NEWS from REP. DAVID ROWE<\/p>\n
HARRISBURG, PA \u2014 The Pennsylvania House Republican Policy Committee, chaired by Rep. David H. Rowe (R-Snyder\/Union\/Mifflin\/Juniata), has concluded a three-part hearing series on expanding homeownership, workforce housing shortages, and the growing barriers facing Pennsylvania families and communities.<\/p>\n
The hearings\u2014hosted by Reps. David Zimmerman (R- Lancaster\/Berks), Jeff Olsommer (R-Wayne\/Pike) in Pike County, and John Schlegel (R-Lebanon)\u2014brought together builders, developers, economists, municipal officials, housing advocates, nonprofit leaders, and real estate professionals to examine the factors driving Pennsylvania\u2019s housing shortage and rising housing costs.<\/p>\n
Across all three hearings, lawmakers heard a consistent message: Pennsylvania faces a growing shortage of attainable housing driven by rising construction costs, permitting delays, infrastructure mandates, labor shortages, utility costs, zoning barriers, environmental regulations, and a lack of available housing inventory.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor generations, homeownership represented stability, opportunity, and the ability to build a future,\u201d Rowe said. \u201cToday, too many working families feel like that dream keeps moving further out of reach.\u201d<\/p>\n
May 21: Lancaster County Hearing Focused on Development Barriers and Housing Supply<\/p>\n
Zimmerman noted Lancaster County\u2019s population increased from approximately 500,000 residents in 2010 to roughly 552,000 residents in 2020, while also balancing significant farmland preservation priorities.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re looking forward to hearing about the issues that make it much more challenging to get building done and keep costs in line,\u201d Zimmerman said.<\/p>\n
Rowe opened the hearing by citing a Mercatus Center report showing Pennsylvania\u2019s median home listing price increased from approximately $185,000 in 2016 to roughly $325,000 in 2025.<\/p>\n
Lawmakers also heard testimony that Pennsylvania\u2019s fragmented municipal structure \u2014 with more than 2,600 municipalities operating under different zoning rules, permitting standards, and development requirements \u2014 continues creating uncertainty and delays for builders.<\/p>\n
Randy Hess, president of Hess Homes, testified that developers may need approvals from up to 11 regulatory bodies for a single housing project and noted that \u201cif a project is approved in under two years, that is currently considered a success.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hess also described projects where stormwater infrastructure costs alone totaled approximately $85,000 per lot.<\/p>\n
Cliff Weaver, owner of Landmark Homes, testified that more than 1 million Pennsylvania households are now considered cost-burdened, meaning they spend more than 30% of their income on housing.<\/p>\n
\u201cHousing is more than just a commodity. It is a foundation for strong families, stable communities, and economic growth. When we make it easier to build homes, we make it easier for Pennsylvanians to achieve the dream of homeownership,\u201d Weaver said.<\/p>\n
Mario Mattioli, owner of Acorn Built Homes, testified about rapidly growing demand for accessory dwelling units (ADUs), stating his company now receives between 200 and 300 inquiries per month from families seeking alternative housing options.<\/p>\n
Witnesses throughout the hearing repeatedly emphasized that \u201cmissing middle housing\u201d \u2014 duplexes, townhomes, starter homes, and workforce housing \u2014 has largely disappeared from many Pennsylvania communities.<\/p>\n
May 26: Pike County Hearing Highlighted Workforce Housing and Inventory Shortages<\/p>\n
Testimony focused heavily on inventory shortages, escalating construction costs, second-home market pressures, workforce housing concerns, and environmental and permitting requirements that witnesses said continue pricing local families out of the market.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn Wayne and Pike counties, trying to build a multifamily unit is extremely difficult and at the expense of our youth,\u201d Olsommer said.<\/p>\n
Edward Nikles, president of Ed Nikles Custom Builders and a Dingman Township supervisor, testified that the cost of building a new home has increased more than 50% since 2020.<\/p>\n
Nikles also testified that implementation of the 2021 International Residential Code added another 5% to 10% to construction costs and warned that environmental and permitting requirements have moved beyond balance and are now making development financially unrealistic for many projects.<\/p>\n
\u201cI believe we have passed the point of balance between environmental protection and practical affordable development,\u201d Nichols testified.<\/p>\n
Local Realtor Will Clauss testified that Pennsylvania currently faces a housing shortage estimated between 98,000 and 137,000 homes statewide.<\/p>\n
Clauss also testified that median home sale prices in Pike and Wayne counties climbed from approximately $128,000 in 2016 to approximately $312,000 today \u2014 a 144% increase.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe entry-level market is hollowing out,\u201d Clauss testified, noting that homes priced under $250,000 dropped from roughly 85% of the market to only 29% over the past decade.<\/p>\n
