(Radio Iowa) – Iowa’s housing market has been a boon for people selling houses — but the supply shortage of houses is also showing up in the rental market. Anne Bacon is the chief executive officer of IMPACT, which helps low-income residents in central Iowa. She said lower-income Iowans are seeing higher rent prices, with fewer options due to lower supply. “Many thousands of families were in apartments they could afford, who were living a life that was doable, and then the pandemic hit and suddenly they cannot afford where they’re living. But there aren’t any affordable housing units available in their price range,” she says.

Bacon says that creates a stalemate. “Everyone is currently stuck where they were before,” Bacon says. Many communities are trying to find ways to overcome the shortage of homes and rental options. The city of Ottumwa for example is offering an incentive for people who build a new home there. Bacon made her comments on the Iowa Public Radio program “River to River.”