Statement from NAHB Chairman Jerry Konter on White House Rental Assistance Plan

Jerry Konter, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a home builder and developer from Savannah, Ga., issued the following statement on the White House residential renter package announced today:

“While not as bad as it could have been, the White House rental executive order is the wrong strategy, centering on rental protections instead of market-based solutions that will truly ease the nation’s housing and rental affordability crisis by spurring the production of badly needed affordable housing. Strengthening successful programs like the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit is the right way to proceed if we are to bring down rising home and rental prices.

“And while a key part of the Biden plan focuses on ensuring landlords help tenants who are behind in their rents, it is important to note that millions of small business multifamily property owners have already been working together with their tenants to keep them in their homes and make sure they are not evicted. And they were doing this during the height of the pandemic when renters were most vulnerable.

“If the administration is truly committed to help America’s renters, it will champion solutions that will enable builders to construct more apartments and homes to reduce the nation’s deficit of 1.5 million housing units. To increase housing supply and reduce affordability burdens, state and local governments can start by allowing for zoning to include more high-density housing, reducing regulations that stall building projects, encouraging public/private partnerships in development, and offering direct help to those that need it. These are the types of policies that will bring more affordable housing into the marketplace and ease rising housing costs.”