Supply Problems Stoking Pennsylvania’s Housing Shortage

As housing costs rise in many parts of the commonwealth, Pennsylvania policymakers want to boost supply to meet demand.

“If we don’t continue to increase the inventory at all levels, we’re never going to get to where we need to be,” Rep. Mike Sturla, D-Lancaster, said during a House Housing and Community Development meeting on Monday. “We can’t build our way out by just building subsidized housing.”

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Commentary: A Rent Control Renaissance Is Underway in the U.S. and It’s Sure to Make the Housing Shortage Worse

If one needed any more proof that rent control laws suppress investment in new housing, then it is not necessary to look any further than this recent survey from the National Apartment Association. They found that “Over 70% of housing providers say rent control impacts their investment and development plans; actions include reducing investments, shifting plans to other markets, and canceling plans altogether.”

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Wall Street Investors Are Snatching Up Single-Family Homes and Taking Over the Rental Market

An ongoing shortage of housing will make it easier for banks and other Wall Street investors to take control of the market for single-family rental homes, National Association of Realtors Chief Economist Lawrence Yun told the Daily Caller News Foundation.

Institutional investors, such as banks and other large investors, are on track to own 40 percent of single-family rentals in the U.S. by 2030, MetLife Investment Management predicted, according to CNBC. An ongoing shortage of single-family homes in the U.S. would normally limit growth potential for Wall Street firms looking to buy single-family rentals, but it is also making it easier for them to tighten their grip on the market, Yun told the DCNF.

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Youngkin Announces Make Virginia Home Plan to Address Housing Shortages

Governor Glenn Youngkin announced a plan to address Virginia housing shortages, including encouraging local cooperation on zoning, simplifying regulations, and placing housing at the center of economic development plans. He told attendees at the Governor’s Housing Conference that the plan is the result of concerns expressed by individual Virginians and roundtable sessions with developers, local leaders, and advocates.

He said, “What we’ve heard from Virginians over and over again is this sense of frustration. They’re tired of searching far and wide for that ‘For Sale’ sign, only to see that it’s out of their reach. They’re deterred by the cost. Virginians are also seriously worried that ongoing inflation and rising interest rates will make the American dream of owning a home not something they can’t have today, but something they may never have.”

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