory has grown by 16.4% over the past two and half years. Chen says the bond will further incentivize and support planning, designing, acquiring, constructing, renovating, improving, and equipping affordable housing facilities for low- and moderate-income households in the region.