Map courtesy of GISGeography
The Trump administration is pushing for federal lands to be released to combat the affordability crisis, but some experts say such a move would have little impact in the places that need homes the most.
A new analysis from Realtor.com highlights the effect that development would have on the country’s overall housing shortage. The data shows that development of federal land would affect a small chunk of the West, but the Northeast has the most acute housing shortage.
“Opening up federal land for housing development may generate incremental supply in parts of the West, but it’s not a silver bullet,” said Realtor.com Chief Economist Danielle Hale.
“The most severe shortages exist in places like the Northeast, where developable federal land is virtually nonexistent. As a result, we’ve also got to make better use of the land we already have. That will require meaningful changes to zoning and land use policies to alleviate the housing affordability crisis, especially in high-demand markets.”
Most of the 640 million government-owned acres are located in Alaska and the West. Though only 10 million acres would be needed to build 4 million homes, most of that land is in areas with limited population and job opportunities, rendering development largely moot, according to analysts.
In March, HUD Secretary Scott Turner and DOI Secretary Doug Burgum created a joint task force to open up federally protected land for building.
“Working together, our agencies can take inventory of underused federal properties, transfer or lease them to states or localities to address housing needs, and support the infrastructure required to make development viable — all while ensuring affordability remains at the core of the mission,” a press release read.
Trump promised to unlock federal lands for housing during his campaign, and the idea has garnered some bipartisan support.
