Slow Progress on Housing Supply at the Legislature

Coming into the new year with a new legislature there was hope that housing supply would rise to the short list of pressing issues facing our state.

The case for addressing our state’s undersupply of homes is straightforward. For the last decade-plus a series of barriers led to an underbuilding of new housing of all types. During this time, our population has continued to grow. Like any imbalance where demand strongly outpaces supply, prices soar and housing affordability and access erodes. This led to less homeownership opportunities for Minnesotans and today, threatens our state’s competitiveness.

The data on housing supply is not disputed, nor is the data on the lack of housing affordability across the state. All of which makes the legislature’s slow action on housing supply so surprising.

The minimal approach on housing supply and zoning modernization places Minnesota as an outlier nationally. While a bipartisan group of Governors and Legislators from across the country are working to lift housing barriers in their respective states, Minnesota stands alone as the one state inexplicably considering new barriers to homeownership.

As an industry, we know that homeownership is incredibly popular across the board. It is not a divisive political issue, we all recognize the benefit from a balanced housing market with choices at all price points.

These are difficult issues, but blue and red states alike are taking action to tackle this challenge head-on. Housing is a foundational issue, and these

HousingIndustryNews.org states understand that housing supply must be primarily driven by our industry, building at scale. My hope is that we can come together on this issue with greater urgency throughout 2023. As an industry, we need to continue to press our elected leaders to look beyond the status quo of outdated housing rules, and we need to provide innovative approaches to get us back to building homes at all price points.

I encourage all of our industry to make an effort to connect with your local officials and ask them to prioritize housing supply and homeownership access. Waiting any longer will only make our challenges greater.

Make it a great Spring, John Q.

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March 2023, Volume 7, Issue 1

PUBLISHER

James Vagle James@HousingFirstMN.org

EDITOR

Katie Elfstrom Katie@HousingFirstMN.org

ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Laura Burt

GRAPHIC DESIGN

Emily Doheny

ACCOUNTING

Janice Meyer

ADVERTISING SALES

Brad Meewes

Kori Meewes

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Katie Elfstrom Katie@HousingFirstMN.org

Nick Erickson Nick@HousingFirstMN.org

Mark Foster Mark@HousingFirstMN.org

Kristen Ober Kristen@HousingFirstMN.org

Kate Wigley Kate@HousingFirstMN.org

James Vagle James@HousingFirstMN.org

Housing First Minnesota

James Vagle, Chief Executive Officer John Quinlivan, Board Chair

Housing Industry News is a publication of Housing First Minnesota. Housing Industry News is published and distributed four times per year to housing industry professionals and others associated with the homebuilding industry. Neither the advertisers, nor Housing First Minnesota, will be responsible or liable for misinformation, misprints, typographical errors, etc., herein contained. For address change information, contact Housing First Minnesota. Suggestions, ideas and letters are welcome.

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Housing First Minnesota is the voice for homebuilders, remodelers and all who are dedicated to building safe, durable homes at a price Minnesotans can afford.

Housing First Minnesota is dedicated to advancing the American dream of homeownership for Minnesotans and is the leading resource for housing-related issues in Minnesota. This advocacy work has never been more important. The housing industry remains under intense regulatory and political pressures that impact Minnesota homeowners’ ability to buy, build and remodel their dream home.

Housing First Minnesota supports reasonable policies, regulations and protections, but our call for affordability for families is a voice that must be heard.

Learn more at HousingFirstMN.org.