Op-ed: More Housing Options Offer More Resources for NC Families

by Wadeyn Norris,
State Chairman of the NC Federation of College Republicans

In much of the state, fewer than 1% of for-sale homes are available at any given time — far below the 2–3% economists consider a healthy market. In the Triangle and Charlotte, where employers keep adding jobs faster than builders can add roofs, the math simply doesn't work for a growing share of families.

Zoning reform and new construction are essential, and they take years to show results. In the meantime, North Carolina has a resource that's helping families right now: single-family rental homes.

For a growing number of North Carolina families, a rented single-family home isn't a consolation prize — it's the smarter choice. It means a yard for the kids, a driveway, room to spread out, and access to the school district a family wants, all without a 20% down payment or a mortgage that locks them into one house for a decade. It means a young family relocating for a new job at one of the plants and employers investing in this state can move in within weeks, not months. And when the water heater breaks or the roof needs work, it's the landlord's problem, not a surprise bill that wrecks a family's budget.

Single-family rentals also give families flexibility that ownership can't. A parent whose job moves them to Charlotte, a couple who wants to test out a neighborhood before committing, a family who needs more space after a second child arrives — all of them are better served by a rental market that includes single-family homes, not just apartments and condos. And for many renters, it's a stepping stone: a chance to build savings and credit history in a home that actually fits their life, on the way to owning one someday.

As builders and lawmakers work to close North Carolina's housing gap, they should treat single-family rentals as part of the solution, not an afterthought. Expanding this segment of the market — through more built-to-rent communities and rental-friendly zoning — gives families real choices today while the state works to build its way out of a decades-in-the-making shortage. North Carolina families deserve options, and single-family rentals are one of the best ones we have.