As far back as he can remember, Maxwell Drever has been passionate about business. He grew up in a family where his father instilled in him the importance of financial discipline and regularly reminded him that opportunities are always there for those who worked hard and work smart.
What is Affordable Workforce Housing?
Affordable workforce housing is the key to improving the lives of millions of individuals and families currently living in metropolitan areas across the United States. In particular, lower-income families benefit, most specifically because it provides the worker with nearby access to the place where he or she is employed. The term “workforce” defines residents of a given area whose jobs are within that specific area.
Examples of jobs in this category include retail sales clerks, kitchen staff workers, maintenance staff employees, and many low-paid jobs in restaurants and hotels. Affordable workforce housing is key to making these types of employment efficient and critical to the American economy. Two reasons this is so. 1) they improve the general population’s access to employment opportunities, and 2) decrease congestion on the roads as commuters are no longer traveling so far to work each day.
These affordable workforce housing units must also be deemed reasonable by those applying for them. To be considered reasonably priced, affordable workforce housing must be available to meet the needs of low-income households. Specifically, this means the goal of affordability is for residents to pay no more than 30 percent of their income on housing.
Benefits of Affordable Workforce Housing
The first and most essential benefit of affordable workforce housing is that it allows employees to live close or even within walking distance of their workplaces. When this occurs, there are decreases in traffic congestion as commuters do not have to travel as far each day. It also reduces car usage, which directly reduces the amount of greenhouse gas emissions being pumped into our atmosphere each day.
And by living closer to work, residents also have fewer expenses each month as there is less need for gas and car maintenance due to shorter commute times. The result is money saved for the individual or family, which can be used for groceries, utility bills, and entertainment. In short, affordable workforce housing provides individuals with a better quality of life.
The benefits of affordable workforce housing are not exclusive to the residents either. Employers benefit from employing individuals closer to their jobs by saving money on gas and car maintenance costs. Why? Because a happier, healthier workforce is also a more productive workforce, which translates into increased employee productivity and business for employers.
Affordable workforce housing is a necessity for the future of metropolitan areas, particularly when it comes to young people and families. By focusing on this issue, employers will have happy employees who are both healthier and more productive, resulting in better business.
The goal of affordability is to create communities where residents can pay no more than 30% of their income on housing. This allows individuals to save more money for other expenses such as food and utilities, which have a more significant impact on one’s quality of life.