This upcoming election day, nearly every name on the ballot, from county offices to the Statehouse, belongs to someone who has the ability to make an impact on affordable housing in our community. Elected officials at both the local and state levels will decide where homes can be built, what kind of homes can be built, how they’re paid for, and who gets a say. Those decisions shape whether people in LaPorte County can find and afford a home they can stay in.
Last week on our social media channels, we shared five questions to ask candidates this election season. Today we’re diving a little deeper to explain why each of these five questions matters and what a strong answer actually sounds like, in support of affordable housing. Think of it as your listening guide for the candidate forums, the knock on your door, or the mailer on your kitchen counter.
A quick note: Homeward Bound Villages is a nonpartisan nonprofit. We don’t endorse candidates or parties. These questions are for every candidate, of every party, running for every office.
1. What is affordable housing’s biggest barrier?
One can’t fix what they can’t name. This question shows whether a candidate understands housing in our community or is reciting talking points. Barriers in Michigan City look different from those in Indianapolis or in southern La Porte County, and the barriers a city council member can address differ from those a state legislator can.
What to listen for
- Barriers specific to your city, county, and state, not just “housing is expensive everywhere. Location matters greatly. Affordable housing is a national problem, but you’re specifically asking about your exact location.”
- Names the real pressure points, such as too few homes at the prices local wages can support, aging housing stock, rents rising faster than paychecks, and rules that only allow one kind of home. In La Porte County, housing stock and the rate at which houses have been built over the past 30 years matter.
- Knows who is feeling it: seniors on fixed incomes, working families, young people trying to stay in the region, and neighbors one emergency away from losing their home.
- Connects the barrier to the job they’re running for, and what that office can actually do about it. This point is key.
Red flags
- “There isn’t really a housing problem here.”
- Blaming people who are struggling instead of naming the systems that make housing hard to reach.
- An answer so general it could be given in any town in America.
2. What zoning and housing types do you support?
Zoning is housing policy. Local zoning rules decide what can be built and where: whether a neighborhood can include a duplex, a row of townhomes, a small apartment building, or an ADU (accessory dwelling unit) behind an existing house. When the only thing allowed is a single-family home on a large lot, the starting price of a new home goes up, and so does the number of people who are priced out.
We covered this in depth in our September post, “Land Use Is Housing Policy: The Local Levers Communities Control.”
What to listen for
- Openness to zoning reform that allows more types of homes.
- Support for multi-unit dwellings like duplexes, triplexes, townhomes, and small apartment buildings.
- Support for accessory dwelling units (ADUs), such as carriage houses, garage apartments, and backyard cottages, that let families house aging parents or add a modest rental.
- A “yes on my street” attitude: support for new homes in their own ward or district, not only somewhere else.
- Interest in clearer, faster permitting so good projects don’t stall for years.
Red flags
- “I support affordable housing, just not here.”
- Treating every multi-unit proposal as a threat to the neighborhood.
- Nothing beyond “we need more housing,” with no idea how to allow it.
3. How would you use the tools our local government has to support affordable housing?
Indiana law prohibits cities and towns from enacting rent control. That puts the focus on the other tools local leaders do have, and those tools are significant. What matters is whether a candidate knows them and is willing to point them toward housing.
What to listen for
- Tax incentives, such as tax abatements, with real affordability expectations attached.
- Tax increment financing (TIF) districts: how TIF dollars are being used today, and whether housing and the infrastructure that supports it are part of the plan.
- Publicly owned land: putting city- or county-owned lots, surplus property, and tax-sale parcels to work for affordable housing.
- Partnerships with nonprofits, mission-driven developers, and housing organizations that can stretch public dollars further.
Red flags
- Unfamiliarity with these tools, or assuming local government has no role in housing.
- Support for incentives with no affordability strings attached.
- Waiting for the state or federal government to solve it.
4. What would you do to support renters and help people stay in their homes?
New homes take years to build. Keeping people housed today is faster, more humane, and less costly for the community as a whole. For many families, homelessness doesn’t start with a crisis; it starts with a math problem: a rent increase, a medical bill, or a car repair that the budget can’t absorb. The right support at the right moment can keep a family in their home.
Renters are neighbors and vital members of the community. At Karwick Village, every resident is a renter, and they run their community together through the Karwick Village Co-op.
What to listen for
- Rental assistance programs, including emergency help when a household hits a rough patch.
- Eviction prevention, such as mediation and access to legal help before a case reaches the courtroom.
- Home repair help so seniors and homeowners on fixed incomes can stay safely in the homes they already have.
- Safe, decent housing standards that hold properties to a fair bar without pushing tenants out.
- Respect for renters as full members of the community.
Red flags
- Treating renters as temporary or less invested in the community.
- A housing plan that only talks about homeownership.
- No plan for the households already on the edge.
5. How will you ensure those with housing instability are heard?
Those most affected by housing decisions are often the least likely to be in the room. Hearings held during the workday, meetings without childcare, and notices buried in legal jargon are the most common barriers. Good policy comes from listening to the people who live it.
What to listen for
- A real voice in housing decisions: concrete ways to bring people in, not just a promise.
- Accessible public input, like evening meetings, plain-language notices, and options to comment without taking time off work.
- Outreach through trusted places such as shelters, schools, churches, and service providers.
- Seats at the table for renters and people with lived experience on boards and commissions.
- A track record of showing up, and a commitment to keep listening after Election Day.
Red flags
- “My door is always open,” with nothing more specific.
- Only hearing from developers, property owners, or neighbors opposed to new homes.
- Interest in the issue that ends when the campaign does.
How to Ask
Do you want to ask these questions but don’t know where to start? Here are a few ways to talk to your local candidates:
- Candidate forums. Bring a question written down and ask it as worded.
- Email or call campaign offices. Most candidates list contact information on their websites or social pages.
- At your door or at community events. Candidates are out meeting voters right now. A two-minute conversation counts.
- On social media. Ask publicly in comments or send a direct message to a candidate’s accounts.
- Pro tip: Ask every candidate in a race the same question so you can compare answers side by side. Jot down what you hear. The answers are worth revisiting after the election, too.
After the Ballots Are Counted
Every porch light at Karwick Village is on because of decisions made in public meetings: about land, zoning, funding, and partnerships. Elections decide who makes those decisions. What happens next depends on whether the rest of us keep showing up.
So, ask the questions. Listen for the answers. Vote. Most importantly, stay in the conversation, because housing is on the ballot this year and needs to remain front and center on the agendas of our elected officials
Other Blog Posts in The Policy to Porch Light Series:
From Policy to Porch Light: Where We Go from Here
