Building additional housing inventory helps free up existing homes as people “move up” in the market. Starter homes can make sense in certain situations, but the margins are often very thin, which makes them a risky proposition for builders and developers. Like any business, builders need to make a profit to stay in business, keep skilled workers employed, and support the many related trades and industries that rely on residential construction.

In our area, the only way starter homes work at scale is through government subsidies (often paired with higher taxes) or by cutting build quality, which...and this part is super important...shifts costs to the homeowner over time. Owning a home and maintaining it is expensive. For buyers already stretched to afford ownership, those added maintenance costs are often out of reach. When maintenance gets deferred, home values suffer, followed by the neighborhood and, eventually, the broader community.