On March 4, 2025, Noble Predictive Insights released a new poll concerning Arizonan’s views on the rising cost of housing and how to address it. To put this poll in the proper perspective, let us look at what has been happening with the cost of housing in Phoenix.
CBS News has been tracking the cost of essential items from 2019 to the present. Their PRICE TRACKER tracks several items which are considered the most important items in family’s budgets. They include the cost of apartment rents and the cost of single-family homes in the 200 largest metropolitan areas. These are the results for Phoenix between 2019 and 2024:
| Monthly rent for a typical apartment | UP 38.6% |
| Cost of a typical home | UP 52.3% |
Although these numbers are not the highest in the nation, they are high enough to be a major source of concern for Arizona’s registered voters. That concern was reflected in the first item in the NOBLE PUBLIC OPINION POLL
Top Issue Ranking: Affordable Housing
| DEMOGRAPHIC | TOP ISSUE | TOP 3 ISSUE |
| All voters | 12% | 40% |
| AZ Tenure 5-10 years | 18% | 39% |
| Democrats | 17% | 44% |
| Ages 30-44 | 16% | 44% |
| Urban | 16% | 45% |
Margin of error 3.10%
A basic principle of economics is that a major determinant of price (affordability) is the interaction between supply and demand. To increase affordability, either the demand for housing must decrease, or the supply must be increased.
A substantial decrease in housing demand is not likely here because the Phoenix metropolitan area is one of the fastest growing areas in the nation, and public policy seems to be encouraging that growth. That leaves an increase in supply as the main, and possibly the only, way to increase housing affordability in Arizona.
The next item in the Noble poll provides an insight into how voters view additional new apartments as a major tool to lower housing costs.
The poll went a step further by identifying the groups that support and oppose building new apartments as a tool to lower housing costs.
Groups driving support:
- Liberals: 77%
- Democrats: 70%
- Urbanites: 69%
- Ages 18-44: 65%
- Pima County: 65%
- Hispanic/Latinos: 64%
- Parents with kids under 18: 64%
- Those who have considered moving out of the state: 64%
- Arizona tenure less than 5 years: 63%
- Arizona natives: 63%
Groups driving opposition:
- Those unwilling to move if it increases their commute: 36%
- Post-grads: 34%
- Conservatives: 34%
- Rural densities: 33%
- HHI less than $100k: 31%
- Ages 65+: 30%
- Arizona tenure 20+ years: 30%
You quote, “A substantial decrease in housing demand is not likely here because the Phoenix metropolitan area is one of the fastest growing areas in the nation, and public policy seems to be encouraging that growth.” 100%! RIGHT HERE IN MY TSMC BACKyard. Thus the need for Union Park school which was full at capacity almost Day 1.
Dr. Finch suggested repurposing closed buildings into affordable teacher housing for staff. It was shot down specifically by one of our republican board members as a conspiracy. We desperately need forward thinkers with impeccable stewardship & NO EGO/POLITICAL/$$$ ties. They are unicorns but do exist.
There’s a problem when my 30yr old math professor daughter with no debt and $10,000’s saved for a down payment, can’t find a decent house to buy in her $ range in a safe neighborhood. We need alternatives.
Why do you censor republican conservative comments concerning abortion on republican FB sites? Do you support abortion and the killing of our babies?
The Legislature tried to stop what’s causing this…the [Legalized] ad hoc bureaucratic P&Z process, put in place to let every whiny group micromanage the development timeframe… MOST OF WHOM ARE GROUPS WITH ZERO SKIN IN THE GAME [$$$]. And the Cities & Counties already had these posted process-formats to follow, but somehow it ALWAYS GOES OFF THE RAILS, and becomes this bitch-session with tons of Karens & Klydes micromanaging stuff they have no business doing. Drives up cost—EVERYTIME.