High mortgage rates, persistently high home prices, inflation, considering crime and LGBTQ protections in deciding where to live: Those are some of the housing-related issues on Americans’ minds as they head to the polls for 2022’s closely watched midterm elections. That’s according to an October Redfin survey of 2,000 U.S. residents.
With monthly mortgage payments at a record high and inflation persisting, Americans care about housing affordability, as fewer than half say their financial situation has improved over the last few years.
When deciding where to live, Americans are giving outsized weight to affordability, crime & safety and local abortion laws–all issues crucial to this year’s midterms.
A record share of homebuyers are moving from one metro area to another as many Americans have the flexibility to work remotely and expensive places get more expensive. Many relocators are sorting themselves into areas where they agree with local politics.
Concerns about housing affordability goes beyond the individual level: Most Americans support policies to keep housing affordable and roughly one-third support dense housing.
