It has long been perceived by many in New Hampshire that residential housing construction has been stymied by local zoning and building restrictions. Cutting through red tape in getting permits hasn’t been the biggest problem; New Hampshire is actually rather efficient in that regard compared to the other New England states. The bigger issue in the Granite State is what it has always been: the desire of taxpaying homeowners to preserve the character of their neighborhoods and property values by restricting construction that would increase density and/or decrease aesthetic appeal. “Not in my back yard!” has been a rallying point at town meetings.
With the resulting shortage of available “back yards,” the Legislature has recently focused on limiting local discretion thought to be putting up roadblocks to new housing starts. This summer Governor Ayotte signed several bills into law which affect residential construction in the State. Here are the highlights:
While these measures may spark some new residential development, they do little to address the other root cause of the housing shortage: affordability. Smaller manufactured housing units are obviously the most affordable, but the Legislature left HB 685, which would have allowed manufactured housing on all residentially-zoned lots, on the cutting room floor – proof that the “Not in my back yard” sentiment echoes even in the State House.
In Washington, FreddieMac has just included single-wide manufactured housing to its CHOICEHome financing program, previously restricted to double-wides. Borrowers can make down payments of as little as 3% and still qualify for the program. A nice gesture, but finding the land which will allow the placement of these units is another matter. A local one.
With the resulting shortage of available “back yards,” the Legislature has recently focused on limiting local discretion thought to be putting up roadblocks to new housing starts. This summer Governor Ayotte signed several bills into law which affect residential construction in the State. Here are the highlights:
- HB 413 limits local jurisdiction of a ZBA or other municipal appeals authority to just appeals on local amendments to the state building code or state fire code, requiring all other appeals to be made directly to the State Building Code Review Board, which now has authority to review municipal decisions on local amendments as well.
- HB 457, effective September 13, 2025, prohibits local legislative bodies from restricting the number of occupants of any dwelling unit to less than 2 occupants per bedroom, or basing occupancy restrictions on the familial or non-familial relationships or marital status, occupation, employment status, or the educational status among the occupants.
- HB 428 amends the State Building Code, effective July 1, 2026, by prohibiting local legislative bodies from making changes to the state fire code.
- HB 577 expands accessory dwelling units by establishing a right to construct one detached unit on a single-family residential lot, and increases the maximum square footage for a unit.
- HB 631, effective July 1, 2026, permits multi-family residential buildings in commercial zoning districts, mandating an exemption to any requirements regarding setbacks, height, or frontage requirements for a building being converted to multi-family or mixed-use.
- SB 26, effective September 30, 2025, allows the Consumer Protection Bureau of the Attorney General’s Office to authorize the use of escrow deposits on purchase and sales agreements on subdivided land for pre-closing payments to customize or upgrade the property, or for change orders and similar items.
- SB 188 allows independent third-parties (engineers, architects, building code enforcers) hired by the property owner to inspect land, buildings, and structures to determine compliance with state and local building codes, and sets deadlines for issuance of certificate of occupancy after a municipality receives certification of code compliance form the independently hired party.
- SB 281, effective July 1, 2026, prohibits municipalities from denying building or occupancy permits for property adjacent to class VI roads, provided that the applicant agrees to relieve the municipality of liability.
- SB 283, effective September 30, 2025, requires municipalities to exclude below-grade areas from floor-area-ratio (FAR) calculations and to review and adjust height limitations as needed to maximize capacity and height potential for new construction.
- SB 284, effective September 13, 2025, prohibits municipalities from requiring more than one parking space per new residential unit.
While these measures may spark some new residential development, they do little to address the other root cause of the housing shortage: affordability. Smaller manufactured housing units are obviously the most affordable, but the Legislature left HB 685, which would have allowed manufactured housing on all residentially-zoned lots, on the cutting room floor – proof that the “Not in my back yard” sentiment echoes even in the State House.
In Washington, FreddieMac has just included single-wide manufactured housing to its CHOICEHome financing program, previously restricted to double-wides. Borrowers can make down payments of as little as 3% and still qualify for the program. A nice gesture, but finding the land which will allow the placement of these units is another matter. A local one.
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