Georgia Faces Ongoing Housing Shortage Amid Rapid Population Growth

Georgia's rapid population growth has outpaced the development of adequate housing options across the state. A recent report by the Georgia Public Policy Foundation reveals that 94 out of 159 counties face a shortage of suitable homes. Fulton County, the most populous in the state and home to Atlanta, has the highest housing deficit, with over 75,000 units needed, as per a 2022 study by economists Kevin Corinth and Hugo Dante. Smaller counties are also impacted; for instance, Dawson County, with nearly 27,000 residents, lacks approximately 1,065 housing units. The surge in housing demand correlates with Georgia's population increase, which has gained over a million residents each decade since 1980, according to Thomas Perdue of the Georgia Public Policy Foundation. He notes that housing construction has stagnated since the 2007-2009 recession, with the number of housing units growing by only 7.9% from 2010 to 2020, significantly less than previous decades. Furthermore, building permits have declined, with Fulton County issuing fewer than 70,000 permits in recent years, down from over 114,000 in the early 2000s. Smaller counties, such as Taliaferro, have also seen permit numbers f...