Policy Issues for the Year Ahead

Our Mission as an Association - to Promote Building, Protect Housing, and Elevate Communities - guides what we do in the advocacy space. There are two ways to get things done in government - either you convince people in power to do the right thing, or you find people who will do the right thing and help put them in place. While we will engage in a number of political races this year, and we are tracking closely the proposals in Olympia, we have also identified a number of key local issues we will seek to address this year.

Land Use

Today, only 17 percent of people in Spokane can afford to purchase a home. That statistic alone should give every policymaker pause. When access to homeownership shrinks, so does access to economic stability, wealth-building, and long-term community investment.

Homeownership is more than a housing type, it is a foundational societal value. It creates stability for families, strengthens neighborhoods, and builds generational wealth. It anchors people to their communities and encourages long-term civic investment. For those of us in the homebuilding industry, our mission is simple: to provide shelter and expand opportunity. We believe deeply in the socio-economic benefits that come from putting a roof over someone’s head and saying, “This is yours.”

But we cannot build opportunity on land that is unavailable or unaffordable. Structural change is needed at the policy level. Growth planning should not be about containment for containment’s sake. It should be about balance—protecting agricultural lands and infrastructure while also ensuring there is enough land and regulatory certainty to make homeownership attainable.

We are actively sharing important data with the Growth Management Steering Committee, elected officials, and building and planning staff. Ultimately, the County Commissioners will decide how this process moves forward. They need to hear from the people whose lives are directly impacted by these policies. Now is the time to ensure that homeownership is not sidelined in the next 20 years.

Eliminate Minimum Lot Size Requirements

As the housing market continues to shift and in particular become less affordable, for perspective home buyers, we need to seek new and innovate ways to meet the demands of the market a a price point people can enter into home ownership. Housing is a ladder, where each rung needs to be in reach, but that step between renting and home ownership has become further and further apart. We need to encourage local jurisdictions to do everything they can to cut regulation detrimental to “middle housing” and help the 80 percent of people living in apartments who want own a home help take that step.

While there are many codes and ordinances that we seek to improve, one that we have identified this year is minimum lot size requirements. We are in the process of identifying different jurisdictional codes around this topic and have put together a plan to push for their elimination. We believe the intersection of builder feasibility and market desires best determine what housing types are best for our community, and that overregulation creates unnecessary cost and complication. By eliminating these varying and arbitrary size requirements, we can lower the price point of entry level housing. Moreover, we can make home ownership available to more people. Studies have shown that small houses on small lots can be built cheaper per unit than current government-built units - and it carries the benefit of security, health, and generational wealth for our community.

Take Action

The Spokane Home Builders Association doesn’t exist without you. Everything we do - whether it’s networking, education, industry promotion, or advocacy - depends on our members to engage and guide our efforts. You have a voice, and we’d love for you to use it! So sign up for our advocacy alerts, join the government affairs committee, and share your experience with elected officials - you are the engine that helps move the home building industry forward.