Podcast: Pro-Housing County Exec Discusses Home Building Growth
This post has been updated.
On the latest episode of NAHB’s podcast, Housing Developments, CEO Jim Tobin and COO Paul Lopez welcome Josh Schoemann, county executive for Washington County, Wis., to discuss his Next Generation Housing Initiative to help builders build entry-level homes and increase housing opportunity.
The new housing program stemmed from Washington County’s struggle to retain its younger residents once they went away to college or for other opportunities. In researching the factors that contributed to them leaving, housing was a major component.
“If they can’t afford to live there, they’re not coming back,” Schoemann stated.
The program involved creating a coalition of government entities and housing professionals to help deregulate housing in the county, and securing American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) financing to leverage down development costs and cover permit fees for entry-level homes.
“I call it a prosperity cycle — prosperous families create prosperous businesses, which create prosperous communities,” Schoemann shared. “We’ve done this before. We just have to think differently than we have for the past 30 years.”
Challenges have included NIMBY-ism, holding the coalition together, and keeping the plan moving forward, especially in the wake of municipalities than have been reluctant to remove regulations.
Tobin and Lopez also discuss the cabinet picks for the Trump administration, including Scott Turner to helm the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and the opportunities for NAHB to collaborate.
The episode concludes with the latest Builders' Show Insider segment. Denise Miller, VP of Marketing and Brand Management, and Jamahl Gibbons, manager of IBS Show Homes, delve into the details surrounding The New American Home, including standout features in the 2025 show home.
Listen to the full episode of the podcast below, and subscribe to Housing Development through your favorite podcast provider or watch all the episodes on YouTube.
Latest from NAHBNow
Membership
Apr 15, 2025
Don Dabbert Jr. Seeks Certification as a Candidate for 2027 NAHB Third Vice ChairmanThe NAHB Nominations Committee announces that Don Dabbert, Jr., CEO/President, Dabbert Custom Homes in Fargo, North Dakota, has submitted his Letter of Intent to seek certification as a candidate for NAHB 2027 Third Vice Chairman.
Membership | Awards
Apr 15, 2025
Top HBAs in Member Growth and Retention Honored with 'Grand Awards'NAHB recently announced the latest winners of the Grand Awards, one of NAHB’s annual membership awards. Twenty-eight local associations and 15 state associations earned at least one Grand Award, as several associations received multiple honors.
Latest Economic News
Economics
Apr 14, 2025
Where Do Builders and Remodelers Buy Building Products?The most common sources for products used in home building and remodeling are specialty retailers, lumber yards, and wholesale distributors, according to two recent NAHB surveys. The surveys include one of single-family homebuilders in the October 2024 NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) and one of remodelers in the Q3 2024 NAHB/Westlake Royal Remodeling Market Index (RMI). Both surveys asked respondents where they purchase building products, regardless of who ultimately purchases them (themselves or subcontractors).
Economics
Apr 11, 2025
Building Material Prices Continue to Grow at Slower PacePrices for inputs to new residential construction—excluding capital investment, labor, and imports—were up 0.6% in March according to the most recent Producer Price Index (PPI) report published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Economics
Apr 10, 2025
Inflation Cooled in MarchInflation slowed to a 6-month low in March, largely driven by lower energy costs, especially in gasoline prices. Despite the easing, the report likely only captures part of the first wave of global tariffs announcement.