Thirty-eight percent of first-time voters said housing availability influenced their vote for president. Harris voters (43 percent) are more likely to care about housing than Trump voters (29 percent), Redfin said.
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Thirty-eight percent of first-time voters say housing affordability influences their vote, according to a survey from Redfin.
Voters who support the ticket of Vice President Kamala Harris are more likely (43 percent) than voters who support the ticket of former president Donald Trump (29 percent) to say that the candidate’s housing policies influenced their vote. While housing was one of the top 14 issues on voters’ minds, it was ranked below other hot-button issues including the economy (63 percent), inflation (59 percent), protecting democracy (56 percent), immigration (5 percent -55). ) and health care (52 percent).
“Although voters who have already voted are more likely to mention other things besides housing costs, it is still an important factor for many voters,” the report reads.
Harris and Trump have both offered plans to improve affordability and increase homeownership rates. Harris’ plan is arguably broader and includes $25,000 in down payment assistance for first-generation home buyers, a $10,000 tax credit for middle-income homeowners, a closing-cost waiver on refinanced mortgages and $1 billion in affordable housing.
Meanwhile, Trump’s housing policy has focused on easing building regulations, lowering energy costs and curtailing the rights of undocumented immigrants, as he blames them for the country’s housing shortage.
“It has become more difficult to afford to buy or rent a home since the pandemic-driven pandemic, which has driven up housing costs,” the report read. “It’s worth noting that homes in blue areas of the state are generally more expensive, which may be one of the reasons Harris voters are more likely to say housing affordability influenced their vote than Trump voters.”
Although housing policy ranked low in the presidential race, a Redfin survey revealed that the issue had a significant impact on local voters’ votes. 40 percent of respondents said housing affordability influenced how they voted for local officials — a 5.26 percent increase from voters who said the same about their presidential vote.
Crime and safety (50 percent), the economy (46 percent), and inflation (41 percent) were the only issues to surpass housing affordability at the local level with health care (37 percent) and protecting democracy (5 percent 36) leading up. five local voting complaints.
Finally, voters on both ends of the spectrum say they believe the election results will have an impact on mortgage rates.
Thirty-two percent of Trump voters said mortgage rates would go down if that candidate was elected, while 23 percent of Harris voters said the same. Among those who expect rates to increase, Harris voters are more likely (32 percent) to expect a bump if their candidate wins compared to Trump voters (28 percent). About a quarter of voters on both sides of the spectrum said they “don’t know” what will happen to rates while about 20 percent said they think rates will stay the same.
Redfin said the Federal Reserve has a large influence on mortgage rates, as it sets the federal funds rate in response to inflation and other macroeconomic trends. However, the president and Congress can influence the “long-term direction of the economy” through policy changes.
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