June 25, 2007
Opinion: A new start for starter homes in Massachusetts
By Doug Azarian
Thirty Worcester Realtors trekked to the State House on June 7 to lobby their elected officials on a number of issues, including the need for the increased production of starter homes. Without these new smaller homes, our young, educated families between the ages of 25 and 34 will continue to leave Massachusetts to pursue their American dream: a small, single family home, with a small yard in a neighborhood near their work.
Why does it matter to you? It matters to you because despite high home values and a stable job market of past years, if we don't attract the next generation of home buyers, we'll be in trouble. The only way to protect the value of your own home is to ensure that those young families who make up the knowledge-based workforce the state depends on can afford to live here. They need an affordable starter home, but they are fighting the "Not in My Back Yard" (NIMBY) attitude which influences many local regulators.
Our local zoning laws no longer allow us to build the New England village that became the model of livability for the rest of the country. Massachusetts has among the highest housing costs in the nation; we rank at the bottom in building permits per capita; and we use more land per home than Texas - yes, Texas. That's why our educated kids are leaving.
If you need proof, look at the results of a recent study by Northeastern University's Center for Urban and Regional Policy, which confirmed that "housing costs are an important, independent factor in economic development." It comes down to needing more housing supply to moderate housing price appreciation, and special provisions to provide housing that is affordable to younger working families if we are to reverse these trends. MIT, Harvard, the Pioneer Institute, and the UMass Donahue Institute have reached this same conclusion.
Unfortunately, despite all of this research on housing, labor and population crisis, many citizens and community leaders put up more barriers every day. It's not that they oppose the general solution; they just oppose change in their own community.
Our critical need for such "knowledge-based workforce housing" does come with an impact to local cities and towns and would require change. So there must be a partnership between the state and the communities to find acceptable ways to alleviate those concerns. However, just saying no to this type of development dooms both the Common-wealth's economic well-being and our own individual property values.
It's time to act, not just talk. Community leaders should encourage development in their own communities of smaller starter homes on compact lots. State legislators should support these efforts with real incentives, both financial and otherwise. And, most importantly, we residents must support and encourage this kind of development in our own communities.
Doug Azarian is the president of the Massachusetts Association of Realtors and the broker/owner of CENTURY 21 Dream Homes in Falmouth.
Thirty Worcester Realtors trekked to the State House on June 7 to lobby their elected officials on a number of issues, including the need for the increased production of starter homes. Without these new smaller homes, our young, educated families between the ages of 25 and 34 will continue to leave Massachusetts to pursue their American dream: a small, single family home, with a small yard in a neighborhood near their work.
Why does it matter to you? It matters to you because despite high home values and a stable job market of past years, if we don't attract the next generation of home buyers, we'll be in trouble. The only way to protect the value of your own home is to ensure that those young families who make up the knowledge-based workforce the state depends on can afford to live here. They need an affordable starter home, but they are fighting the "Not in My Back Yard" (NIMBY) attitude which influences many local regulators.
Our local zoning laws no longer allow us to build the New England village that became the model of livability for the rest of the country. Massachusetts has among the highest housing costs in the nation; we rank at the bottom in building permits per capita; and we use more land per home than Texas - yes, Texas. That's why our educated kids are leaving.
If you need proof, look at the results of a recent study by Northeastern University's Center for Urban and Regional Policy, which confirmed that "housing costs are an important, independent factor in economic development." It comes down to needing more housing supply to moderate housing price appreciation, and special provisions to provide housing that is affordable to younger working families if we are to reverse these trends. MIT, Harvard, the Pioneer Institute, and the UMass Donahue Institute have reached this same conclusion.
Unfortunately, despite all of this research on housing, labor and population crisis, many citizens and community leaders put up more barriers every day. It's not that they oppose the general solution; they just oppose change in their own community.
Our critical need for such "knowledge-based workforce housing" does come with an impact to local cities and towns and would require change. So there must be a partnership between the state and the communities to find acceptable ways to alleviate those concerns. However, just saying no to this type of development dooms both the Common-wealth's economic well-being and our own individual property values.
It's time to act, not just talk. Community leaders should encourage development in their own communities of smaller starter homes on compact lots. State legislators should support these efforts with real incentives, both financial and otherwise. And, most importantly, we residents must support and encourage this kind of development in our own communities.
Doug Azarian is the president of the Massachusetts Association of Realtors and the broker/owner of CENTURY 21 Dream Homes in Falmouth.
WBJ Web Partners
Most Recent
Most Recent
0 Comments