Seattle King County Realtors® received a $5,000 grant from the National Association of Realtors®’ Housing Opportunity Program to support affordable housing efforts. 

The grant will be used for the upcoming Housing Issues Briefing for elected officials and policymakers.

“This grant will help raise awareness of our critical housing shortages and the need for more housing opportunities in King County,” Garrett Nelson, SKCR’s 2022 vice president of governmental and public affairs, said in a news release. “The grant will also help advance policies and solutions for increasing housing inventory and choices while restoring affordability so homeownership is more attainable for countless additional families in King County.”

The 28th Housing Issues Briefing, scheduled for June 7, will feature a keynote address by zoning reform expert, educator and author Karen Parolek. Other speakers will address solutions to expand housing supply for all economic segments of King County’s population. 

An October Pew Research Center survey found 49% of Americans say affordable housing availability is a major problem, up 10 percentage points from 2018. 

“Finding housing solutions is not just about economics, it is about creating opportunity,” said Rachel Mehmedagic, president of the King County Realtors. “Fostering an open dialogue with elected officials will help us identify ways to close the significant gap in homeownership rates between white households and communities of color. If we close the gap, we create opportunity in so many ways.”