Clauss further testified that 80% to 90% of his sales now involve second-home buyers from New York and New Jersey, placing additional pressure on local inventory and affordability for younger Pennsylvania families.<\/p>\n
Throughout the hearing, witnesses described how lengthy permitting timelines, septic requirements, stormwater mandates, and development uncertainty continue discouraging new housing construction across rural Pennsylvania.<\/p>\n
May 27: Lebanon County Hearing Examined Housing Instability, Workforce Needs, and Downtown Revitalization<\/p>\n
Testimony in Lebanon County focused heavily on workforce housing, downtown revitalization opportunities, homelessness prevention, adaptive reuse projects, supportive housing, and the broader social impacts of housing instability.<\/p>\n
Schlegel said, \u201cStrong communities begin with opportunity, personal responsibility, and economic growth. Housing policy should reflect those principles by encouraging investment, reducing unnecessary barriers, and promoting practical solutions that help people achieve stability and independence.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lebanon Mayor Sherry Capello testified that Lebanon City faces a projected housing gap of nearly 2,000 units over the next five years, including more than 1,400 rental units and more than 500 owner-occupied units.<\/p>\n
Capello also testified that multifamily apartment vacancy rates in Lebanon City currently sit at approximately one-half of 1% while affordable housing developments maintain waiting lists in the thousands.<\/p>\n
\u201cHousing is not simply a development issue,\u201d Capello testified. \u201cIt is directly tied to affordability, workforce retention, economic opportunity, neighborhood stability, and quality of life.\u201d<\/p>\n
Capello highlighted opportunities to convert vacant upper floors in downtown buildings into residential units but warned that elevator requirements, sprinkler systems, and code compliance costs often make those projects financially impossible.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis type of targeted investment could transform communities across Pennsylvania,\u201d Capello testified.<\/p>\n
Kyle Wenger, owner of Revitol Home Company, described the financial realities facing small developers attempting to rehabilitate older housing stock.<\/p>\n
\u201cHousing is not going to get solved with one giant project,\u201d Wenger testified. \u201cI think it gets solved with practical projects over time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Wenger also warned that parking requirements, density restrictions, permitting expenses, and approval uncertainty continue preventing smaller infill housing projects from moving forward.<\/p>\n
Caitland Lockhart, executive director of the Lebanon Housing Collaborative, testified that Lebanon County is experiencing housing shortages \u201cacross every single socioeconomic level.\u201d<\/p>\n
Community Action Partnership Administrator Christine Hartman testified that 44.6% of Pennsylvania renters now spend more than 30% of their income on housing costs and noted that more than 27% of all searches on Pennsylvania\u2019s PA Navigate referral platform involve housing-related needs.<\/p>\n
\u201cHousing instability is no longer isolated to large cities,\u201d Hartman testified. \u201cRural communities, suburban counties, and small towns throughout Pennsylvania are facing the same pressures.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hartman also testified that average one-bedroom apartment rents in Lebanon County now range from approximately $800 to $1,470 per month while the maximum monthly Social Security income for many individuals is approximately $994.<\/p>\n
Brian Smith, executive director of Lebanon County Christian Ministries, urged lawmakers to remember the human impact behind the issue.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re talking about our neighbors, not a structure, not a building,\u201d Smith testified. \u201cWe\u2019re talking about humans.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat we heard throughout this series is that there is no single silver bullet,\u201d Rowe said. \u201cBut we also heard that there are practical reforms and collaborative solutions that can help more Pennsylvanians achieve stability, opportunity, and a place to call home.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"NEWS from REP. DAVID ROWE HARRISBURG, PA \u2014 The Pennsylvania House Republican Policy Committee, chaired by Rep. David…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":209778,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[4736,28,30,29],"class_list":["post-209777","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-pennsylvania","tag-housing","tag-pennsylvania","tag-pennsylvania-headlines","tag-pennsylvania-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/209777","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=209777"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/209777\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/209778"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=209777"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=209777"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=209777"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}