South Florida

Finding affordable housing in Miami can be tough. See possible solutions

Stories by Miami Herald journalists, with AI summarization

Miami residents are facing significant struggles to afford housing, especially as rents and living costs rise faster than incomes.

Many older adults, like those at Miami shelters, are falling into homelessness for the first time when they can no longer make ends meet. Efforts like The Era, a new Fort Lauderdale project, try to ease the crisis by offering discounted apartments to local workers with public support and incentives.

Meanwhile, proposals for new apartment towers and community debates show the tension between the need for more housing and neighborhood concerns. At the same time, Black South Floridians are trying to keep their homes in gentrifying areas as they face barriers like rising prices, low inventories and credit challenges.

A rendering of a developer’s plan to build three towers of apartments by Miami International Airport. The land is owned by Miami-Dade County but it sits within Miami Springs’ borders. Miami Springs council members will discuss the matter at their meeting at 7 p.m. Monday, Oct. 14.

NO. 1: DEVELOPER WANTS TO BUILD 3 APARTMENT TOWERS IN MIAMI SPRINGS, WHICH ISN’T HAPPY ABOUT IT

The proposed project calls for 1,426 apartments near MIA. | Published October 14, 2024 | Read Full Story by Theo Karantsalis

Romelia Canales, 81, a resident at Mia Casa, receives a plate of food on Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025, in North Miami, Fla. Mia Casa, acquired by Miami-Dade County’s Homeless Trust, supports over 120 homeless seniors aged 65 and older with shelter and assistance transitioning to permanent housing. By Photo by Matias J. Ocner

NO. 2: ‘LIFE GOT TOO EXPENSIVE’: MIAMI SENIORS ARE INCREASINGLY FALLING INTO HOMELESSNESS

Rising housing costs in greater Miami outpace fixed incomes, threatening many at-risk older people with homelessness. | Published January 22, 2025 | Read Full Story by Max Klaver

Rents increase across South Florida. Above: An aerial view of high-rises in downtown Miami, on Friday, May 22, 2020.

NO. 3: MIAMI-DADE PROPERTY APPRAISER: I WANT TO CHIP AWAY AT OUR HOUSING CRISIS | OPINION

The new independent property appraiser’s office cannot resolve the Miami-Dade housing crisis, but it can chip away at it | Opinion | Published January 14, 2025 | Read Full Story by Tomas Regalado

Sabrina Guillaume stands outside the duplex she owns in Liberty City. Guillaume spent several years trying to buy a property in the neighborhood where her parents live and she grew up. By Carl Juste

NO. 4: BLACK SOUTH FLORIDIANS STRUGGLE TO BUY AND KEEP HOMES IN MIAMI’S GENTRIFYING COMMUNITIES

“We’re losing ground every day.” | Published April 18, 2025 | Read Full Story by Raisa Habersham Michael Butler

The Era, Affiliated Development’s latest project, is currently under construction in Fort Lauderdale. The apartment building is meant to help address the area’s lack of affordable workforce housing.

NO. 5: NEW FORT LAUDERDALE APARTMENT WILL OFFER ‘LUXURY’ AFFORDABLE HOUSING TO CITY’S WORKFORCE

The ongoing development efforts come as an affordable housing crisis continues embroiling South Florida, where residents are the most rent-burdened people in the country. | Published March 25, 2025 | Read Full Story by Amanda Rosa

Developers 13th Floor Investments, chosen by the city of South Miami to redevelop its municipal complex, has proposed a new city hall and police building, center, facing Sunset Drive, and apartment towers surrounding a public space. This file image is from Sept. 2024.

NO. 6: FEELING SQUEEZED? YOUR MIAMI APARTMENT IS GETTING SMALLER, A NEW SURVEY SAYS

It’s not your imagination. Space is an issue. | Published May 5, 2025 | Read Full Story by Howard Cohen

The summary above was drafted with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists in our News division. All stories listed were reported, written and edited by McClatchy journalists.