Vermont realtors tell committee low inventory is driving prices; urge by-right permitting and support for small builders

On Jan. 30, at a meeting of the Economic Development, Housing & General Affairs committee, Peter Tucker of the Vermont Association of Realtors testified that low housing inventory is lifting prices statewide and urged policy changes to speed smaller-scale homebuilding.

Tucker told the committee that the market is returning from the pandemic peak: single-family home sales topped 8,000 in 2020 and 2021, fell to about 5,400 in 2023 and remained roughly stable in 2024. He said median sale prices have continued to rise over the period and cited a statewide mid-2024 median for single-family homes of about $415,000. "As supply dwindles, the supply line actually moves up demand curve ... there's less inventory and higher prices," Tucker said.

The Vermont Association of Realtors representative highlighted several constraints on new housing. He said labor availability, high costs of materials and elevated interest rates are making construction—and particularly small-scale homebuilding—hard to "pencil out." Tucker also described…