This week, TAB released the findings of a new public opinion poll, which found that voters in the Dallas-Fort Worth region have serious concerns about the availability and affordability of housing and overwhelmingly support new options to ensure the rapidly growing North Texas community can meet the rising demand.
The poll, which surveyed likely voters in Collin, Denton, Dallas, Rockwall, Johnson and Tarrant Counties between January 5-7, found that:
80% agree there is a shortage of reasonably priced homes.
40% agree the housing shortage is a “serious problem.”
More than 70% support allowing the conversion of empty or underutilized office buildings to residential housing.
69% support allowing large acreage landowners to build homes for different levels of affordability.
76% agreed that it is unfair that only some property owners can change the use of their land.
State leaders have already sounded the alarm on the urgent need to address the emerging housing crisis.
Last August, Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar warned that, even with the Legislature’s historic property tax relief and reductions in regulations last session, Texas needs to address rising housing costs in order to maintain our world-class economic environment:
“Our state, which is generally well regarded for its low cost of living, is facing the pressures of a decline in housing affordability as our population and demand for housing continue to rise… However, the state’s population, particularly in the major metropolitan areas, is growing at a quicker pace than housing is being built… this issue remains daunting and key to our continued overall economic health.”
During his recent State of the State address, Gov. Greg Abbott made clear that enhancing housing affordability in Texas needs to be a priority for the Legislature this session:
“We must also make housing more affordable. To do that, we need to make it easier to build, slash regulations, and speed up permitting. And to make your current home more affordable, we should offer a one-year tax exemption on home improvements, like heating and air conditioning.”
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has also made clear that among his top 25 Legislative priorities this session, the Legislature should pass the soon-to-be-introduced SB 15, focused on “Removing Barriers to Affordable Housing.”
It’s incredibly important that we pursue smart, common-sense solutions that have broad support among Texans.
Writing in the Dallas Morning News this week, I joined Texans for Reasonable Solutions Chair Nicole Nosek in urging Texas leaders to take note of the lessons learned from California’s housing affordability crisis in order to maintain the Lone Star State’s world-class business environment:
“We know that when residents cannot find housing to fit their needs, businesses suffer because they struggle to recruit and retain the workforce they need. Skyrocketing housing costs were a major reason why states like California have hemorrhaged major corporations to states like Texas and Florida in recent years, according to a study by the Hoover Institution, a public policy research center at Stanford University. Will we learn from the housing affordability failures in states like California?”
We laid out several key policy solutions that can help proactively address the growing housing affordability crisis in Texas to ensure it does not impact Texas’ renowned pro-business climate:
Texas needs to affirm the fundamental right for property owners in new neighborhoods to build detached townhomes on their own land. In new neighborhoods, Texas landowners with at least five undeveloped acres should have the power to build housing that’s more accessible and meets the needs of their communities — cutting through restrictive regulations and unleashing the full potential of Texas’ housing market.
In the D-FW area, the TABF poll demonstrated that almost 7 out of 10 Texans support this policy.
Texas must unlock the full potential of vacant office space on commercial or mixed-use property. In the post-pandemic era, we’ve already seen more than 13 major projects converting once-dormant office spaces into new housing units.
Senator Bryan Hughes’ SB 840 would streamline and incentivize these types of projects and help significantly expand living options for middle-income Texans closer to where they work. A proven model of success can be seen within Florida’s Live Local Act, which unleashed 15,000 new residential units within a year of being enacted.
Roughly 71% of Texans in the D-FW area support this proposal.
To read my full joint piece with Nicole Nosek in the Dallas Morning News, click here.
To read the full results of the public opinion poll released this week, click here.
-Glenn Hamer, President & CEO, Texas Association of Business
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