Columnist Andrew Bradley details how Indiana’s new governor could be pivotal in shaping housing policy for millions of Hoosiers. (Getty Image)
With the past decade marked by decreasing homeownership, spiraling costs, and increasingly unstable homes, Indiana’s next Governor has the critical opportunity to become the ‘Housing Governor’ and help increase the supply and affordability of homes for all Hoosiers. Prosperity Indiana’s policy brief Housing Hoosiers, created for the Indiana University Public Policy Institue’s 2024 Gubernatorial Forum series, offers a guide for Indiana’s next governor to repair the state’s ladder to homeownership and housing security.
The brief conceives of a ‘housing ladder’ for Indiana that would allow Hoosiers to build assets and climb to larger homes as families grow and choose to step up from renting to homeownership. When structurally sound, each rung of the housing ladder would provide Hoosiers with a safe, stable, and affordable place to live without spending more than 30% of their income on housing costs. Investment in the preservation and rehabilitation of existing homes and in the enforcement of health and safety standards would keep each rung strong so homeowners and renters could enjoy stability wherever they choose to live.