If You Live in Michigan, Here’s How Kamala Harris Might Affect Your Wallet
Written by
Angela Mae
Edited by
Levi Leidy
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The Great Lakes State has flipped between Democrat and Republican for decades. In the 1970s and 1980s, it voted Republican before switching to Democrat. In 2016, it once again voted Republican, giving Donald Trump the edge in the presidential election over Hillary Clinton.
Michigan made another switch in 2020 when it voted for Democrat candidate Joe Biden. Now that the next presidential election is on the horizon, many Americans are wondering just which candidate will get the state’s electoral votes: Kamala Harris or Donald Trump.
If you live and work in Michigan, you might be wondering how a Harris presidency might impact you. Here’s an overview of some of her key issues (according to the official Harris-Waltz campaign site) and their potential impact on your wallet.
Tax Changes
One of Harris’s most consistent promises is to cut taxes for America’s middle class. Her goal is to ensure “no one earning less than $400,000 a year will pay more in taxes.”
At the same time, Harris has discussed ensuring major corporations and the wealthiest households will pay their “fair share” of taxes to reduce any deficit and support the middle class. This mean:
- Eliminating Trump’s tax cuts for the most affluent
- Enacting a billionaire minimum tax
- Increasing taxes on stock buybacks
- Other reforms to increase taxes for upper earners
Long-term capital gains tax will also increase to 28%, but only for those earning $1 million or more each year.
Housing Affordability
Currently, the average 900-square-foot apartment in the U.S. costs $1,739 a month, according to RentCafe data. The average sales price of a U.S. home in August 2024 was $492,700, according to Census data. But in Michigan, the average cost of a home on Zillow is $248,176 — significantly below the national average.
As vice president, Harris has introduced a plan to make both rent and homeownership more affordable. This includes:
- Building 3 million more homes and rental units to address the housing supply crisis
- Accelerate the development of residential properties
- Outlaw price fixing by corporate landlords
- Offer up to $25,000 in down payment assistance for first-time buyers
While properties in Michigan aren’t quite as expensive as they are in many other parts of the country (depending on where you live), these changes could make it easier to afford housing.
Inflation and Rising Costs
Harris has also promised to “go after bad actors who exploit an emergency to rip off consumers by calling for the first-ever federal ban on corporate price-gouging on food and groceries.” She’s also proposed cracking down on the “anti-competitive practices” many major corporations engage in, while keeping prices low for individuals.
How successful this ends up being, and how much it impacts the cost of everyday goods and services, remains to be seen. Some experts believe Harris’s policies won’t be as effective as anticipated, or that they’ll be a bit of a double-edged sword.
“Higher LTCG rates, higher corporate taxes, a tax on [non-recognized] gains and the top federal tax bracket increasing to 39% will squeeze the profits of all businesses in Michigan and therefore reduce investments, hiring and most likely wages,” said Kevin Jerry, an expert in tax method changes and the owner of Kevin A Jerry MST & Associates.
That said, other experts disagree.
A recent Moody’s Analytics report on the macroeconomic impacts of the upcoming presidential election predicted that the annual inflation rate in 2025 would rise to 3.5% under a Trump presidency. If Harris wins, the report predicted a 2% annual inflation rate.
Healthcare and Education Costs
Harris’ campaign site indicates her drive to build upon what she and Biden achieved these past four years to bring down the cost of healthcare. Her goal is to reduce the cost of prescription medication and get more coverage for Americans everywhere.
At the same time, she’s proposed making the Biden-Harris tax credit that lowered healthcare premiums by about $800 a year (on average) permanent. If successful, this could help millions of people.
In terms of education, here’s what Harris’s campaign site says: “Vice President Harris will fight to ensure parents can afford high-quality child care and preschool for their children. She will strengthen public education and training as a pathway to the middle class. And she’ll continue working to end the unreasonable burden of student loan debt and fight to make higher education more affordable, so that college can be a ticket to the middle class.”
While many of these proposals could benefit individuals in Michigan — and across the nation — there are no guarantees as to what the future will bring.
Editor’s note on election coverage: GOBankingRates is nonpartisan and strives to cover all aspects of the economy objectively and present balanced reports on politically focused finance stories. For more coverage on this topic, please check out If You Live in Michigan, Here’s How Trump Might Affect Your Wallet.
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