Frequently Asked Questions

Rhode Island is facing serious housing challenges. In recent years, the housing market in Rhode Island has been one of the tightest in the country, and housing costs are rising much faster than incomes in Rhode Island. These challenges are impacting multiple facets of life in Rhode Island. In addition to causing Rhode Island households financial stress, our housing challenges have put the dream of homeownership farther out of reach for many Rhode Islanders, limited the options available when Rhode Islanders want to move, and made it harder for many households to remain stably housed. These challenges are disproportionately felt by households of color. For instance, households headed by a person of color are less likely to own a home than other Rhode Island households. In 2020, the white homeownership rate in Rhode Island was 70.2 percent compared with 38.4 percent for Black households, 31.7 percent for Hispanic households, and 48.9 percent for other races or ethnicities.

Rhode Island’s housing challenges are not an accident. Over decades, Rhode Island has chosen to limit the development of homes that would have met its needs. Simply put, we aren’t producing enough housing. However, Rhode Island has a choice about the kind of future we want. Do we want to be a place where our children and grandchildren can afford to live? Do we want to continue to be a welcoming and diverse state? Do we want to be able to retain our talented workforce? We have an opportunity to put the State on a better housing trajectory. Housing 2030 aims to create an actionable plan for Rhode Island to build and maintain the housing it needs.

The Rhode Island Department of Housing is leading the development of the plan. The Department has contracted Abt Global – together with their partners the Rhode Island League of Cities and Towns, HousingWorks RI, and Root Policy to help on this project. Support and input for this work has also been provided by RIHousing, the Division of Statewide Planning, and the Housing Resources Commission. 

So far, Housing 2030 has developed the 2023 annual integrated housing report, held individual meetings with all 39 municipalities, conducted focus groups, reviewed housing plans from other jurisdictions and conducted interviews with those plans’ architects, launched a resident survey, and conducted baseline analysis on key topics. Plans take time and depend upon feedback from the public and a wide range of stakeholders. As such, any project timeline is subject to change. The current estimate is that the plan will be released in early 2025 before proceeding to the formal adoption phase required to become part of the state guide plan. To learn more about the state guide plan and its elements, visit the Division of Statewide Planning website

A resident survey is live currently. If you are a Rhode Island resident, please fill out the survey! You can also get into contact with the Department of Housing by filling out this webform and including “State Housing Plan” in the title.