Voters in Wisconsin have revealed how crippling house prices have become a key issue for those living in the battleground state.
Prices in Wisconsin are now $333,200, with more than half selling for above listing price in June, according to Redfin.
The cost of a home has soared by eight percent in the last year, making it the largest increase in any of the swing states.
It is a factor which could have a major impact at the polls according to fed-up voters who say the situation has deteriorated under president Biden.
‘When Trump was still president, if we were making what we make now, we would be set,’ mom Nahona Moore, 28, told the Wall Street Journal, adding that she plans to change her lifelong Democrat voting habits in November.
Wisconsin voters such as Daron and Nahona Moore say soaring house prices are making them reconsider their voting habits
Moore who lives near Milwaukee and Wauwatosa, blames the government for, ‘not making anything better’.
She and her husband Daron have a combined income of $54,000 from her work as a makeup artist and his role as a nonprofit program manager.
They were browsing homes in the $160,000 bracket but were left frustrated at the lack of availability.
Eventually they managed to secure a home with help from non-profit Acts Housing but the experience means the couple does not plan to voter in the upcoming election.
The charity said it has seen demand for its services jump, while transactions are down 10 percent.
Fernanda Speranza and her fiancé Scott Scholtens have found themselves in a similar position despite having two ‘good’ incomes.
The couple have a $632-a-month mortgage which they are reluctant to give up even though they would like to upsize.
‘We got frustrated with the situation and having to spend so much time and not finding what we were looking for,’ said Speranza, 48 ‘It should not be this hard when we have two good incomes.’
Prices in Wisconsin are now $333,200, with more than half selling for above listing price in June, according to Redfin
Fernanda Speranza and her fiancé Scott Scholtens say the challenging market means they can’t afford to upsize despite making good money
The situation has left her undecided about who to vote for, although she stated housing is not her only concern.
While housing concerns remain present in the minds of American voters, the issue reaches much further than the policies of the Trump or Biden administrations.
House prices across the world were shunted upwards as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Record low interest rates, combined with a short supply of homes and buyers looking for more space while cooped up under lockdown generated an extraordinarily hot housing market, the effects of which are yet to completely cool.
The rental picture is not much better, with prices skyrocketing by 12 percent in the year to March to an average of $1,126 a month, per Redfin.
Meanwhile, the median income in Wisconsin is $39,547.
Hannah Noel, 24, has been forced to move back in with her mom after a breakup left her unable to afford rent.
Despite making $50,000 a year, she admitted she is ‘scared about the future’ and struggles to afford housing and groceries.
Her friend Mitchell Roehl is in a similar position and currently shells out $1,600 for a studio apartment he ‘regrets’.
Both Biden and Harris have made pledges to address affordable housing and the president has enacted executive orders to try and chip away at the barriers to home ownership.
The cost of a home in Wisconsin has soared by eight percent in the last year, making it the largest increase in any of the swing states
Young professionals, such as Hannah Noel and Mitchell Roehl pictured, say they are also struggling to rent in Wisconsin
These include a program to reduce the cost of title insurance, one of the biggest costs when buying a home.
He also proposed a new $10,000 tax credit for first-time buyers and offering up to $25,000 in down-payment funds.
Harris appears to have taken up the mantle and reference affordable housing in her speeches.
‘Vice President Harris will continue the fight for affordable housing for all Americans as president,’ Harris campaign spokesman Charles Lutvak said.
But her record has been blasted by the Trump campaign, who blamed her economic policies which they dub ‘Kamalanomics’ for the struggle many aspiring buyers face.
‘On top of sky-high prices for rent, gas and groceries, Kamalanomics has made the American dream of homeownership unreachable for young Americans and families across the country,’ said Karoline Leavitt, a spokeswoman for the Trump campaign.
