When we started Home Arizona, we spent a lot of time speaking with elected officials and policy makers.
We wanted to know what was important to them when they examined land use and housing related issues. Naturally, they wanted to know what their constituents thought about the issues. Home Arizona commissioned Public Opinion Strategies to conduct comprehensive polling on the issues of housing supply and pricing.
The results were astounding. 80% of voters think Arizona is short of housing, and 1 in 3 voters would consider leaving their communities because of rising costs. What was particularly interesting is that these results were not concentrated in any particular group. Instead, these beliefs were widespread across political parties, age groups, genders, and educational backgrounds. The rising cost of housing and the lack of supply has become a mainstream concern that is influencing the outcome of elections. No longer is this an esoteric issue being debated by economists and pundits. It’s being talked about by parents in the stands of their kids’ soccer games, by major employers thinking about moving Phoenix, and by our children as they struggle unsuccessfully to buy their first home.
In today’s political climate, we can’t get 80% of people to agree that the sky is blue. And yet, the vast majority of Arizonans believe there are not enough homes being built to keep up with the demand.