Lehigh County funded a housing 𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 study (ARPA funds) to be conducted by the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission, while Allentown is conducting a housing 𝗮𝗳𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗱𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 study. Both aim to address the same issue but take different philosophical approaches. I believe attainability studies better address affordability across all income levels, including middle class.

𝗔𝗳𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗱𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗦𝘁𝘂𝗱𝘆: Focuses exclusively on low-income households often resulting in policy recommendations for big government interventions like subsidies, tax incentives or rent controls..

𝗔𝘁𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗦𝘁𝘂𝗱𝘆: Examines housing needs across broader income ranges, including middle-income families. It focuses on increasing supply to improve access, relying on supply-and-demand principles.

Here is an article explaining why rent controls in particular can be short-sighted.

Big-government interventions are often the policy outcomes of affordability studies. These strategies can distort supply-and-demand dynamics, discourage new inventory and worsen the problem, resulting in higher uncontrolled rents and home prices for middle-income families. This is a doubling down on strategies that despite being in place for decades in major American cities have not been broadly effective, arguably exacerbated inflation and ignored root causes. I do not support this for Lehigh County.

Strategies I do support aim to address affordability across ALL incomes using market solutions. That is what Lehigh Co. needs.