>>334428
While I agree that the best long-term solution is getting rid of NIMBY culture and making housing more available to all, nothing short of calling in the Army Corps of Engineers to build more housing will likely solve the issue. I’m probably against this idea because it would only fuel the ideals of militarism on our own soil if there were such a call for it in the future. But while we cannot solve the crisis immediately, there are a few short-term things to think about on an individual level.
1) Choose a dwelling whose living expenses are based on your income. For the time being, renting is likely better than buying, since buying could incur its own expenses and inflexibility, so you will likely need to choose a place whose rent does not exceed 1/3 of your gross income.
On this note, I would advise against living in poorer neighborhoods unless such choice is absolutely necessary. There is more crime in those areas and police tend to patrol them rather often as a result, so not only could you become the victim of a crime, you could be harassed by austere police officers who are “only doing their jobs”. You would thus need to invest in home security solutions that may ultimately push you over your budget and make living in a higher-income neighborhood more sensible.
2) If living within driving distance is still too tough for you, there are a few things you could possibly try, but not necessarily succeed at. You could possibly try to negotiate a higher salary with your supervisor, but I doubt that supervisors will be willing to pay their employees even more than they already have to during these troubling times. If that is the case, try searching for jobs that are closer to you and land you with more money available to you, which may not necessarily mean a higher salary if commuting expenses are calculated.
If worse came to worst, you could possibly try to seek cheaper housing far away and consider redefining what “driving distance” is. You could possibly try to ask for a company car or find a job that will give you one or consider the mass transport options that exist to get you to your workplace. Über also has a program called Ride Pass that can get you to where you are going from $14.99 per month, but this could possibly vary depending on where you live.
3) If not even this works, you may need to take action and become a housing advocate. Perhaps some ideas to petition include coverage of housing and transportation expenses for large businesses, the abolition of the power of the mob to cancel new housing projects, and the construction of new affordable housing in outlying areas, possibly with the inclusion of abolishing single-family-only zones.
One idea to use for your campaign include the fact that it may be more expensive to be homeless and poor rather than a middle-class person with a home because having a home means greater accessibility to work and being paid means having the ability to buy necessities in bulk and exercise the saving potential that comes with it. You could also say that employees are not willing to work because they require housing affordability.