#housing-supply

#housing-supply

America's quilt work of states whose governors and lawmakers are bucking for housing policy change to break through supply constraints at the root of the nation's affordability crisis now counts Massachusetts among them. With a focus on prohibitively constrictive building codes and zoning ordinances, Gov. Maura Healey has adopted an approach officials in other states and cities have taken before pulling the legislative trigger study the matter for a year or more before drafting a reform policy agenda.

This is monumental for the city.

The legislation focuses on reducing regulatory and procedural barriers to housing development, aiming to accelerate the construction of both market-rate and affordable housing nationwide. The Housing for the 21st Century Act is the House counterpart to the ROAD to Housing Act. The bill seeks to accelerate housing development by encouraging zoning reforms, supporting accessory dwelling units and small multifamily projects, and lowering costs tied to permitting and design. It also includes grants for preapproved building plans intended to shorten approval timelines.

Realtor Todd Luong of REMAX DFW Associates in Frisco said his recent experience reflects meaningful improvement for buyers, even if affordability remains strained. Here in the Dallas real estate market that I serve, affordability remains a challenge, he says. However, there is a significant amount of data showing that buyer conditions have improved over the past year and that buyers are gaining affordability ground. This should eventually increase housing demand to some degree as we head into the busy spring buying season.

The inheritance trend is especially pronounced in California, where tax policies encourage families to keep homes rather than sell them, according to the report. State rules cap property tax increases at 2% per year. They also allow children and grandchildren to inherit tax benefits on the first $1 million of real estate value if the home becomes a primary residence. Nearly 60,000 California homes were inherited in 2025, accounting for 18% of all property transfers in the state. For the first time, inherited homes more than doubled the number of new homes sold. Cotality said these incentives create a significant financial incentive for beneficiaries to hold onto the inherited home and use it as a primary residence effectively locking potential supply out of the open market.

For the past several years, the U.S. housing market has faced an unusual constraint: not a lack of buyers, but a lack of sellers willing or able to move. Millions of homeowners remain rate-locked, holding mortgages originated in 20202022 at interest rates between 2% and 4% (Federal Housing Finance Agency; Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey). While home values have risen, the financial penalty of selling and repurchasing at today's 6%7% rates has discouraged mobility, suppressing inventory and transaction volume nationwide (National Association of Realtors; HousingWire).

We have spent many months listening to the community to understand their priorities and their views have helped shape the plans. The development will provide a mix of new homes alongside workspaces and community space, as well as improvements to the streets and areas that local people will use every day. The delivery of housing in London is at critically low point, so we are proud that our partnership with the Council will deliver much needed affordable homes in the heart of Brixton

We charge fair rents, maintain the properties properly and treat our tenants like customers. Our goal is to make renting sustainable - for them and for us No matter what new rental law the Government introduces, private landlords continue to sell up in droves. The latest figures from Sherry FitzGerald show that for every three landlords who sell, only one new landlord is entering the market.

Enacted within the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, BABA mandates the use of U.S.-produced iron, steel, manufactured products and construction materials in federally funded infrastructure projects. Flood argued that while this may be appropriate for infrastructure work, applying the same rules to housing projects has created severe cost spikes and delays. He said this expansion has created real-world consequences for developers, nonprofits and public housing agencies navigating the federal funding process. Sadly, that decision has had disastrous effects, he said.

Hoping to spur on action, President Donald Trump recently put pressure on large homebuilders to increase construction nationwide. In a post on his Truth Social platform in early October, he accused major builders of hoarding lots to prop up prices - likening them to OPEC, which restricts oil output to maintain high prices. "They're my friends ... but now, they can get Financing, and they have to start building Homes. They're sitting on 2 Million empty lots, A RECORD," Trump wrote.

Despite average earnings rising by 5% compared with last year, the cost of renting was swallowing up 44% of the average wage up from 40% five years ago. Rightmove also said conditions for landlords were challenging. It indicated that last autumn's rise in stamp duty , as well as speculation about more tax changes in next month's budget and the impact of the government's renters' rights bill, may be prompting some buy-to-let landlords to bail out and may be putting off others from investing in the sector.

They aim to shift the balance of power between landlords and tenants to make renting fairer, more affordable, and to improve standards. But there are warnings that the reforms could add to the burden of renting out a property, leading to landlords exiting the sector and ultimately pushing up rents due to decreased supply. Ministers will outline how the reforms will be rolled out across the coming weeks, but here is what the government's rental reforms mean for tenants.

Since surging in 2020, home prices in the United States have continued to trend upward through 2025. The median list price for a single family home in the U.S. hit a 2025 high of $440,950 in June. While list prices have fallen since, at $425,000 in September, they are still nearly $25,000 higher than they were at the start of the year, according to data from Realtor.com.

The Federal Reserve's decision this month to cut its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points was encouraging news for Americans eager to become homeowners. Although mortgage rates aren't set by the Fed, they are impacted by its policy changes. Indeed, prior to and in anticipation of the Fed's announcement, mortgage rates fell to their lowest level since October 2024, with the 30-year fixed rate dropping to 6.39% spurring a 29% spike in mortgage loan applications.

The combination of a significant slowing of residential house building and an influx of new student accommodation in a North London borough risks creating an unbalanced community, the local authority has warned. Brent Council is proposing a pause on all new purpose built student accommodation (PBSA), particularly in Wembley, due to fears it will inhibit its plan to address local housing shortages and no longer provide a balanced and mixed community.

"They're sitting on two million empty lots," he wrote. "I'm asking Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to get Big Homebuilders going and, by so doing, help restore the American Dream."