White House details plans to improve housing affordability

By JOSH BOAK
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — White House officials are outlining plans to build and restore more than 2 million homes. It’s a response to the volcanic rise in housing prices over the past year. Millions of Americans are getting priced out of ownership or stuck spending the bulk of their income on rent. The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller 20-city home price index climbed a record 19.1% in June from a year ago. Too few homes are available to buy, and low interest rates have enabled affluent buyers and real estate investors to pay more for homes. The White House Council of Economic Advisers said Wednesday housing supply has fallen short of population growth for four decades.