Cost of living in NH has outpaced what most families earn

WELCOME TO NEW HAMPSHIRE’S. BUSINESS I’M FRED KOCHER. THE COST OF LIVING IN NEW HAMPSHIRE HAS OUTPACED WHAT MOST FAMILIES EARN, RESHAPING THE STATE’S ECONOMY AND DAILY LIFE. THAT’S A STATEMENT FROM NEW HAMPSHIRE FISCAL POLICY INSTITUTE THAT MONITORS NEW HAMPSHIRE’S ECONOMY AND PUBLIC POLICY ON A REGULAR BASIS. AND HERE’S WHAT THEY POSTED RECENTLY ON THEIR WEBSITE. PERCENT INCREASES FOR AVERAGE PRICES AND GOODS AND SERVICES FROM 2005 TO 2024, IN THE NORTHEAST REGION. LOOK AT THIS FOOD UP 72. MEDICAL CARE UP 67%. HOUSING UP 62. TRANSPORTATION 52. RECREATION UP 27%. AND THAT IS THE BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS HAS ONE OF THE SOURCES FOR THAT. BUT ANYHOW, WITH ME FROM THE NEW HAMPSHIRE FISCAL POLICY INSTITUTE IS TO BRIEF US ON THEIR ANALYSIS OF THE COST OF LIVING IN NEW HAMPSHIRE AS WE MOVE INTO 2026. ARE JESSICA WILLIAMS, POLICY ANALYST, AND RESEARCH DIRECTOR. WELCOME. NICE TO HAVE YOU ON. THANKS FOR HAVING US, FRED, JUSTIN, FILL US. WE KNOW THE COST OF LIVING HAS GONE, IS GOING UP ACROSS THE COUNTRY AND AS WELL AS NEW HAMPSHIRE. BUT HERE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE, FOR DECADES, THERE HAVE BEEN PRICE INCREASES. THE COST INCREASES WITHOUT THE ACCOMPANYING PUBLIC POLICY AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT TO BLUNT THOSE INCREASES, ESPECIALLY IN HOUSING. COMMENT. YEAH. SO RIGHT NOW, WHAT WE ARE SEEING WHEN WE LOOK AT THE RESEARCH OVER THE 20 YEAR PERIOD, WHICH WE EXAMINED EARLIER THIS YEAR, WE SEE A STRUCTURAL AFFORDABILITY CRISIS AND THAT THE NEEDS THAT PEOPLE HAVE, WHETHER IT’S FOOD, WHETHER IT’S HOUSING, CHILDCARE, HEALTH CARE, WE’VE SEEN THOSE COSTS INCREASE. AND PARTICULARLY WITH HOUSING, HEALTH CARE AND CHILD CARE, THOSE COSTS HAVE OUTPACED INFLATION AND OUTPACED INCOME GROWTH SUBSTANTIALLY. THOSE ARE HARD COSTS TO AVOID, PARTICULARLY HOUSING. WELL, LET’S LOOK AT THE TWO GRAPHICS HERE. AND PARTICULARLY ON HOUSING, WHICH IS, BY THE WAY, THE BUSINESS INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION’S NUMBER ONE ISSUE. AND LET’S LOOK AT THESE GRAPHICS STATEWIDE. MEDIAN SINGLE FAMILY HOUSE SALE PRICE 1999 136,900. YOU CAN SEE THE NUMBERS 2015. YOU CAN SEE THE NUMBER 2025. AND LOOK AT THE INCREASES. AND HERE’S A GRAPHIC AGAIN FOR THE STATEWIDE MEDIAN MONTHLY RENTAL COSTS FOR TWO BEDROOMS, 2000 A YEAR, 2774. IT’S HARD TO BELIEVE 2015 1001 57 AND 2025 2024. THAT’S 20 2024 DATA, ACTUALLY. JESS, HOUSING HAS BECOME A NUMBER ONE CONSTRAINT. OR HAS IT ON THE