Laura Mitchell is executive director of the Maine Affordable Housing Coalition.

It’s no secret, whether renting or trying to purchase a first home, Maine families are feeling the impacts of our state’s housing crisis. Maine renters earn, on average, $24 an hour, but need $28 an hour to afford a two-bedroom apartment.

Most workers in service, retail, maintenance, clerks and drivers don’t even earn $24 per hour. Maine’s median income is nearly $74,000 (with rural counties seeing lower incomes), which qualifies home buyers for a $261,000 home — yet the average Maine home costs $419,950.

Wages won’t quickly catch up to housing costs. Between 2020 and 2024, home prices grew by over 50%, while wages grew by less than 33%. Our housing crisis doesn’t know partisan lines; homes are the foundation of our economy, our workforce and our communities.

The first legislative session earlier this year was historic. Republicans and Democrats alike stepped up to take essential steps. For the first time, Maine dedicated ongoing revenue for affordable housing, reformed zoning to allow more homes in the right places, including designated town growth areas and mixed in with retail and other businesses, and expanded programs like the Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credit.

But we have more work to do. Maine must preserve the affordable homes we have — in mobile home communities and in older rental properties that are at risk of losing affordability without ongoing support.

Maine also needs about 75,000 new homes by 2030 to catch up on waitlists and meet workforce and household growth. Delays in permitting slow development. In communities like Cumberland and Cape Elizabeth, critical affordable housing projects have been rejected — and while other New England states like New Hampshire and others have implemented appeals processes to create fairness and build more housing.

Maine lacks the tools to provide common sense limits on frivolous denials of proposed
housing that meets local standards. The second legislative session is our opportunity to pass key bills and policies that have not yet become law:

• A statewide housing bond. This would provide critical state investment to leverage federal funding and private capital for workforce, senior and family housing and enable rural communities to build affordable rentals and homes for purchase.
•  Making the State Affordable Housing Tax Credit (SAHTC) permanent. This would ensure continued creation and preservation of affordable homes before this successful tax credit expires.
• DEP permitting reform. This would set clear review time limits for environmental permitting, similar to successful models in New Hampshire and Massachusetts, so projects can move forward efficiently.
• A Legislative Housing Barriers Work Group (from LD 1375) that’s highlighted allowing taller single-stair buildings up to four stories. This mirrors New Hampshire’s approach, allowing more homes in one building, and reducing costs.
• A Legislative Housing Innovation Work Group (from LD 1453) that recommends expanding the use of modular, manufactured and other advanced construction technologies to increase the speed and efficiency of housing development.

Let’s get serious about building a lot more housing to ensure our children and grandchildren can afford to stay in Maine. We can’t have our teachers and police officers barely be able to afford their rent and then have the next generation in crisis.

Now is the time to turn momentum into action. Passing these bills and policies will move us closer to ensuring that every Maine worker, family and retiree has a safe and affordable place to call home and our youth have opportunity for homeownership in their future.