Politicians are trying to tie immigration to our housing crisis. They're lying. [View all]

[Nevilledog]

https://www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnbc-opinion/housing-prices-forced-deportation-immigration-rcna174048

There’s no doubt that we need to change our broken immigration system. And there’s no doubt that we need more housing. But while some politicians are trying to tie immigration to our housing crisis to justify extreme policies like mass deportation, the available evidence tells a much different story.

Some politicians try to make the United States’ housing shortage — estimates of the deficit run anywhere from 4 million to 7 million homes — a simple equation of supply and demand. Add more people, and housing prices go up; deport more people, and housing prices go down. The reality is far more complicated. Undocumented immigrants don’t just use housing. They also build housing, maintain housing and put money into the pockets of Americans who buy or rent housing.

Even if firms could eventually find new workers, there would be years of turmoil in the interim.
A new report from the American Immigration Council, where I am a senior fellow, finds that mass deportations would lead to a widespread economic downturn. The impact would be concentrated in industries that rely on undocumented workers, the most prominent of which is construction, the industry necessary to address the country’s housing shortage.

Our analysis finds that 1 in 7 people employed in the construction industry as of 2022 were undocumented, accounting for more than 1.5 million workers. Within many of the trades relevant to housing construction and maintenance, the proportion is higher. We estimate that more than 1 in 3 roofers, ceiling tilers, stucco masons, plasterers and drywall installers are undocumented. These workers not only build many of the roughly 1.79 million new units that go onto the market each year, they also maintain and repair existing housing stock. If you think getting a contractor is hard now, wait until the workforce has been cut by a third.

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