“Given the severe housing shortage, compounded by rising construction costs, persistent supply chain disruptions, and an estimated shortfall of six million homes, these looming tariffs, while intended to protect domestic industries, risk further exacerbating the housing supply and affordability crisis while stifling the development of new housing,” they wrote.
More than 40 Democrats in the House of Representatives, led by Jim Costa of California, urged the White House to consider housebuilding industry estimates that the proposed tariffs on Canada and Mexico, paired with duties already charged on Chinese goods, will raise the cost of imported construction materials by up to $4bn.
Kush Desai, a White House spokesperson, said: “In his first administration, President Trump instituted an America First economic agenda of tariffs, tax cuts, deregulation, and an unleashing of American energy that resulted in historic job, wage, and investment growth with no inflation.
Pressing ahead with steep tariffs on Canada and Mexico risks exacerbating the US housing crisis and threatening the broader economy, dozens of congressional Democrats have warned Donald Trump.
In a statement, the White House claimed Trump would use tariffs to “usher in a new era of growth and prosperity” for the US.
