Redistribution Repriced by Housing

In high‑demand, supply‑constrained metro areas, even large income supports (food stamps, refundable tax credits) can be absorbed by higher rents and local cost‑of‑living thresholds, leaving measured poverty unchanged. That means antipoverty policy evaluated at the state level can look ineffective unless paired with housing‑supply interventions. — This reframes welfare debates: you cannot judge or design redistribution policy without accounting for local housing supply and price dynamics.