Poll Says This Remains 'Top Concern' for Massachusetts Voters

Poll results can reflect who is asking the poll questions, who is answering and how the poll questions are asked.

With that in mind, it should come as no surprise that a poll conducted for the nonprofit 501(c)(4) advocacy and lobbying organization Abundant Housing Massachusetts would find that "Housing remains the top concern for voters, ranked above inflation, immigration, and taxes."

I am simply putting the poll in context and do not question its accuracy.

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The poll was conducted for HAMA by the MassINC Polling Group, a for-profit subsidiary of MassINC, the Massachusetts Institute for the New Commonwealth, a Boston-based independent, non-partisan think tank that also published CommonWealth magazine.

MGP said the poll finds that "strong majorities of Massachusetts voters support building more homes in their own communities even when it means changes to neighborhood character or local decision-making."

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"71% say building more homes people can afford is more important than protecting traditional neighborhood character, and 63% say it matters more than preserving local control over what types of housing get built," according to MPG.

The Housing Abundance Massachusetts website says, "The housing shortage is the most pressing issue facing the Commonwealth, and that reality is reflected in the attitudes of the voters."

In a statement, HAMA executive director Jesse Kanson-Benanav said, "Across the Commonwealth, voters want more housing solutions that create an abundance of housing opportunities for families, renters, and longtime homeowners alike."

Jennifer Smith wrote for CommonWealth magazine, "Common wisdom usually boils down to residents wanting to preserve their community while home values rise, suggesting that other communities would be better suited for more units."

Smith reported the recent polling "finds that majorities of voters feel that the state and their own communities alike are not doing enough to address the housing crunch."

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