Words matter when discussing housing. The term “housing crisis” can produce a negative reaction, whereas “housing opportunities” speaks to community needs.
“Number of units” sounds institutional, while “number of homes being built in a development” emphasizes community connections.
Make It Meaningful — Put a Human Face on Housing Needs
Frame the conversation so everyone in the community can understand it. Amy Peterson, a REALTOR® based in Blaine, in the northern Twin Cities area, served as 2024 president of the Saint Paul Area Association of REALTORS® and is chair of NAR’s Housing Opportunities Committee.
“We hear from a community that there’s a housing crisis. But they also say, ‘don’t put it in my backyard,’” she said of opposition to smaller houses, small-scale multifamily and other solutions. “So, we talk about gentle density that offers affordability, staying in the community, starter housing for the children of the community, elder options, enhanced property values and more. We tell the story of the human side of it to break down some walls.”
Peterson urged REALTORS® to help their communities understand that duplexes, triplexes and townhomes can be designed to match a neighborhood and create a cohesive feel. She said REALTORS® can connect a shortage of housing options with reduced affordability and underscore how local businesses benefit when a community adds homes.
“Having stable housing options that people can call home strengthens a community’s economic stability,” she said. “Put a human face on it. When people are concerned about accessory dwelling units (ADUs), remind them that the TV shows Happy Days had a garage apartment and Full House had a basement bedroom and attic ADU.”
Appeal to Skeptics by Sharing the Benefits
Skepticism toward these developments can be addressed with survey data, such as current NAR survey data that show nearly two-thirds of respondents would pay more to live in a walkable community. Families can save money by walking or biking to everyday destinations or by meeting the transportation needs of a household with multiple adults using only one car. Explain what housing choices mean and provide examples.
Peterson said flexible housing can allow multiple generations to live on one lot. ADUs allow families to create a private dwelling on the same lot for an older parent or a family member with a disability. “A lot of people want to downsize but stay in the community. Others are just starting and they want a smaller house that is affordable. We need to allow right-sized housing, to provide options to fit a variety of lifestyles,” Peterson said.
Peterson also urged REALTORS® to work through their local REALTOR® association to apply for NAR grants that help fund housing studies and initiatives that create partnerships with city, county and regional authorities and nonprofits.
In eastern St. Paul, collaboration led to The Heights, an infill development planned to include about 1,000 housing units, park space and light-industrial jobs. Designed according to smart-growth principles, the redevelopment of the former Hillcrest Golf Course has achieved LEED for Communities Platinum certification and is designed as a net-zero, carbon-free community.
“Most of the new opportunities are going to be more affordable townhomes with some rental housing. It is a gentle density project, meeting a community need with development on a former golf course,” Peterson said.
Create a Local Coalition of Stakeholders to Get the Job Done
Dolly Wussow, CEO of the Greater Lakes Association of REALTORS® (GLAR), noted that an NAR grant-funded housing study evolved into a broader effort involving housing authorities, economic development leaders and local governments. Wussow credited Jennifer Bergman, formerly a local housing official and Brainerd city administrator and now director of local government housing programs for Minnesota Housing.
GLAR, which covers central Minnesota — about 120 miles north of the Twin Cities — used the housing study to prove that greater Brainerd is one of the three fastest-growing areas in the state. To help housing supply keep pace with growth, GLAR worked with Crow Wing County to create a housing trust fund.
Wussow said when REALTORS® brought the community together, the greatest victory was an urban infill project that did not require a costly extension of infrastructure.
“Brainerd developments had gone stale for 10-plus years. The infrastructure was in the ground, but nobody was building,” she said, noting that 85 percent of the lots were vacant at the planned 100-plus-lot neighborhood.
“Crow Wing County, the City of Brainerd and other agencies worked together, after Jennifer Bergman helped to create a game plan,” Wussow said. “The city forgave more than $1 million worth of infrastructure costs and waived outstanding tax assessments on vacant lots.”
Within about five years, the development was nearly completed. Much-needed housing was created, the blight of abandoned lots was erased and land went back on the tax roll. The Crow Wing County Housing and Redevelopment Authority and the Brainerd Housing and Redevelopment Authority won an Award of Excellence in Community Revitalization from the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials for their support of Brainerd Oaks.
Wussow said NAR’s Transforming Neighborhoods Program helped local leaders identify other future housing sites and noted that a new senior-oriented development is following smart-growth principles, with sewer and water lines being extended and park space being developed.
