Regional Housing Initiative

The lack of affordable housing is a regional problem with important regional consequences. Safe, stable housing is essential for individual economic mobility, health, and well-being, and increasing access to quality, affordable living conditions will help the entire region thrive. 

Furthermore, many of the housing affordability challenges facing communities are linked to broader regional issues, such as transportation, economic development, environmental protection, and climate resilience. Taking a regional approach to housing can help municipalities align their housing policies with the larger regional goals outlined in the Long-Range Plan for each of these topic areas.

The cost of housing has always been subject to a variety of macroeconomic factors, including interest rates, and property-specific characteristics, such as location, size, age, and local market conditions. What forces, then, are driving the current housing affordability crisis?

The short answer is that housing costs are rising faster than income and the demand for lower cost housing has far outstripped the supply. Researchers have identified several interrelated factors that contribute to this imbalance:

• Ongoing supply shortages: Lockdowns and restrictions instituted during the COVID-19 pandemic slowed down the construction of new homes. However, buyer demand exceeding supply appears to have been a consistent problem for much longer, even predating the construction slowdown that followed the 2008 recession. According to several measures, the nation’s housing supply has failed to keep pace with population growth for much of the last 40 years.
• Rising material and labor costs: The higher costs of construction materials, driven by COVID-era supply-chain challenges and other factors such as labor shortages, continue to contribute to increased rents and home prices. 
• Discrimination: Discrimination and exclusionary policies in the housing market, particularly against minority and working class populations, makes it difficult for many individuals and households to access safe and affordable homes. 
• Growing presence of investors: Since the pandemic, the share of single-family homes purchased by institutional investors and turned into rental properties has surged dramatically. By buying up these properties, investors have reduced the already limited supply available to potential owner occupants, particularly first-time buyers, while raising local rents. 

All levels of government have a role to play in creating housing policies and products that serve residents of all ages and income levels. However, local governments have a unique opportunity to address the crisis because they establish the rules that determine where, what types, and how much housing can be built in any given community. Local governments hold the primary authority to reform zoning and other land use regulations that may be contributing to the overall shortage of homes and reinforcing exclusionary development patterns in our region. 

This effort seeks to provide our municipal planning partners with housing data, guidance, and technical assistance so that local regulations can be carefully designed and equitably implemented in order to expand the supply of housing, increase housing affordability, and improve racial equity within communities.

Local governments have a variety of tools, policies, and strategies available to them. Many of these strategies can be organized into three primary categories: production, preservation, and stability. Production strategies seek to increase and diversify the supply of housing to better meet local demand. Preservation strategies seek to ensure that the existing supply of lower cost housing, including deed-restricted units reserved for low- to moderate-income households, is protected and accessible. Local governments can promote housing stability by implementing strategies that protect households and individuals from displacement and poor housing conditions. 

Determining which strategies a local government should pursue requires a thorough understanding of local housing conditions and thoughtful engagement with stakeholders. DVRPC is committed to conducting the research, analysis, and collaboration that can help our planning partners remove barriers to affordable housing and help lower housing costs over the long term.

To learn more about planning tools and resources available to your community or to discuss the housing challenges in your community, please reach out to DVRPC by contacting asvekla@dvrpc.org.