Biden announces affordable housing measures during visit to Las Vegas

LAS VEGAS (KTNV) – Federal actions announced Tuesday by the Biden administration call on Congress to pass legislation to lower housing costs and create more affordable housing in Nevada and across the country.

The new measures – announced during President Joe Biden’s visit to Las Vegas – require corporate landlords to limit rent increases on existing apartments to 5% or risk losing federal tax breaks. These new measures also include proposed plans to rezone public lands to create more affordable housing and revitalize existing neighborhoods in Nevada.

Capping rent increases

The White House claims that some corporate landlords are making huge profits by raising rents above their own costs. Meanwhile, government watchdog Accountable.US said that since 2019, millions of Americans have struggled to make their monthly payments as rent costs have risen 31.4%, outpacing a 23% increase in wages.

A CPI analysis by the organization found that the six largest publicly traded homebuilders reported a $300 million increase in profits, largely due to rent increases.

Biden’s response is to eliminate certain tax deductions for landlords who own more than 50 housing units unless they limit their annual rent increases on existing properties to more than 5%.

However, an exception applies to new construction and major renovations and refurbishments. Biden said his plan will balance the needs of renters and the incentives of businesses, while his plan to build more housing closes that gap.

Repurposing of public spaces

As part of these new measures, Biden is also calling on federal agencies to evaluate surplus land to rezone it for new affordable housing.

On Tuesday, the Bureau of Land Management put that plan into action by soliciting comments on the proposed sale of 20 acres of public land in the southwest Las Vegas Valley below market value. The agency estimates the sale would create 150 affordable homes for families earning less than 80 percent of the area median income.

BLM also plans to announce a sale of 18 acres of public land to the City of Henderson at a below-market price. The City estimates that 300 affordable rental housing units could be built on the land if the sale goes through.

On a larger scale, local governments in Southern Nevada have already expressed interest in 562.5 acres of BLM land for affordable housing – an interest that the federal agency is currently reviewing. The White House says the land in question could be used to develop up to 15,000 affordable rental and condominium units.

The BLM owns about 26,000 acres in the Las Vegas Valley that could ultimately be considered for affordable housing under the Southern Nevada Public Lands Management Act, the White House said.

The White House says that in addition to BLM, other federal agencies are considering similar proposals and programs.

Conversion and renovation

Biden on Tuesday announced a $50 million grant to the Southern Nevada Regional Housing Authority and the city of Las Vegas. The grant will be used to renovate 235 existing housing units for low-income renters and build 400 new housing units.

In a press release, Senators Catherine Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen said the funds will be used to rehabilitate and create additional housing at the Marble Manor Apartments in the historic Westside, as well as to support community investments in the area, including job training, child care, sports and recreation centers, as well as a community garden and grocery store.

The White House said it has also invested in small businesses and an early learning center in Las Vegas. These federal investments are expected to unlock an additional $212 million in public and private funds for community spaces and support services for Las Vegas residents.

The $50 million grant for Las Vegas is part of $325 million in grants from the Department of Housing and Urban Development to support similar projects in cities across the country, the White House said.

“The funds will build over 6,500 new housing units, support small businesses, build child care centers and new parks, and mobilize over $2.65 billion in additional public and private investment in these neighborhoods,” the White House said.