Housing Crisis Deepens; Public Distrust of New Supply

The housing affordability crisis persists globally, driven by chronic underbuilding, regulatory barriers, and shortages of labor and financing. A Searchlight poll found 93% of Americans say housing is too expensive and many distrust new construction as a cure (44% say adding homes raises local prices; 48% blame investor buy‑ups). Build-to-rent single-family rentals are emerging as an investor-attracting alternative for cash-constrained cohorts, while at least 63,700 nonprofit-run subsidized apartments in New York City are financially distressed, threatening maintenance and tenant stability. Community-led models such as Eastington’s community land trust in England show local affordable housing can be delivered and preserved. One year into Australia’s five-year 1.2 million-home plan, ACT, Victoria and Western Australia have outpaced targets while Tasmania, the Northern Territory and NSW lag. Builders and industry groups cite energy-code mandates, local fees and a critical construction-worker shortage as barriers, and rising unaffordability is prompting interest in tiny homes, zoning reforms, energy upgrades and renewed federal and local interventions.