Link to NLIHC Memo here.
"A significant portion of the housing chapter of the report focuses on the impact of primarily state and local regulations, mandates, and fees on the cost of construction, framing these collectively as a "bureaucrat tax" that leads to higher housing prices. The report also calls out federal energy efficiency policies of the Biden administration, calling them "coercive" and calling on States and localities to implement best practices that would lower construction costs and lead to increased supply. It is important to note that while the policies cited in the report may add costs (upfront and/or ongoing) to housing, many achieve an important public purpose and provide long-term benefits (and sometimes even cost savings, as with energy efficiency improvements).
Policy changes by state and local governments can both lower costs and encourage more production of new housing. Certain local zoning and land use regulations, like those encouraging more low-density, single-family housing and discouraging multifamily housing, or setting minimum lot sizes, set-back, or parking requirements, constrain housing supply and increase the cost of housing development. These policies limit housing opportunities, in particular for households with low incomes, by prohibiting or limiting the types of housing that are more likely to be affordable, including large and small multifamily housing developments. In addition to zoning and land use reforms, local governments can evaluate where processes can be streamlined to reduce delays and fees. NLIHC has endorsed legislation that encourages local governments to adopt policies that increase supply, such as the "Housing Supply Frameworks Act" (S.1299/H.R.2840; see Memo, 4/14/25).
While zoning and land use reforms are necessary, they are insufficient to solve the affordable housing crisis. According to NLIHC's research, there is a national shortage of over 7 million rental homes affordable and available to families with the lowest incomes. This shortage has been decades in the making, as rents continued rising faster than wages and Congress failed to invest in the programs that help communities afford the cost of building, operating, and maintaining deeply affordable homes, like public housing, project-based rental assistance, and the national Housing Trust Fund. NLIHC supports needed reforms to alleviate zoning barriers and streamline development processes, which can help bring down the cost of construction and ensure the private market can continue to serve middle-income households, but only sustained federal investments in the construction and preservation of deeply affordable housing will meet the housing needs of people with the lowest incomes."
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Bryant Lui Assoc. AIA
Group 4 Architecture, Research + Planning, Inc.
Daly City CA
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