More Homes. More Neighbors.

Let's Build Homes recently commissioned a statewide poll of Vermont voters, and the results are unambiguous: housing is the number one issue in Vermont. 49% of voters named housing as Vermont's most important issue, ahead of taxes, healthcare costs, and jobs. 75% say legislative action is importa...

For most of the past decade, Vermont has had one of the tightest rental markets in the country. In Chittenden County, which holds the largest share of the state's rental housing, the vacancy rate hovered around 2% before the pandemic and fell below 1% during it. In a market that tight, landlords ...

The bill that passed overwhelmingly through both chambers just before the gavel fell and is now headed to the governor’s desk includes three big wins for homes:Since 2024 it has been official state policy that we want to build many more homes in and near existing downtowns and village centers in ...

Vermont's population has held roughly steady for several years, with modest dips in some recent counts. Among residents and policymakers, that has prompted a fair question: if the state is not gaining people, why does it need more homes?The intuition behind the question is reasonable. Population ...

Recently, Let's Build Homes had the opportunity to engage with the Vermont House Environment Committee regarding S.325. We deeply appreciate the committee's collaborative approach and the work they've done so far to address the unintended consequences of Act 181. By listening to the voices of lan...

Act 181 was passed in 2024, with the intention of alleviating the double-burden of Act 250 review in designated “Tier 1” areas, a proxy for where the state wanted to see housing growth. At the same time, it would establish more restrictions outside of those areas, with the goal of protecting crit...

Vermont's Act 250 has been, by most honest accounts, a success story. Over fifty years, it helped the state avoid the sprawl that consumed rural land across much of New England. Drive through southern New Hampshire or central Massachusetts and you can see what unmanaged development does to a land...

You can also read this op-ed as published in the VTDigger.Housing is the foundation of a thriving, inclusive and economically strong Vermont. Addressing our housing shortage is critical to the future of our communities. By building more homes we can grow our tax base, attract and retain families,...

Let's Build Homes commissioned a statewide poll of Vermont voters earlier this month, and the results confirm what our coalition has long known: Vermonters across the political spectrum are ready for action on housing.Vermonters are speaking with one voice. The housing shortage is not just one is...

Vermont’s housing goals are at risk. This week, Let’s Build Homes submitted urgent testimony to the Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Energy regarding the implementation of Act 181. While the law promised a "grand bargain" between conservation and growth, early data suggests a troubling t...

In our last post we made the case that ROOT Zones (Residential Opportunity Overlay Towns) could be a comprehensive fix to Vermont’s badly broken permit appeals system. However, ROOT Zones could also help address another major housing challenge that is coming into focus as the state completes the ...

Vermont has taken important steps to address our housing shortage. We've mapped out where new homes should go and committed $2 billion to help towns build the roads, water systems, and other infrastructure needed to support new housing.But for these changes to deliver results, we must address one...

Let's Build Homes (LBH) is a growing coalition of more than 800 Vermonters and 250 organizations supporting impactful actions by state, regional, and local officials to create 30,000 new homes for households of all income levels. Our mission is to create a Vermont of abundant housing for househol...

Let's Build Homes is pleased to announce a major grant award from Arnold Ventures through their Catalytic Funding Program for State and Regional Pro-Housing Organizations!This is a huge milestone for our coalition and a powerful validation of the work we're doing together to solve Vermont's housi...

This summer we logged miles across Vermont—Derby (7/7), Rutland (7/24), St. Albans (8/13), Quechee (8/19), Barre (9/2), Wilmington (9/9), and Williston (9/22)—to listen. The aim was simple: show up in communities across the state, share what we’ve been working on, and hear directly what’s helping...

Earlier this year, Vermont took a major step forward in addressing our housing shortage by creating the Community and Housing Infrastructure Program (CHIP). This program allows communities to use future property tax revenue from new housing developments to pay for the infrastructure those homes n...

Act 181, passed last year, created a new set of rules to modernize Act 250 and make it possible to exempt some parts of the state from Act 250 review when it was duplicated by review in local municipalities. We at Let's Build Homes see this as a real opportunity to eliminate unnecessary barriers ...

As part of our ongoing engagement around the state to offer a housing abundance perspective to the Act 181 mapping project currently underway, Let's Build Homes today sent a letter to the Chittenden County Regional Planning Commission outlining our feedback on the initial maps.While CCRPC was the...

Let’s Build Homes, Vermont’s leading pro-housing coalition, has launched a powerful new television ad on WCAX drawing attention to the state’s severe housing shortage and offering a vision for the future. The ad highlights a range of Vermonters, including a young family, a Northeast Kingdom teach...

It is a core principle of the LBH coalition that Vermont must continue to invest public resources to create permanently affordable housing for people with economic barriers preventing them from securing housing, or for those who are unhoused or disabled.We supported housing investments in the Bud...

Ahead of next week's public hearing, Let's Build Homes has weighed in on Montpelier's new comprehensive City Plan through a lens of housing abundance. Long-term comprehensive plans are the guiding documents that push municipalities to acheive their goals, and it's critical that those goals are we...

The cost of housing in Vermont is too high, driven by fierce competition for the few homes that are available to buy or rent. This lack of available housing options makes it difficult for young Vermonters to put down roots and stay here, for families to grow, and for seniors to age in place in th...

Let's Build Homes Announces Board of DirectorsVermont., - Let’s Build Homes (LBH), a non-partisan, pro-housing alliance, today announced its Board of Directors. Representing diverse sectors, regions, and backgrounds, the Board will drive LBH’s mission to advocate for strategic housing policy refo...

Statement from Let’s Build Homes Executive Chair Miro Weinberger on Governor Scott’s Housing Proposal"Vermont is facing a severe housing shortage that threatens not only our economy but the very fabric of our communities. Hardworking Vermonters—teachers, nurses, restaurant workers, and countless ...

It is a core principle of the LBH coalition that Vermont continues to invest public resources to create permanently affordable housing for people with economic barriers preventing them from securing housing, or for those who are unhoused or disabled. The following letter outlines LBH's support fo...

This week marked an excellent start for Let's Build Homes!Thank you to everyone who came and filled the Cedar Creek Room at the State House on Tuesday, and to the now over 100 organizations as well as more than 300 Vermonters who have signed on as individuals. Together we have demonstrated that t...

You can also read this op-ed as published in the VTDigger or Caledonian Record.Abundant housing is the cornerstone of an affordable, vibrant and inclusive Vermont. Yet today that vision of our beloved state is at risk as we face an unprecedented housing shortage that threatens not only our econom...