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V O L . X X X N O. X V I J U LY 2 2 , 2 0 2 4 24 R E A L E S TAT E / C O N S T R U C T I O N / E N G I N E E R I N G private housing finance — to encour- age affordable housing production. is has led to a historic expansion in the sector across Maine, especially in rural areas, says Brennan. is year, MaineHousing par- ticipated in seven affordable housing developments that opened in May; 33 developments and 1,407 affordable homes are under construction and an additional 53 projects totaling 2,119 units are in pre-construction. "ere's a lot going on," says Brennan. "Over the last five years, there's been the recognition that hous- ing is a big deal in Maine and around the country. For many years, we had to make the case that housing belonged in the conversation at the upper levels of political strategy and resources. We don't have to do that anymore. ere seems to be a collective understanding at the federal and state level that hous- ing is a really big deal and that we've got to do something." Supply and demand imbalance Skyrocketing home sale prices and rental rates are due to factors such as a population influx in search of rentals and for-sale housing as a result of the pandemic, the conversion of housing stock to lucrative vacation rentals, and increasing construction costs. Demand has outpaced supply for years, notes Szanton. e pandemic accelerated the problem. » C O N T I N U E D F RO M P R E V I O U S PA G E 2021 2022 2023 22 LOCATIONS ACROSS MAINE & NEW HAMPSHIRE 1 - 8 0 0 - H A M M O N D W W W . H A M M O N D L U M B E R . C O M R E A D Y T O P I V O T W H E N E V E R Y O U R J O B D O E S . AUBURN • BANGOR • BAR HARBOR • BELFAST • BELGRADE • BLUE HILL • BOOTHBAY HARBOR • BRUNSWICK • BUCKSPORT • CALAIS • CAMDEN • CHERRYFIELD DAMARISCOTTA • ELLSWORTH • FAIRFIELD • FARMINGTON • GREENVILLE • MACHIAS • PORTLAND • ROCHESTER (NH) • ROCKLAND • SKOWHEGAN ROCHESTER ROCHESTER Nathan Szanton of the Szanton Co., says almost any entry-level worker would have a hard time affording today's rents. F O C U S F I L E P H O T O / T I M G R E E N WAY It's like a game of musical chairs, where instead of 11 kids and 10 chairs, you have 600,000 households and 560,000 dwelling units. — Nathan Szanton The Szanton Co.