Letter To The Editor: Severna Park Voice And The Importance Of Local Politics

I am Matt Redmond, a lifelong resident of Severna Park and reader of the Voice. I write to thank you. Thank you for the Voice’s important work in acting as a platform for varied voices in the greater Severna Park area.

I think this newspaper’s work is especially important in politics. Our modern world is full of groups attempting to divide us further for monetary gain, while the Voice lets both Democrats and Republicans express their opinions on important local issues.

However, I do sometimes find myself a bit annoyed with my local representatives, both from the Democratic and Republican parties. While I appreciate their work on important issues such as education, I believe that affordability has been neglected. I haven’t seen much explanation on how my representatives want to decrease prices. I believe that regardless of ideology, nearly all Americans, nearly all Marylanders, nearly all Severna Parkers are concerned of the rising price of living.

This is especially true of young people like myself. I just graduated from Severna Park High School, which has led to me thinking of my future. I know that one day in the future, I want to settle down and start a family, hopefully around here. I love Maryland, but current housing prices are obscene.

Hypothetically, let’s say that I want to have a house and start a family in 15 years. I will probably want to own a single-family home, in that case. Fifteen years ago, the average price of a single-family house was roughly $250,000. Now, it’s roughly $430,000. That is 172% of former costs, and an average of a roughly 11% year-on-year increase. Housing prices have outpaced inflation and wage increases.

If current trends continue, a single-family house will be a median of $740,000 in 15 years. This may be great for current homeowners, but young people like me are, quite frankly, getting screwed over. Even though I am going to college and come from a well-off background, I’m not sure if I will ever be able to afford a home.

Representatives, politicians and legislators: What can you do to ensure that young people such as myself will have the opportunity to buy a home and have families in the future? What are you doing to make our lives more affordable and prospects less tenuous? If you can propose a plan that can ensure my future, you certainly will have my vote.

I hope our representatives continue using the Voice as a medium to communicate their messages to constituents. And I hope that they put forward concrete ways to make housing, life and supporting a family affordable in the long run.

Thank you for everything.

Best,