Minneapolis’ housing deregulation over the past decade has helped keep the Twin Cities from plummeting into the deepest hole when it comes to affordable housing availability.
The big picture: A new report by the National Multifamily Housing Council (NMHC) and New York University highlights Minneapolis as an example of how one city helped keep rents down.
- The report came on the same day that Congress passed the bipartisan federal Road to Housing Act, which aims to do some of the same things Minneapolis did: relax local regulations and encourage construction.
- President Trump said on Wednesday that he won’t sign it until Congress passes an election reform bill he wants.
Zoom in: Researchers examined how the Minneapolis 2040 Plan and the elimination of parking minimums helped usher in a boom in multifamily construction, with the city increasing its housing stock by 12% between 2017 and 2022.
- Average rents increased by only 1% over those five years, per the report.
- Meanwhile, the rest of the state increased its housing stock by just 4% and average rents went up 14%.
Between the lines: While there was a national obsession with the 2040 Plan allowing duplexes and triplexes almost anywhere in the city, the NYU/NHMC report correctly notes that 87% of the new units were in buildings with 20-plus apartments.
- The main thrust of the 2040 plan is that it made it much easier for developers to build mid-size buildings along transit corridors.
Yes, but: Researchers note that demand for Minneapolis apartments declined following the civil unrest of the summer of 2020, partially explaining the lack of rent increases…