When Politicians Claim They’ll Fix Housing, Here’s What You Should Look For

After decades of neglect, housing policy has once again become visibly politicized in the U.S., a testament to effective organizing by groups like KC Tenants and Moms for Housing. As a result, politicians everywhere, from President Joe Biden to candidates for mayor in NYC, suddenly have housing proposals.

Public-facing policy proposals–whether you encounter them on a candidate’s website or during a mayor’s State of the City–can be difficult to parse because they serve multiple purposes: a signal to a politician’s constituencies, a strike against political opposition, and (maybe!) a plan for accountable governance