NMHC Argues That Housing Policy Must Adapt to Growing Renter Population

The United States needs to shift its housing policy to recognize the rising number of Americans opting for rental housing and reduce incentives that prioritize homeownership, according to the National Multi Housing Council (NMHC). More than 14% of U.S. households live in apartments, and in this decade, renters could make up more than half of all new households as their ranks swell by more than 7 million, according to the council, a research and lobbying group for the apartment industry.

At the National Apartment Summit, NMHC President Doug Bibby argued housing policy should change to de-emphasize homeownership, an area where he said incentives "overwhelmingly benefit the wealthy and distort the economy by encouraging people to over-invest in housing."

Instead, federal, state, and local governments should encourage compact housing development near transportation and employment centers, and change zoning and land-use regulations to discourage urban sprawl. If 60% of new growth were shifted to that kind of development, the nation could cut 85 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually and save more than $100 billion in infrastructure costs, according to Bibby. Read more