Rep. Horsford Questions During Ways & Means Hearing on The American Housing Crisis

It's concerning to hear that rental rates in Las Vegas have increased by almost 30% in the past year, especially since our local economy has yet to fully recover. The hospitality industry, which is the main driver of our economy, is still struggling to reach pre-pandemic levels. 7 out of 10 of the most common jobs in Las Vegas don't pay enough to rent a studio apartment, which means that 70% of hospitality workers, such as culinary workers, bartenders, and servers, can't even afford to rent a place of their own, let alone achieve the American dream of owning a home. For instance, my constituent Linda, a single mother of three who lost everything in an unexpected fire, used to pay $1,650 a month for her rental home for nearly a decade. Now, through no fault of her own, they can barely find a place to live at any price. This is unacceptable, and we need to do better for our constituents who are being outbid by out-of-state corporate investors.