Today, Saint Anselm College’s Initiative for Housing Policy and Practice released its annual statewide survey of voter attitudes toward affordable housing in New Hampshire. The Initiative’s 2025 survey results demonstrate pro-housing attitudes across demographic groups and support for expanded tools to address the affordable housing shortage. In short, the 2025 results signal that New Hampshire voters are not feeling relief in the housing market as they call on lawmakers to expand the range of solutions.
The poll was conducted by the Saint Anselm College Survey Center from August 20 to August 21, 2025. A total of 1,209 registered New Hampshire voters were surveyed, with a margin of sampling error of +/- 2.8% and a confidence interval of 95%
“The 2025 survey shows a consistent pattern of pro-housing sentiment across regions, age groups, and political affiliations. Housing has indeed become a unifying policy concern for the New Hampshire electorate,” noted Elissa Margolin, director of the Initiative for Housing Policy and Practice at Saint Anselm College that conducted the survey. “Voters are not only feeling the adverse impacts of the limited housing supply, but they are also expressing support for specific tools to address affordability, including smaller-lot single-family zoning and the adaptive reuse of existing homes.
“It’s encouraging to see that voter sentiment mirrors what we are hearing from the community,” said Rob Dapice, Executive Director of the New Hampshire Housing Finance Authority. “So many people have recognized the importance of housing choice and zoning flexibility in bringing costs down for NH families. These changes in awareness and sentiment have created a strong foundation for policy change and for the collaborative work needed to meet New Hampshire’s housing needs.”
Key Findings from the 2025 Statewide Survey of Voter Attitudes on Affordable Housing:
● Consistent, broad support for more affordable
Nearly 8 in 10 New Hampshire voters agree that their community needs more affordable housing. This consensus extends across age, income, region, and party affiliation. In every demographic group tested, a majority agreed with the statement, “My community needs more affordable housing to be built.”
● Continued support for policy change and housing diversity.
Following a legislative session that advanced policies such as legalized accessory dwelling units, multi-family housing in commercial zones, and regulatory streamlining, voters now express support for additional action. Majorities favor allowing single-family homes on smaller lots (+29), permitting conversions of large single-family homes into up to four apartments (+39), and allowing religious institutions to develop housing on their land (+42).
● Growing openness to specific tools that expand housing options.
Voters support a range of approaches to address the state’s housing shortage. Respondents endorse strategies such as adaptive reuse of existing homes, redevelopment of underutilized properties, infill development in areas with water and sewer infrastructure, as well as new construction.
● Rejection of restrictive housing attitudes.
Voters disagree with statements suggesting that New Hampshire should “do more to prevent housing development and keep the state the way it is” (-26) and that “suburbs and rural towns should have mostly just single-family homes, with apartments and duplexes limited to cities” (-29).