In the last two days, I have experienced several renters asking for help locating and securing viable rentals in the Northern Nevada region. Unfortunately, they say, "many rental companies and independents will not give them the time of day and refer them to websites that yield no response to their inquiries". However, there is some hope to come soon, but will it be soon enough? Many questions loom and as they do, Nevada Treasure Zack Conine is organizing a state-wide tour to gain clarity for the most effective use of the funds from the American Rescue Plan.

In addition to the state-wide tour, inquires can be submitted to the Nevada Recovers Survey online. Furthermore, the Nevada Housing Coalition has requested that the state invest roughly $500 million in the construction of affordable housing for those who are the most affected. They notate that at present, the state is short 84,320 rental homes for extremely low-income renters, 81.5% of Nevadans pay more than half their income to rent, and only twenty available and affordable homes per one-hundred renter households. Of the $6.7 billion of the American Rescue Plan, Nevada has allocated $338 specifically for housing.

Although the continuation of the buildout of affordable housing is necessary, it is just as important to maintain the present inventory. As such, Senate bill 12 passed that was proposed earlier in the year by Sen. Julia Ratti. The bill stipulates that any owner of affordable housing that is financed by tax credits or other monies provided by the government must give a least twelve months' notice to the renter or be subjected to fines. The penalty the Nevada Division of Housing can impose on developers can be as much as $10,000 per occurrence.  

To help reduce urban sprawl, Senate Bill 150 that was introduced by Sen. Dallas Harris would require, "localities to find a place to put tiny homes, which are 400-square-feet houses. People can buy ready-to-build tiny homes from retailers including Amazon and Ikea." Interesting times require creative solutions and it seems that in today's world, nearly everything is available on Amazon. Would you be willing to buy a tiny home off of Amazon? I encourage your thoughts and comments below.

Image courtesy of David Gonzales