Rents up 15% over five years

A new survey from the New Hampshire Housing Finance Authority found that average rent for a two bedroom apartment increased 15% in the past five years. 

The survey also found a vacancy rate below 2% almost everywhere in the state. In comparison, the national vacancy rate is roughly 7%.

There is general agreement that a shortage of rental properties is driving up rent in the granite state, which can hurt New Hampshire’s ability to attract workers. Policymakers have different ideas for how to add rental properties, however.

One approach is to change zoning laws. For example, in 2016 Gov. Maggie Hassan signed SB 146, a bill that forces municipalities to loosen zoning laws to allow more accessory dwelling units. An accessory dwelling unit is an attached or detached apartment next to a single family home.

Bill supporters argued that accessory dwelling units increase the supply of affordable housing with minimal impact on a community.

However, zoning laws may have less of an impact on new housing than local bureaucracy.

“While it is tempting to blame the most popular tool of local land use regulation, zoning, we find that it is actually delays in the building permit approval process that affecting the ability of builders to meet demand,” wrote Ralph McLaughlin, Chief Economist with the online real estate listing firm Trulia. “This is because zoning can formally be changed, while uncertainty over building approval cannot.” 

How do you think New Hampshire should address the availability of rental properties? Let us know in the comments.