The overarching story is the lack of coverage as a whole outside of downtown Phoenix

and Cronkite. One of the most significant issues prevalent within all the media outlets is that the
majority of coverage from any news outlet revolving around Cronkite lacks the focus on
anything that happens beyond downtown Phoenix. Cronkite has outlets such as The Blaze,
Cronkite News, State Press and Downtown Devil that are all very well maintained, but lack the
focus of other real world issues. The main focus for this story was on the lack of affordable
housing across the Valley and the lack of coverage throughout.

The year 2022 has not only been a year with new challenges, but also new opportunities.
While still being faced with obstacles from the global pandemic, people are pursuing new
endeavors. People are graduating college, getting new jobs and moving to new cities across the
country, especially Phoenix, Arizona. Phoenix is a fast-growing city which means it's not only a
hot spot for people who are relocating , but it now has the biggest affordable housing issues
across the nation. Meaning, the market has become clustered and has been the worst it’s been
since 2005.

According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, affordable

housing is defined as housing on which the occupant is paying no more than 30 percent of their
gross income for housing costs, including utilities. Households that exceed that amount toward
housing expenses are considered to be cost-burdened. This does not include other expenses that
people have such as gas, food, student loans, etc. This housing wage is more than low-income
workers typically make. The minimum wage in Arizona is $12.80, according to the Industrial
Commision of Arizona. An individual who works 40 hours a week at a minimum-wage job
would be considered cost-burdened because they have to spend most of their income on
payments on their housing needs.

The Morrison Institute for Public Policy, which is funded by the Arizona Community
Foundation, introduces a perspective on how barriers are placed in order to impede affordable
housing. Andy Sinclair, the Capacity Development Coordinator for the Department of Economic
Security, has been with the organization for five years and has also been a resident of Arizona for
six years. Moreover, Sinclair has been able to see the struggles in the housing market firsthand.
With that, Sinclair said that “rent jumped fifteen percent to twenty percent due to the shortage of
housing.” The city of Phoenix is desperate for affordable housing units to be readily available to
citizens with all income levels.

Another factor that contributes to the affordable housing issue is the cost of the
transportation of goods and materials. It costs money to transfer housing materials by truck,
plane, or sea and the fact that gas is so expensive has made it difficult for developers to expand.
With that, products such as Boxabl are the future and will help terminate the problem of
affordable housing. Boxabl is an American housing construction technology company based in
Las Vegas, Nevada. According to a representative, Boxabl “...price and cost estimates for a
prefab home from Boxabl range from $54,500 to $99,500 total”. These prices constantly
outcompete with the normal prices of homes throughout the Valley and throughout various parts
of the country. These costs will allow those in lower budget categories the ability to live in small,
luxurious, affordable houses.

Furthermore, the city of Surprise has received a $665,000 grant from the U.S.
Department of Housing & Urban Development to bring more affordable housing opportunities to
residents of the West Valley community.The grant is coming from the new Citizen Participation
Plan and HOME funding program through Maricopa County. A hearing was held Feb. 9 to
discuss how the grant money would be used. The focus of the grant is for creating new housing
units within the city in order to bring more diversity and other economic opportunities to the
community, Surprise city officials said. One of those needs was a stronger focus on providing
adequate housing needed for economic expansion, specifically for low-income and middle-class
individuals. “There needs to be more units available for people with different types of incomes,
which will not only fix the diversity issue in housing but a mixture of incomes in that community
will attract different types of people,” said Adam Lane, Neighborhood Services supervisor in
Surprise.

According to Realtor.com, the average price for a single-family house in Surprise is

$435,000-$456,000. The average individual income is $34,000, and the average household
income is $69,000, hardly enough to afford the steep mortgage that comes with homes priced in
the $400,000s. On the other hand, the average cost of rent in Surprise is $1,700 for 975 square
feet, also a difficult monthly payment for someone making less than $35,000. Lane said that
there are more homeowners than renters in Surprise, and the city needs a balance. Overall,
having more affordable units available is extremely important to people in Phoenix. Affordable
housing impacts the city’s business and industries due to the fact that it brings in more people
from diverse backgrounds and different income levels.