Millions of voters across four states will decide on six housing measures in the November midterms, the most related to housing policy in a single election year in 20 years, according to Ballotpedia.
Housing affordability has become more difficult to achieve in the country, as rising costs and historically high mortgage rates led to the U.S. homeownership rate declining last year for the first time since early 2016. National median home values have surged by over 30 percent since 2019, and stepping onto the property ladder has become particularly difficult for first-time buyers due to higher borrowing costs.
The crisis is evident in expensive markets with chronically low inventory like California, Hawaii, Massachusetts and Rhode Island, where voters will be able to take matters into their own hands next month. With affordability issues showing no sign of easing due to the uncertainty fueled by the ongoing war in Iran that has driven up energy prices and inflation fears, housing is shaping up to be one of the core issues on November 3—at least in these four states.
Three of the initiatives were referred to the ballot by state legislatures, while three are citizen initiatives. Most address restrictions to homebuilding that lawmakers have been targeting in the bipartisan 21st Century Road to Housing Act and that experts have said are necessary to change to boost supply nationwide—including land use, zoning, and permitting.
What These Four States Have in Common
All four states got an “F” rating from Realtor.com in its 2026 affordability and homebuilding report cards. Massachusetts and Rhode Island featured among the top five states with the lowest building intensity relative to population, at 0.41 and 0.37, respectively.
California, despite being one of seven states that together accounted for over half of building permits last year, at 7.3 percent, had a negative new-construction premium, meaning newly built homes are actually cheaper than existing ones, at an estimated -3.8 percent.
California and Hawaii were among the worst states for affordability and homebuilding as they face “high prices, constrained land, restrictive zoning, and building costs that far outpace what middle-income buyers can afford,” researchers wrote.
In total, only six states got an “F” rating. The other two are Connecticut and New York, which share many of the same challenges as the remaining four. Newsweek contacted Realtor.com and Redfin for comment by email on Monday morning.
Below is a breakdown of the measures on the ballot next month.
California: Proposition 1, Proposition 37 And Proposition 45
California’s Proposition 1, also known as the Veteran and Housing Assistance Programs Bond Measure, would authorize the state to issue $11.25 billion in bonds to fund income-qualified housing programs, such as the Multifamily Housing Program, the CalHome Program, and the Joe Serna, Jr. Farmworker Housing Grant Program, and the veteran home loan program.
Of the total, $1.25 billion would be dedicated to the veteran home loan program, while the rest to the other income-qualified housing programs. The last time that California approved a bond measure was in March 2024, when voters backed the issuance of $6.38 billion in bonds to fund housing for homeless individuals and veterans.
Proposition 1, which will be put to voters as a yes/no question, received support from the state’s Democrats and 25 percent of Republicans.
Proposition 37 is a citizen-initiated measure that would authorize the California Housing Finance Agency (CalHFA) to issue up to $25 billion in revenue bonds to fund a new down-payment assistance program targeting some homebuyers in the state. These are defined by the measure as residents of at least one year who earn at or below 200 percent of the area median income for a similar-sized family in the county or city where the home is located and provide a down payment of at least 3 percent of the purchase price.
While these two initiatives are about housing assistance, Proposition 45, another citizen-led proposal, addresses land use, zoning and permitting. The measure, which will be put to voters as a yes/no question, would change the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and Permit Streamlining Act for essential projects, defined to include housing, water, renewable energy, medical facilities, public safety infrastructure, broadband, education, and transportation.
Proposition 45, also known as the Expedited Environmental Review Process for Certain Projects Initiative, would establish deadlines for agencies to review applications and make permitting decisions, shorten or limit public agencies’ existing requirement to consider a range of project alternatives to reduce environmental impacts; and change the court review process for project approvals, limiting the occasions in which courts can delay or overturn them.
The average California home value is $761,538, according to Zillow data, up 0.6 percent over the past year.
Hawaii: Question 2
In Hawaii, voters will decide on Question 2, a constitutional amendment that would authorize the state legislature to empower the counties and municipalities of the state to issue housing infrastructure growth bonds for specified public works, public improvements, and community development.
The bonds would be “repaid solely by future growth in property tax revenues within those districts, not by increasing real property tax rates,” according to the proposal’s text. The measure has received unanimous and bipartisan support by Hawaii legislators.
At the moment, the average Hawaii home value is $832,932, up 1.4 percent over the past year, according to Zillow.
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Massachusetts: Question 7
Massachusetts’ Question 7, or the Limit on Required Lot Size for Single-Family Homes Initiative, would require cities and towns to allow single-family homes on residentially zoned lots that meet minimum standards of at least 5,000 square feet in area, at least 50 feet of frontage on a street or public way, and access to public sewer and water services.
The initiative directly addresses zoning policies and so-called NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard) attitudes in residential neighborhoods, with the goal of increasing inventory in the state.
According to Legalize Starter Homes, which is leading the campaign in support of the proposal, the ballot question “was carefully written based on existing state law, evidence from other states that this reform works, and compelling academic studies that large minimum lot size requirements in Massachusetts make homes more expensive and scarce.
“If this ballot question is successful, it would be nothing less than a far-reaching expansion of opportunity for a new generation of homeowners to thrive in Massachusetts.”
The average Massachusetts home value is currently $655,219, according to Zillow data, up 2.3 percent over the past year.
Rhode Island: Question 2
Another Question 2 will be on the ballot in Rhode Island, where voters will decide whether they want to approve a measure authorizing the state to issue up to $120 million in bonds for projects to “increase and preserve the availability of affordable and accessible housing.”
Of these, $25 million would be dedicated to increasing the production of housing intended for homeownership, while up to $10 million would be allocated for a public housing development program. The legislature-backed measure was included in the state’s fiscal year 2027 appropriations bill, which was supported by Democrats but opposed by Republicans.
The average Rhode Island home value is $508,507, up 3.5 percent over the past year, Zillow reported.
Newsweek’s reporters and editors used Martyn, our AI assistant, to produce this story. Learn more about Martyn here. Contact Newsweek editors for this story: Anthony Murray and Ben Kelly.