U.S. housing shortage reaches 7 million homes – Realtor.com
WASHINGTON, D.C., UNITED STATES — The staggering U.S. housing shortage has reached 7.2 million homes, reports real estate website Realtor.com in its latest analysis.
This crisis, intensified by COVID-19 and over a decade of insufficient construction, spotlights the pressing need to accelerate building to match population growth.
“While a recent uptick in new construction has the potential to alleviate the historically low level of homes for sale on the market today, it’s going to take some time to close the gap,” said Danielle Hale, chief economist at Realtor.com.
Hale adds that the current elevated construction levels should ease rental prices by increasing supply. This expanded inventory also gives homebuyers more options among new builds.
According to the research, 2023 saw 1.7 million new households, bringing the 2012-2023 total to 17.2 million. However, only 14.7 million homes commenced construction during those years, comprising 947,200 single-family and 472,700 multi-family units.
This long-standing difference between households formed and homes started has made the shortage from 6.5 million homes at end-2022 to 7.2 million by end-2023.
Further highlighting the disparity, permitting lags household growth in 73 of the top 100 U.S. metro areas, led by San Antonio, Austin, and Daytona Beach.
The report stresses that resolving the housing crisis demands immediate efforts to bridge the expanding gap for American families seeking affordable residences.
Meanwhile, affordable workforce housing thrives in select U.S. cities in the Midwest, particularly in Danville, Decatur, and Springfield, Illinois.
