Wisconsin`s Affordable Housing Programs: Introduction

The impetus for increased access to affordable housing is a red-hot economic issue. What does Wisconsin do to address this problem and what should they do instead?

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Leo’s notes: Wisconsin’s housing debate has once again turned to affordability — but the real question is whether the state is ready to move from passive management to proactive reform. As the MacIver Institute points out, Wisconsin’s role has largely been indirect: relying on WHEDA’s bond-backed programs and federal partnerships while investing little state funding of its own. Yet with housing costs now consuming nearly half of household income and first-time buyers approaching 40, the status quo is untenable. Real progress will require more than expanding subsidies — it will take tackling structural barriers like restrictive zoning, outdated codes, and fragmented local rules that keep supply tight and prices high. Wisconsin’s next housing package will show whether lawmakers are prepared to take on those harder, long-term fixes.

Ken Notes: I get very nervous about using MacIver Institute as a source because they lean heavily to one side of the isle, but in this case the data, resources and links they include in the article are worth reviewing and saving. They also suggest a state led initiative which makes sense but I wold like to see a goals and intensives programs that gives local governments some flexibility. We need to identify programs that actually create lower cost homes by helping with zoning, building codes, and fixed costs like infrastructure and amenities (like parks or schools) rather than creating programs that will simply make developers more wealthy.