ECONOMY IN NEW HAMPSHIRE. ABSOLUTELY. SO HIGH HOUSING COSTS HAVE LARGELY BEEN INFLUENCED BY RELATIVELY LOW HOUSING INVENTORY ACROSS THE STATE OVER THE PAST COUPLE OF DECADES. WE SEE THAT HOUSING CONSTRUCTION, HOUSING PERMITTING HAS REALLY NOT KEPT UP WITH THE DEMAND FOR HOUSING. WE ALSO SEE QUITE A CHANGE IN DEMOGRAPHICS. MORE OLDER ADULTS REMAINING IN THEIR HOMES LONGER, MORE MILLENNIALS ENTERING THE HOUSING MARKET, PURCHASING HOMES, AS WELL AS FEWER PEOPLE PER HOUSEHOLD, WHICH IS ALL PLAYING A ROLE ON THAT LIMITED HOUSING INVENTORY. WE DO SEE THAT PRICES HAVE STARTED TO STABLE IN 2025 FOLLOWING THE PANDEMIC, BUT PRICES ARE CONTINUING TO INCREASE, SUPPLY, INCREASING ENOUGH, ESPECIALLY ON THE AFFORDABLE SIDE. SO WE DO SEE THAT PRICES ARE CONTINUING TO INCREASE IN THE STATE’S RURAL COMMUNITIES AND RURAL COUNTIES, LIKELY REFLECTIVE OF THAT LOWER INVENTORY IN THOSE AREAS. LOWER INVENTORY. RIGHT. LET’S TURN TO THE LEGISLATIVE SESSION, WHICH IS ABOUT TO START OR HAS STARTED UP IN CONCORD. AND COST OF LIVING. IS THERE ANY LEGISLATION THAT YOU SEE COMING? AND IT’S BY TITLE ONLY RIGHT NOW ON COST OF LIVING ITEMS LIKE HOUSING, LIKE CHILDCARE AND SO FORTH. SO RELATIVE TO HOUSING, WE COULD SAY THAT THERE ARE DOZENS OF BILLS THAT WE’VE SEEN RELATIVE TO HOUSING, AT LEAST, THAT ARE COMING FORWARD AHEAD OF THE LEGISLATURE. CHILD CARE ALSO HAS A STRONG HANDFUL OF BILLS AS WELL. SOME OF THESE BILLS APPROACH THE ISSUE FROM MANY DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES. ONE ON THE HOUSING FRONT IS THERE’S A FAIR NUMBER OF BILLS RELATED TO ZONING AND ZONING LAW CHANGES. SO THERE’S DEFINITELY GOING TO BE DISCUSSION IN THE LEGISLATURE AROUND PARTICULARLY HOUSING AND CHILD CARE, AND HOW THOSE RELATE TO THE COST OF LIVING IN THE STATE, HOW THOSE DISCUSSIONS WILL PAN OUT. WE’LL HAVE TO SEE OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL MONTHS. YEAH. FINAL COMMENT. I WOULD SAY THERE WERE SEVERAL HOUSING RELATED BILLS PASSED AS PART OF THE LAST LEGISLATIVE SESSION. THERE WERE. SO THERE WILL BE SOME IMPLEMENTATION ON THAT FRONT AS WE’RE MOVING INTO THE NEW YEAR. WE’VE TALKED ABOUT THESE ISSUES OF CHILD CARE AND HOUSING. NOW FOR A WHILE, 3 OR 4 YEARS ON THIS SET, WITH SOMETIMES WITH YOU GUYS. BUT I WANT TO THANK JESSICA WILLIAMS, POLICY ANALYST, AND PHIL SLETTEN, WHO IS THE DIRECTOR OF RESEARCH AT THE NEW HAMPSHIRE FISCAL POLICY INSTITUTE. THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR HAVING US ON. AND IF YOU MISSED PART OF THIS BRIEFING ON THE COST OF LIVING IN NEW HAMPSHIRE, YOU CAN G