Vice President Kamala Harris has vowed to address the national housing crisis by building 3 million new homes over four years as part of her bid to win the White House. She is now releasing more details about this plan, focusing primarily on the Latino-heavy swing states of Arizona and Nevada.
The plan is detailed in a new minute-long ad released Tuesday, which targets voters in those two states. It highlights her personal housing experience growing up in a rental home while her mother saved for a decade before she could buy a home.
"For most of my childhood, we were renters," Harris narrated in the ad. "My mother saved for well over a decade to buy a home. I was a teenager when that day finally came, and I can remember so well how excited she was."
"I know what homeownership means, and sadly right now it is out of reach for far too many American families," she continued.
The ad explains that, in addition to increasing home construction, the Vice President is proposing the government provide as much as $25,000 in assistance to first-time buyers. The plan would create tax breaks for homebuilders focused on first-time buyers and expand incentives for companies that construct rental housing.
She has also promised to double the available funding to $40 billion to encourage local governments to remove the regulations that prevent additional construction.
"Vice President Harris knows we need to do more to address our housing crisis. That's why she has a plan to end the housing shortage (and will crack down on) corporate landlords and Wall Street banks hiking up rents and housing costs," said Dan Kanninen, the campaign's battleground states director.
The new ad is also part of Harris' $90 million end of August paid media blitz and is her third one focusing on the economy and lowering costs, according to the campaign.
With less than 70 days to the November general elections, the Harris campaign is increasingly focusing on some battleground states that will be key to winning the White House.
For instance, the campaign plans to hold housing affordability events in different Pennsylvania cities, including Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, as well as in different parts of ARrizona like Phoenix and Tucson. There will also be events in Las Vegas and Reno, Nevada; Asheville and Charlotte in North Carolina; and Savannah, Georgia.
On the other hand, the Trump campaign has floated an array of ideas for lowering housing costs. One of them, Trump suggested in a June speech in Wisconsin, would be to stop unauthorized immigration to reduce demand for housing.
"I will also stop inflation by stopping the invasion, rapidly reducing housing costs," Trump said.
He has also suggested Harris' housing plans are designed to help immigrants.
"She has no clue how she'd paid $25,000 to every first-time homebuyer, including illegals," Trump said at an August rally in York, Pennsylvania, claiming baselessly that her policy would support migrants without legal status.
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