The U.S. housing market is currently short more than 300,000 affordable homes for middle-income buyers, according to a recent analysis by the National Association of Realtors® (NAR) and Realtor.com®. This ongoing housing inventory crunch is hitting middle-income buyers harder than any other income bracket, underscoring a critical issue in the current market landscape.

The housing affordability and supply report from NAR and Realtor.com® highlights the stark disparity in available home listings across different price ranges. A balanced market, as defined in the report, is one where half of all homes for sale fall within a price range affordable for middle-income buyers. Unfortunately, this balance is far from being achieved in today’s market.

When the leadership of Miami REALTORS® brainstormed out-of-the-box responses to their region’s affordable housing crisis, their ideas ranged from housing teachers at school sites to constructing homes within parking garages. Ultimately, they decided to pursue an innovative solution: repurposing shipping containers into affordable dwellings. This initiative, supported by a REALTOR Party Community Outreach grant, involved developing two discarded containers into a 480-square-foot home on land contributed by the county. Over six years, they navigated regulatory barriers and effected significant improvements in the system, paving the way for future affordable housing developments.

Overcoming Regulatory Challenges

“The battleground of affordable housing is going to happen in the zoning and planning departments in all of our cities throughout the country,” says Miami REALTORS® 2022 Board Chair Fernando Arencibia, Jr. Danielle Blake, the board’s Chief of Commercial, emphasizes that the primary takeaway from the project was not the unit itself but the process. Their mission was to study the barriers to make this a viable solution for other builders.

The prototype, developed in partnership with NAR, Miami-Dade County, and the City of South Miami, was sold to a buyer whose income is 80% of the area median. By restrictive covenant, the property must remain affordable for a minimum of twenty years.

You and your clients feel it every day: the inventory crunch. Buyers are frustrated with too few options on the market, and you might be feeling stuck, wondering what you can do to make the situation better. You’ll find that your voice as a REALTOR® is one of the most important tools you have to create change for your clients.

That’s such an important concept to understand that the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) is on a national Riding with the Brand tour to promote the collective power of REALTORS® in all 50 states. Get updates from the road. Drive With NAR host Marki Lemons Ryhal talks to two REALTORS® on both the residential and commercial sides of the business about the inventory issues in their communities and the action they’re taking to help fix the problem. Click here for the full podcast episode.