How North Carolina’s housing shortage could threaten economic development

CHARLOTTE — North Carolina is facing a critical housing shortage, with an estimated 800,000 units needed statewide. As major employers like Toyota, Boom Supersonic and JetZero bring tens of thousands of jobs to the state, the question becomes urgent: Where will workers live?

For the N.C. Business Minds podcast series, we talked with Jon Hardister, president of the Triad Real Estate and Building Industry Coalition and a former six-term state legislator, about what’s at stake in the housing shortage. Hardister explains why the average first-time homebuyer is now 40 years old and whether efforts to address density and development challenges are likely to resurface in the General Assembly after stalling amid opposition last year.

This conversation reveals how North Carolina’s housing shortage could threaten economic development — and what stakeholders are doing now to solve it before it’s too late.

How North Carolina’s housing shortage could threaten economic development

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