Creating the Housing We Need

Linda C. from the Upper Valley works hard to create a loving and safe home for her family. But she pays nearly half of her income on housing. That doesn’t leave much room for anything else. 

That “anything else” includes food, transportation, and other essentials. It includes trying not to draw from the grocery budget to cover an unexpected spike in heating costs.

She’s working towards the security that we all want: to live in a comfortable home and enjoy a good quality of life.

To achieve that security, she needs an apartment that she can afford while being able to build savings. But, due to a lack of affordable housing options in New Hampshire, she has to rely on extra income from side jobs just to cover expenses.

When a sudden rent increase forces you to move, Linda said, it’s a whole new ball game. “If you have time to respond and be looking,” she says, “it’s manageable. But there’s a different type of panic when you only have a month or two to find housing.”

New Hampshire’s low inventory of affordable housing units means steep competition for those units, which in turn drives up costs across the real estate market. And everyone is going for the same properties for the same reasons, Linda says. “There is that apartment that everyone is looking at and thinks, ‘If I had this apartment, I could save some money. And it can help further down the line for a more secure future.’”

“There is that apartment that everyone is looking at and thinks, ‘If I had this apartment, I could save some money. And it can help further down the line for a more secure future.’”

Ultimately, New Hampshire needs to create more housing units – across a spectrum of styles, sizes, and prices – to create a housing market that enables more of us to achieve the security that allows us to thrive.

Rent Out of Reach for Many

A generally accepted principle is that people should not pay more than 30 percent of their household income toward housing-related costs or they are considered “cost burdened.”

Yet according to the National Low Income Housing Coalition, many people like Linda pay significantly more than a third of their income to housing, leaving them with few resources to cover regular basic expenses, let alone pay for an unexpected bill.

This study found that about half of renters in New Hampshire pay more than 30 percent of their income for rent and utilities, with many of these renters paying upwards of 50 percent of their income for housing expenses.

New Hampshire is ranked 12^th in the nation among states with the most expensive rental costs. This ranking comes from the latest edition of the Out of Reach Report, which finds that Granite Staters working 40 hours a week must make $27 an hour to afford the average one-bedroom apartment at fair market rate.

If New Hampshire had more available and affordable housing options, the ability to move somewhere new could be an easier process.

Driving Change to Create More Housing Options

Business and community leaders have long recognized that the lack of affordable housing is limiting our state’s economic potential.

The New Hampshire Housing Supply Coalition was formed in early 2025 to advance real solutions to build the housing we need.

Led by the Business and Industry Association, the Coalition brings together chambers of commerce, business groups, trade organizations, housing partners, and others to represent one consistent voice for the housing that New Hampshire needs to ensure a strong economy where residents, businesses, and communities can thrive.

“It’s going to take solutions up and down the spectrum of affordability,” said Michael Skelton, CEO of the Business and Industry Association, in a recent interview with the Granite Goodness podcast.  “We need more supply in the broadest sense possible, so the state can grow in the way we need it to.”

“We need more supply in the broadest sense possible, so the state can grow in the way we need it to.”

“There is a way to do all this ... and maintain everything that is special about New Hampshire,” added Skelton. “We can build a brighter future where people want to move here, stay here, and thrive here. It’s going to take vision, persistence and teamwork, but it’s absolutely within reach.”

Building a Brighter Future

New Hampshire needs a housing market that works for every one of us, at every stage of our lives.

The New Hampshire Housing Supply Coalition is one of many efforts underway working to advance the creation of more housing that is affordable and accessible for renters and homebuyers across the income spectrum.

It will require concerted efforts by our state and community leaders, as well as all of us in our local communities, to generate new housing of all types and at a range of prices that are affordable to everyone in New Hampshire.

You can play an important role in advancing solutions by lending your voice to support thoughtful housing development in your local community and region.

We can create a brighter future with abundant housing opportunities that support a strong economy and enable all of us to thrive.

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