“Reclaiming Affordability” is an op-ed series in partnership between the Independent Women and the Washington Examiner. Each day this week, a policy expert at Independent Women will tackle the top concern on the minds of voters this election cycle from a different angle, putting forth realistic solutions to the affordability crisis.
As a young woman with debt, rising rent costs, gas prices, and utility bills occasionally make me doubt whether I will be able to afford the things in life I long for. Despite working a full-time job and being frugal with my money, times of financial instability have made me reconsider basic quality-of-life choices like whether I can visit family on holidays.
Affordability is top of mind for women, especially those who are responsible for other family members. In most households, women make the spending decisions — from groceries to housing to extracurricular activities for kids. They are most concerned about affording housing, healthcare, and other basic needs such as utilities. According to a New York Times survey, 70% of women think a middle-class lifestyle is out of reach for most people in America, and 40% of women think the life they should be able to afford is out of reach for them.
AMERICA’S AFFORDABILITY CRISIS IS A HOUSING SHORTAGE. WE CAN FIX IT IN THREE STEPS
In recent years, what used to be considered a normal lifestyle has become unaffordable. A quarter of American households live paycheck to paycheck, and only 47% of Americans can cover an emergency expense. Current generations are paying more of their income than ever to afford necessities such as housing and education. In a rapidly changing world, policies that support affordability are more important than ever.
Policymakers need to focus on creative housing solutions, reliable energy grids, transparent healthcare, and flexible work options that make caring for children or elderly parents possible. Fortunately, these policies exist, as detailed in a new report, “Reclaiming Affordability.” The Trump administration is already moving the needle by increasing take-home pay and cutting taxes through the Working Families Tax Cuts (also known as the One Big, Beautiful Bill Act).
However, policymakers at the federal, state, and local levels should enact reforms across different industries that will bring down costs in the long run. In housing, prices are high due to a shortage of new and existing homes for sale. Deregulation of the home-building process (from zoning regulations to the permitting process) will save tens of thousands of dollars on the price of a new home. Meanwhile, tax reforms, such as increasing the capital gains tax exclusion, which has not changed since the late 1990s, would break the lock-in effect that discourages senior homeowners from selling their homes.
More consideration is also needed both federally and throughout the states on energy. Just as the Trump administration has prioritized energy abundance, states must adopt that approach through new energy projects and abandon aggressive renewable portfolio standards that lead to increased energy prices and lower reliability.
Healthcare costs are also a mystery to many. Perhaps that’s because just 17% of hospitals comply with price transparency rules. Also, government subsidies in healthcare distort the market and drive up prices. Americans must be able to choose care and insurance options that work for them at prices they can afford. Greater price transparency would spark competition, drive down costs, and relieve patients of anxiety over whether they will owe $200 for a procedure or $2,000 because insurance did not cover what they expected.
Housing, energy, and healthcare take a major chunk out of Americans’ budgets each year, but for households with children and aging parents, high costs for care compound the financial strain. Here again are industries where increased regulations and government subsidies crowd out the options families desire. Congress and states can reduce regulations without sacrificing the safety of loved ones and protect flexible work arrangements for caregivers to balance these important priorities.
State-level policies have a clear impact on affordability. Left-leaning states are increasingly unaffordable, and this is driving away residents. The five states with the highest cost of living in 2025 were all blue, while the five most affordable states were all red. Between April 2020 and June 2023, high-tax states lost a net 2.8 million residents to low-tax states.
THE DEMOCRATS’ EMPTY AFFORDABILITY PROMISES
Affordable states have a history of promoting free enterprise through less regulation and low or no income tax policies, all while making it easier to work and run a small business. For example, blue states are experiencing higher-than-average electricity prices due to green mandates that require phasing out abundant energy sources such as coal, oil, and natural gas in favor of wind, solar, and battery power.
Affordability concerns will not go away with subsidies and cronyism; the status quo will only worsen the cost of living for women. However, free-market policies that reduce regulations, business costs, and tax burdens will increase the supply of services and goods we need at prices we can afford.
Kamryn Crane is a Budget and Entitlement Policy Analyst at Independent Women.
