While there are plenty of hot-button issues being hashed out on the campaign trail these days - immigration, foreign policy, marriage equality, and taxes just to name a few - one that doesn't get too much press or air time is the housing market. Indeed, while it may not strike the same chord in voters like some of the aforementioned topics, the quality, affordability and availability of our nation's housing stock is critical to the health and well-being of its citizens and economy. Those of us whose livelihood rests on home building and remodeling have an even greater reason to be concerned with the policies that shape the housing market. And the home building industry is a hefty contributor to the U.S. economy, with NAHB estimating that home building and remodeling generated 274,000 jobs over the past two and a half years, and residential investment (including building and remodeling) amassing up to 5% of the country's GDP.Considering all of this, as you weigh the stances on each of the candidates listed on your November ballot, BIA members and friends would do well to heavily consider housing policy in determining who will earn your vote. As the voice of our behemoth industry, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) reached out to presidential candidates Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, whose campaigns both "eagerly" accepted the invitation to address NAHB members and leaders regarding their respective stances on housing policy at the August Board meeting held in Miami. Gene Sperling, cheif economic advisor on the Clinton team, presented on Wednesday, August 10, while Trump spoke on August 11.In short, Sperling recognized housing's importance to the economy - and even more specifically the jobs it creates - in furthering Clinton's goal to help the middle class.The major takeaways NAHB reports regarding what Clinton plans to achieve for the housing market include:Defend and expand the Low Income Housing Tax Credit.Encourage communities to implement land use strategies that make it easier to build affordable rental housing near good jobs by increasing funding for infrastructure banks and competitive grant programs.Support common sense relief for community banks and make sure that any reforms level the playing field so that Wall Street banks do not have any advantages over community lenders.Focus on a major infrastructure plan in which "she sees construction and housing as part of that larger infrastructure." (source: NAHB.org)You can read more about Sperling's address in NAHB's article here.Trump, in his remarks, focused on the need to cut burdensome regulations that create barriers to building. Other items on his chopping block included taxes across the board and corporate inversions."We will impose a temporary moratorium order on new agency regulations. We'll cancel all illegal and overreaching executive orders signed by President Obama. We will eliminate all regulations that kill jobs. We will remove the bureaucrats that only know how to kill jobs and replace them with experts who know how to create jobs without regulations."He noted that, as the son of a home builder, he holds a deep connection to and respect for our industry, Read NAHB's full article on Trump's appearance here.As for the rest of the government seats open for reelection, if you'd like to know more about where each party stands on crucial housing policy issues, HousingWire has put together a helpful inventory on each party platform's official stances specifically on housing finance reform. Check out the list here to see where your affinity more closely lies.The bottom line is we want our members to be educated voters, specifically on the important issues surrounding the industry where we work - the industry that creates the spaces where we live. We are fortunate to have a powerful voice standing behind us in the NAHB, a voice strong enough to beckon our presidential candidates to personally address the issues nearest and dearest to us. We thank each of our members for your support of our continued efforts to foster a fair market environment that meets the housing and building needs of our community - and our nation.
