Daily Herald opinion: Help for the ‘missing middle’: Law would enable DuPage board to meet a need on housing

Attainable housing is becoming harder to find in the suburbs, especially for the “missing middle” — those who make too much to qualify for traditional assistance but not enough to keep pace with soaring housing costs.

For more than three years, DuPage County officials have been trying to formulate a local response.

It started in 2023 when DuPage established an ad hoc housing solutions committee. The county has since budgeted $5 million to create a land bank and community housing trust. Another $5 million was set aside for a proposed down payment assistance program.

But because DuPage is not home rule, it needed additional authority from the state to expand its attainable housing projects and programs. Now, a measure approved in the Illinois House and Senate provides it, giving the county the ability to help a broader pool of first-time homebuyers and enlist developers to create attainable housing projects.

All that’s missing is JB Pritzker’s signature, which we hope the governor will provide.

While the measure applies only to DuPage and Will counties, it could be a part of a broader solution to the region’s affordable housing problems.

In a story published June 21, correspondent Alicia Fabbre quoted U.S. Census data, indicating that in 2024, the median home value in DuPage was $391,400, and the county’s median household income was $112,096. Affordable housing standards suggest housing costs should be no more than one-third of annual income, Fabbre reported.

Meanwhile, officials say that housing prices have continued to outpace income levels. According to Redfin, the median home sale price in DuPage in May topped $450,000.

As a result, young people just starting their careers often can't afford a home in the towns where they grew up. And some older empty nesters looking to downsize have to leave the communities where they have spent decades.

“Our goal is for people to be able to live and work in DuPage,” said DuPage County Board Chair Deborah Conroy, who lobbied for the legislation.

If Pritzker signs the bill, DuPage’s efforts could begin as soon as this fall with the launch of its down payment assistance program. While the details still need to be discussed, the program would offer down payment assistance to eligible first-time homebuyers.

“The ultimate goal is to get people some help to be able to afford to buy moderate, even upper-level income homes, that they wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford to be able to live in DuPage County,” county board member Sam Tornatore told Fabbre.

Eventually, DuPage plans to partner with developers and work with communities to create attainable housing on properties it has obtained in unincorporated areas.

We understand that high-end housing is very popular. Developers want to build it, and communities prefer it.

But a lack of affordable housing in our cities and villages shuts out people at the foundations of our communities, including nurses, first responders and others who work here. Something must be done to address the problem, even if it’s just one or two counties at a time.