New poll finds rising housing costs are straining families, limiting pathways to homeownership and threatening Texas’ long-term economic competitiveness
Austin, Texas – The Texas Affiliation of Affordable Housing Providers (TAAHP) today released a report that combines statewide housing and economic data with findings from a new cross-section survey of more than 1,100 Texans, whose responses highlight the growing affordable housing crisis facing Texas and the urgent need for policies that support the development of affordable rental housing across the state.
As outlined in TAAHP’s “Build Texas” report, the state currently faces a shortage of approximately 864,000 affordable rental homes for households earning at or below 50 percent of area median income, while nearly half of Texas renter households are cost-burdened, spending more than 30 percent of their income on housing.
“The Texas economy continues to lead the nation, but housing affordability is becoming one of the greatest threats to our future growth,” said Roger Arriaga, TAAHP Executive Director. “When teachers, healthcare workers, first responders, service industry employees and other essential members of our workforce cannot afford to live near where they work, communities suffer. Affordable housing isn’t just a housing issue, it’s an economic development issue, a workforce issue, and a quality-of-life issue. If we want to keep Texas competitive, our local, state, and federal governments must support policies that encourage investment in more affordable rental housing now.”
TAAHP’s survey of 1,128 Texas adults was conducted April 24-May 4, 2026, with a margin of error +/- 4.06 percent, and included responses from 350 Republicans, 414 Democrats, and 364 identifying as Independent/other/no affiliation. Among survey respondents across income levels and geographic regions, findings include the following:
- 49% of Texans say the cost of housing is a major problem where they live, a concern that rises to 60% among renters, underscoring the growing strain on working households.
- 54% of Texans say housing affordability is getting worse in their community, including 62% of renters who report that finding affordable housing is becoming increasingly difficult.
- 60% of Texans report an increase in their housing costs over the past year, including 75% of renters, showing that rising housing expenses continue to outpace household budgets.
- 58% of Texans say they are either just getting by or falling behind financially, including 43% of middle-class Texans who say they are struggling to keep up with rising costs.
- 59% of renters say they have been unable to save as much money as they would like, highlighting how housing costs are limiting opportunities to build financial security and pursue homeownership.
- 42% of renters say they have delayed seeking healthcare because of other expenses, demonstrating how housing affordability challenges are affecting quality of life and access to essential services.
- Nearly one-third (31%) of Texans say support for affordable housing should be a top priority for elected officials, reflecting growing public concern about the state’s housing shortage.
- 56% of Texans believe state officials are doing too little to address affordable housing, a figure that climbs to 66% among renters, who are most directly affected by rising costs.
- 69% support expanding tools such as housing incentives and tax credits to encourage the development of affordable housing for lower-income Texans, signaling broad bipartisan support for policies that increase housing supply and affordability.
The report also highlights the broader impact of housing affordability on healthcare access, transportation costs, educational outcomes, workforce recruitment and retention, and pathways to homeownership.
“Affordable housing is the foundation of strong communities and economic opportunity,” said Kathryn Saar, TAAHP Board President. “The survey results make it clear that Texans understand what’s at stake. Families are making difficult choices every day, whether that’s delaying medical care, cutting back on essentials, or putting off their dreams of homeownership. Texans want practical solutions that help keep our communities affordable, support economic growth, and ensure that working families here can continue to thrive.”
Despite the need for significantly more investment, the report also notes that Texas has become one of the nation’s most efficient producers of affordable housing, and argues that maintaining and strengthening proven housing tools will be critical as the state’s population continues to grow. Among its policy recommendations, TAAHP calls for:
- Modernizing the state’s Housing Credit framework to reflect rising development costs. Raising the allowable cost cap on housing developments using the federal Low-Income Housing Credit will unlock more investment and enable the creation of more affordable rental homes.
- Creating fair, consistent appraisal standards for affordable housing developments. Despite the misperception that all subsidized affordable rental housing is tax exempt, TAAHP supports a standardized, data-driven approach for determining the value of tax-paying rent-restricted properties using data from the State of Texas.
- Preserving local housing tools that help communities respond to growing housing demand. While TAAHP has endorsed corrections to promote transparency and eliminate tax exemption exploitations, it supports efforts to preserve flexibility for Texas’ public housing authorities, housing finance corporations (HFCs) and public facility corporations (PFCs). TAAHP also opposes any changes that would restrict flexibility, disincentivize investments, partnerships, or decrease opportunities for the development of affordable housing.
“Texas has earned a reputation nationwide as a state built on opportunity,” said Arriaga. “Protecting that opportunity means ensuring the people who power our economy can afford to live in the communities they serve. The solutions exist, and the public is telling us they want action. Now is the time to build more affordable housing, strengthen our workforce and keep Texas growing.”
The Build Texas report and detailed survey findings are available at HousingForTexas.org.