Housing Growth Fund Talking Points
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Write in support of Section 2 of Senate Bill 6, which establishes a Housing Growth Fund in the State of Connecticut.
- This policy will spur new housing development across our state, a necessary strategy for addressing Connecticut’s housing affordability crisis.
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Connecticut is experiencing a housing shortage, one of the many driving causes of unaffordability across our state.
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In 2022 the state’s vacancy rate was 2.1% -- the lowest in the country (Source). This number is far from what is considered to be a healthy vacancy rate – around 7 or 8% (Source).
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Economic theory tells us that this limited supply of housing, combined with growing demand as more people move into our state, will continue to push rents up as people compete for limited places to live.
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In 2022 the state’s vacancy rate was 2.1% -- the lowest in the country (Source). This number is far from what is considered to be a healthy vacancy rate – around 7 or 8% (Source).
- Conversely, an extensive body of research shows the relationship between policies that spur new housing development and slowed rent growth, or the rate at which rents increase over time. (Source)
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Based on the existing evidence, there is reason to believe creating more housing supply will slow rent growth in the regions where that housing is developed.
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Developing new housing is the responsibility of every city and town in our state, and this policy recognizes municipalities’ desire to plan at the local level.
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Rather than requiring municipalities to create more housing supply, this policy provides an incentive to cities and towns that choose to develop housing.
- This incentive is increased for municipalities that fulfill certain criteria, like building in transit-oriented areas or developing mixed-use buildings.
- It also rewards municipalities that are already adding to our state’s housing supply.
- Our estimates show that there are 45 cities and towns that would have received HGF funding in the past five years, based on current levels of housing production.
- These municipalities are of all sizes and are located throughout the state.
- This said, any municipality can benefit from the Housing Growth Fund moving forward.