The Atlanta Regional Commission says the metro area needs more homes for lower-income residents. Demand is growing as more people move here and housing prices remain elevated.
Inside Saint Luke’s Episcopal Church, Anna Roach, who leads the commission, painted a stark picture.
“The Atlanta region is expected to meet only 25% of housing demands for households earning less than $55,000 a year through 2035,” said Roach.
This week, officials unveiled their first-ever regional housing plan to address growing affordability challenges – Housing Forward 2035.
It consists of four goals: to build new affordable homes that create jobs, lower transportation costs, increase equitable access to opportunity and promote climate resilience.
The plan also includes ten regional housing actions, such as building a strategic approach to homelessness prevention and response.
This week officials unveiled its first-ever regional housing plan to address growing affordability challenges inside Saint Luke’s Episcopal Church. (Marlon Hyde/WABE News)
“The target we have set for goal one is 367,000 new homes by 2035,” said Kristin Allin with the ARC.
She says more housing is needed across all income levels; however, 70% of new jobs between now and 2035 are projected to be in low- and moderate-wage occupations.
Atlanta is already short more than 200,000 affordable homes in this range.
“As a result, many of these lower-income households are living in homes that are more expensive than what they can afford, and that has led to our cost burden,” said Allin.
The ARC says there are challenges ahead, including tariffs and inflation, which have raised the costs of construction materials like steel, aluminum, and lumber.
The commission is launching a regional housing dashboard to track progress and for public transparency.