Property insurance costs have homeowners on the brink of foreclosure. Lots slated for new rental housing sit empty as financing falls short. Renters suffer through poor conditions with little recourse.

The picture is stark in New Orleans, a city once ideal for people living on the cheap that has grown increasingly unaffordable for many.

All three major Democratic candidates in the Oct. 11 mayoral election agree that housing affordability is one of their biggest priorities, especially as high housing costs have contributed to driving more than 28,400 people out of Orleans Parish since 2020. Last year, it was the nation's fifth fastest-shrinking county with more than 100,000 residents, according to U.S. Census estimates.

The field includes state Sen. Royce Duplessis, City Council Vice P

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