Sample Letter #1 to Legislator

[DATE]

The Honorable [FIRST NAME, LAST NAME OF OFFICEHOLDER]
[Address]
[Address]
[Address]

Dear Senator [LAST NAME] or Assemblyman/Assemblywoman [LAST NAME]:

Homes for New Jersey is a group of concerned neighbors throughout the state working to encourage a comprehensive housing strategy to help everyone find an affordable home.

Our research shows that families in New Jersey must earn, on average, more than $43,000 a year to pay for a two-bedroom apartment or a starter home, which in most areas now costs more than $200,000. A shocking one-fourth of New Jersey homes are now selling for over $500,000.

Everyone deserves a decent place to live, to raise a family, build a life and enjoy a future. But more and more New Jerseyans will be shut out unless you do something now. The disturbing truth is that many of your constituents can no longer afford to live in your district.

Homes for New Jersey has a plan to help create homes we can afford. These are real action steps that I hope you will endorse soon.

1. Create and preserve 100,000 more homes that New Jerseyans can afford by

Offering incentives for higher-density, mixed-income homes in our cities and towns
Creating new ways to help people stay in their homes
Replacing the homes of lower-income residents who are displaced by redevelopment

2. Address the housing needs of very low-income New Jerseyans by

Making sure current housing plans provide opportunities for very low-income families
Maintaining or increasing the current level of funding for the State's rental assistance program

Can I count on you to support these points and join the Homes for New Jersey grassroots campaign today?

As the cost of housing continues to rise at an amazing rate, more and more of the people who count on you to represent their interests will be forced from their homes or from the state altogether. We cannot ignore the skyrocketing costs of buying or renting a home and what it is doing to the quality of life here.

I would like to know where you stand on this issue and how you feel about each of the points outlined in this letter.

I hope you will take the time to help us and the Homes for New Jersey campaign as we work to make New Jersey a more affordable place to live.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me at ____________. I look forward to your response.

Thank you for reading my comments and taking the time to respond to my concerns.

Sincerely,

[YOUR NAME]
[TITLE and ORGANIZATION]
[ADDRESS and TELEPHONE NUMBER]