Housing policy reform arises as one of the few bipartisan opportunities.

Minnesota voters seem to prefer a split state government. History shows that there has been one-party control only four out of the past 34 years, including 2023 and 2024. 

Following the most recent election, the Minnesota Legislature will enter the 2025 legislative session as evenly split as possible with the House of Representatives standing at 67 members for each, DFL and GOP, and the Minnesota Senate remaining in DFL control with a 34-33 margin. Gov. Tim Walz (DFL) will return to Minnesota to finish his second term following his top-of-ticket loss as the Democratic vice-presidential candidate.

“This is likely to be the most divided Minnesota Legislature we have seen in a generation,” said Mark Foster, vice president of legislative and political affairs. “Only policy issues that can receive strong bipartisan support will be seriously considered. That’s where housing comes in. In recent years, members from both parties have elevated housing policy reform, and these issues should be a top priority for our newly elected officials to get to work on.”

Throughout the 2024 campaign, as housing costs continue to rise, housing availability and affordability issues garnered more attention from voters than ever before. So much so that 91% of Gen Z voters viewed housing affordability as “very important” or “somewhat important” in their voting decisions, according to a Redfin survey. First-time homebuyers reached a new all-time high for median age as housing prices and mortgage rates have increased — the median first-time homebuyer’s age was 38 years old in 2024, up from 35 in 2023.

“Homeownership opportunities rank as one of the top issues for more and more Minnesotans,” said James Vagle, CEO of Housing First Minnesota. “As we saw last legislative session, addressing the barriers unnecessarily driving up the costs of housing is an opportunity for bipartisan agreement. Without significant statewide reforms, our housing market will remain woefully undersupplied.”

During the 2024 session, a unique and diverse coalition of business associations, labor groups, environmentalists, housing advocates and more supported the “Minnesotans for More Homes” agenda. The bipartisan legislature was introduced as a slate of bills geared toward allowing for the creation of more homes and greater affordability options. Multiple pieces of this agenda were signed into law in May, but many pieces were unable to get across the finish line.

“The coalition views the dynamics in the upcoming legislature as a generational opportunity to accomplish true bipartisan work for the betterment of Minnesota,” said Foster. “As we’ve seen across the country, any time that housing policy initiatives are voted on as stand-alone pieces they receive strong bipartisan votes. We can do the same in Minnesota.”

The Minnesota Legislature is scheduled to begin the 2025-2026 session on January 14, 2025.

GOP earns full control of federal government 

Following the 2024 election, both chambers of Congress and the White House will be under Republican control for the first time since 2018. 

While President-elect Trump did highlight housing affordability as a top issue during the campaign, he was light on specifics on how his proposals would help reduce the costs of housing. 

“We’re going to open up tracks of federal land for housing construction,” he said in August. “We desperately need housing for people who can’t afford what’s going on now.”

During the first Trump administration, he signed an executive order, “Eliminating Regulatory Barriers to Affordable Housing: Federal, State, Local and Tribal Opportunities.” President Biden also highlighted the need to build more housing over the past four years. 

Some of Trump’s proposed policies include eliminating regulations and permit requirements that add unnecessary costs to new homes, opening up portions of federal land for housing construction and pressuring the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates. 

Additional proposed policies from Trump that could impact housing production and affordability are mass deportations and tariffs. Though he has consistently talked about finding solutions to the housing crisis, the impact of these proposals remains to be seen.