By Adam Pagnucco.
Last week, the Maryland Association of Realtors released the latest in a series of regular polls about housing. The poll, performed by American Strategies, surveyed 807 registered voters in Maryland from January 9 through 16. Its topline margin of error is +/-3.4 percent. The firm conducted similar polls in 2020, 2022, 2023 and 2024.
Here’s the quick take: Maryland politicians need to pay serious attention to housing.
Want more? Here are a few of the poll’s findings accompanied by presentation slides.
Marylanders are becoming more pessimistic over time.
In 2020, 60% of respondents said that the state was on the right track and 30% said that it was on the wrong track. Last month, 46% said right track and 48% said wrong track. (One wonders what the poll will find next year.)
Housing affordability is a huge issue for Marylanders.
19% of respondents identified housing affordability as the biggest issue they would like the governor and the General Assembly to focus on. That issue was statistically tied with taxes and public safety.
More than 80% of Marylanders say that the cost of buying a home in the state is too high.
That percentage has been steadily rising over time and is common among all age groups.
More than 80% of Marylanders say that the cost of renting an apartment in the state is too high.
Again, this percentage has been rising over time. A slide on geography indicates how widespread this sentiment is all around the state.
Less than one-fifth of voters think the state and local governments are doing a good job on housing.
If you are a non-incumbent candidate for office, especially one who is running against an incumbent, pay attention to these slides!
A large and growing majority of voters are feeling strained by housing costs.
This sentiment is concentrated among renters, young people and Black residents. Almost one-third of respondents said they had thought about moving out of Maryland because of housing costs.
Majorities of Democrats, Republicans and independents blame “too many local rules and regulations” for making it hard to build homes that Marylanders can afford.
This slide speaks for itself.
Look folks, the voters are right about all of this – especially about local rules and regulations. Montgomery County is Exhibit A for piling costs onto the real estate industry, and the result is tight housing supply. Governor Wes Moore’s proposal to eliminate itemized deductions for home mortgages would make it even harder to afford housing.
There is real political opportunity here for candidates who are willing to embrace a bedrock principle of economics: if you want to decrease the price of something, do everything you can to expand its supply. This is what voters want on the issue of housing, both across the state and specifically in Montgomery County.
Who will apply this lesson to next year’s elections?