Habitat Wake is excited to introduce three new Advocacy Committee members as we kick off the new year! Our Advocacy Committee includes 14 community members connected to affordable housing through policy expertise, relationships to local government, community organizing or lived experience.  

Everyone deserves the personal and economic stability of a safe, affordable home.

For a home to be affordable, housing expenses must be less than 30 percent of a family's income. In Wake and Johnston counties, one in four families spends too much of their income on housing, leaving little left over for other necessities like food, transportation, education and healthcare.

What is affordable housing? 

Simply put, housing is affordable when a household spends no more than 30% of their income on housing, including their rent or mortgage, property taxes, and insurance. 

July 1 marked the start of FY23, which means local governments are implementing their new budgets. Wake County and the City of Raleigh budgeted $1.7 billion and $1.14 billion, prioritizing investments to address population growth, inflation, affordable housing, and other rising demands.

Wake County grows by 62 people every day, making it the 3rd fastest growing county in the country. The local governments’ budgets reflect additional investments to balance this growth.

This Pride Month, we join in the celebration of LGTBQ community’s decades of activism and elevate their contributions to affordable housing. Habitat Wake supporters, staff, homeowners and our community at-large have benefited from the labor and creativity of this community, and for that we are grateful.

One of Habitat Wake’s supporters shared this about our mission:

On Wednesday, May 4, Habitat Wake hosted our first ever Local Lobby Day. During this day of action, advocacy volunteers raised their collective voices in support of affordable housing and asked elected officials for additional funding for affordable housing in the Town and City budgets.

As you may have heard, it’s budget season! From now through June, our local governments will be considering funding priorities and gathering input from the community to inform the budget for next fiscal year. Public budgets are the guiding document for how taxpayer dollars are spent. They reflect a community’s values and investment priorities.

Local budgets must first provide critical services to residents, such as water and sewer infrastructure, trash collection, and public safety. Additional revenues can be allocated to other types of programs like arts and cultural resources.