Minneapolis One of Worst Cities in Country For Housing Shortages

(The Center Square) – According to a recent study by Zillow, Minneapolis has the eighth-worst housing shortage in the country.

Despite a pandemic construction boom, the home buying site says the U.S. is short 4.5 million homes as of 2022. That year, 8.09 million households lived with nonrelatives, while 3.55 million units were for sale or rent, leaving 4.5 million unaccounted for.

In Minneapolis, 12% of non-homeowning residents would be able to still afford a mortgage. Zillow estimates the city has a housing shortage of 77,560 units.

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The study argues, using the Wharton Residential Land Use Regulatory Index, that areas with more zoning laws have a greater housing shortage. The top cities with housing shortages, such as Boston, Sacramento, Portland, San Diego and San Francisco all have strong zoning regulations.

“It seems straightforward: We need to build more homes,” said Skylar Olsen, Zillow’s chief economist. “Changes through policies like modest densification will give us more ‘at bats’ to create density and help communities stay livable for everyone. Without a huge injection of new homes in the near future, affordability will continue to be a challenge for many — especially for first-time home buyers.”

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The pandemic construction boom resulted in the most homes built since before the Great Recession, about 1.4 million units. Despite this boom, a gap still exists. With millennials now in the marketplace for mortgages, the demand continues to grow.

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Stacker compiled a list of the best places to live in Minnesota using data from Niche. Niche ranks places to live based on a variety of factors including cost of living, schools, health care, recreation, and weather. Cities, suburbs, and towns were included. Listings and images are from realtor.com.

On the list, there's a robust mix of offerings from great schools and nightlife to high walkability and public parks. Some areas have enjoyed rapid growth thanks to new businesses moving to the area, while others offer glimpses into area history with well-preserved architecture and museums. Keep reading to see if your hometown made the list.

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