Housing
Overview
While Greater Des Moines has been recognized nationwide for its low cost of living, thousands of central Iowans search for homes they can afford. According to the Polk Co. Housing Trust Fund, Polk County faces a shortage of roughly 11,000 housing units for extremely low-income renters.
Objectives
Market forces are driving rents higher and higher, and home ownership is becoming increasingly difficult. At the same time, many of the fastest-growing jobs in our community are paying low wages that increase the need for these affordable homes. To make housing more affordable to central Iowans with lower incomes, we need to develop new homes at lower prices and expand access to existing homes even as government resources continue to dwindle.
Join Us
The OpportUNITY Housing Workgroup meets the third Monday of each month at 1 p.m. If you are interested in joining the workgroup, please submit the form below.