Frequently Asked Questions

  • The zoning code determines what can be built, where in our community - where we put our parks, homes, businesses, and industry. 

  • The zoning code not only determines what areas are allowed to build homes in, but specifies what kind of home can be built, separating different types of homes such as apartments. 

    The zoning code essentially determines how many homes can be built in Manchester and whether those homes will be naturally affordable to working families or only to more affluent people.

    • Manchester needs more homes of all shapes and sizes, for all our neighbors. Today, Granite Staters cannot find housing options that meet their needs and budgets.

    • Manchester has a shortage of 8,500 homes according to the 2022 Housing Underproduction report from Up for Growth, due to underbuilding and exclusionary zoning rules.

  • The shortage of homes that are attainable to working households is a policy choice. This policy choice has limited the types of homes that can be built in most of Manchester to only the most naturally expensive option, excluded people, forced young people who’ve grown up here to move away, and forced others to be stuck in a housing situation they cannot afford, paying more and more of their income towards housing costs. 

    • Manchester has a shortage of 8,500 homes according to a 2022 report. When we don’t have enough homes for the people who live in our community, prices go up. Competition between renters for scarce housing allows landlords to charge more, because renters have limited choices. Competition between prospective home buyers over scarce housing leads to bidding wars, which push the price of a home ever higher.  

    • We also have a mismatch between the types of homes people need and what is available. With smaller household sizes, seniors downsizing, and young people starting out unable to afford large single family homes, we need homes of different sizes such as accessory dwelling units, duplexes, townhomes, cottage clusters, and more multifamily options. 

    • Missing middle housing options are consistently more affordable than the single-detached houses that would otherwise be built in their place. The U.S. Census shows that, across the country, the median monthly cost of a single detached house is 17-18% higher than a home in a two-to-nine unit middle housing complex. 

    • Allowing more homes to be built will reduce the pressure on our housing market by better meeting the need for homes that we have today. By allowing more homes - especially of different sizes - we will be meeting the needs of Manchester residents today and tomorrow. 

    • Other cities that have allowed more homes to be built have seen rents flatten and drop over time, even as peer cities and nearby cities see rents continue to rise.

  • What’s at stake is the future of our city - today, people cannot find homes they can afford that meet our needs. Will we allow more homes to be built that are different sizes and price points, or will we continue our exclusionary trajectory, and ensure only the wealthy few can live in Manchester? We can choose a different path forward that allows for more abundant homes, more homes of different sizes and prices, and for more community members to live in Manchester. Our zoning code can create the opportunity for new and more attainable homes here in Manchester, but only if we allow more homes in more parts of our city.

  • Our zoning code has deliberately outlawed some of the more affordable home types - duplexes, triplexes, quadplexes, small apartment buildings, and backyard cottages. Instead, our zoning code has prioritized the most expensive home type - the single detached home - on a huge percentage of our land in Manchester.

  • As proposed by the City, this draft does not reflect best practices that will help ensure more homes are built, at a lower price point, and ignores some well-established recommendations from consultants hired by the City. Overall, the plan is inadequate to meet the housing needs of Manchester today, let alone tomorrow. Small changes could make this plan more impactful, and allow more homes to be built.  Stay tuned for our coalition recommendations on what to change.

    • Today, there is a significant mismatch between the types of homes people want to live in, what they can afford, and what’s available. By legalizing more homes per lot such as duplexes, triplexes, and fourplexes, our communities will be able to support more of the types of homes people want and need.  Small families just starting out will be able to afford a home, while older families will be able to downsize to a more appropriate and accessible home.

    • Smaller homes provide more options for people with more modest incomes, giving them an option to buy they can afford. Smaller homes require smaller lot sizes, and share the cost of home development across several households. 

    • Numerous studies have shown that as more homes are built, rent prices drop. When we have too few homes, tenants and buyers lack options are are forced to pay more to secure a home. When we have more homes, people can shop around to find a home that meets their needs and budget.

    • Missing middle housing options are consistently more affordable than the single-detached houses that would otherwise be built in their place. The U.S. Census shows that, across the country, a home in a 2-to-9-unit middle housing complex costs 17-18% less than a single-detached house (and more like 40-50% in high-demand cities). Yet new middle housing is banned across most American cities (including Manchester), while the single-detached house is legal to build anywhere.

    • Manchester is experiencing rising homelessness, and building more homes will help address this problem. Homelessness is - at its core - about a lack of housing.

    • Many academic studies have consistently found that homelessness is more directly correlated to housing costs than any other factor - greater rents, rent-to-income ratios, price-to-income ratios, or home prices all positively correlate to increased rates of homelessness. Changes in rents precipitate changes in rates of homelessness. 

    • While the most direct answer to addressing homelessness is providing housing or subsidizing housing for people with low incomes, studies have also found that increasing the supply of housing more generally in a community can bring down costs for all homes, helping to slow the rate of increases in homelessness, and help more families who are paying too much of their income towards rent be more stable and prevent their homelessness. 

    • Studies have shown that areas that have increased housing production - such as Minneapolis and Houston - have seen overall decreases in homelessness.

    • Everyone should be participating in the community meetings, which will run every Wednesday at 6 PM and every Saturday at 10 AM throughout Manchester, from July 10 to September 7. You’ll hear a presentation on the proposed zoning code, you’ll have a chance to share your feedback, and you can ask questions. 

    • If you rent your home in Manchester, if you work in Manchester but can’t afford to live there or can’t find a home that meets your needs, or if you’re struggling to afford the cost of housing, you should attend these community meetings.

    • Sign up here.

    • New Hampshire has a long tradition and history of governing our communities together. During this process to revise our zoning code, our public participation processes and systems should be intentional and inclusive, and ensure the voices of people who struggle to find a home they can afford are heard. 

    • Manchester should be seeking out the voices of people who have been excluded from decision making in the past, particularly people who are experiencing housing instability, or people who have been evicted from their homes without cause or displaced due to rising rents. 

    • Whether you are young or old, if you rent or own, or are newcomers or life long residents, your voice should be heard in the process to review and revise our zoning code. 

    • Manchester should be seeking to hear from people who rent their homes, people who work multiple jobs just to make ends meet, and people who desperately want to live here but cannot currently afford it. 

    • The Board of Mayor and Alderman and the advisory committee should seek out, prioritize, and listen to people who are struggling to find a home that meets their needs in Manchester.