One of the inescapable conclusions from the impressive recent community public safety conversations in neighborhoods around Madison is that home ownership matters. Certainly, renters are important members of our community and we need rental properties and engaged owners and tenants.
But, it is homeowners who feel a sense of investment and commitment to a neighborhood and it is simply good policy to encourage homeownership as much as possible. Affordability is key.A recent University of Wisconsin study found residents of the Park Street corridor for example valued their neighborhoods and want to stay there. But more than half of respondents are paying more than a third of their incomes for housing and that’s tough to sustain. The survey itself was significant because it used a community-based model that suggests a high level of credibility.