We know that we have a housing and homelessness problem in New Hampshire. If you didn’t know this, my questions to you is, what rock have you been hiding under? I mention the two because they are connected.
This is not a new problem. New Hampshire had significant growth in new housing creation in the 1970s through the 1990s as more people moved to the Granite State for work, less taxes and quality of life. According to New Hampshire Housing’s 2023 Statewide Housing Needs Assessment, in those 20 years, the state saw net in-migration of over 500,000.
Since 1990, there has been a long decline in population growth. Between 2010 and 2020 net in-migration was just over 60,000. This decline in population growth explains the continued decrease of housing development over time.
However, the housing picture is very complex. In recent years, in addition to the slowdown in housing creation because of demographic shifts, New Hampshire Housing reports that 8,400 potential rental units have been taken out of rental circulation and reserved for vacation/seasonal use. Another 2,000 units have simply vanished.
Click here to read the rest of the article featured in the spring 2024 issue of 603 Diversity.