The housing affordability crisis is taking center stage in Bucks County. On September 9, 2025, the Pennsylvania House Majority Policy Committee held a roundtable discussion hosted by State Rep. Jim Prokopiak (D-140) to address skyrocketing rents and home prices that have climbed nearly 50% since 2017.

Rep. Prokopiak emphasized the urgent need to “lower the cost of housing and make the American dream more attainable.” He and other lawmakers cited several factors driving the crisis, including:

• Wages lagging behind housing costs

• Severe shortage of new construction

• Restrictive zoning regulations limiting development

Pennsylvania currently ranks 44th in the nation for new housing starts, a figure largely tied to zoning barriers that slow or block residential development.

Anne Costello, a Bucks County Realtor and past chair of the Suburban Realtors Alliance, called housing affordability “a community-wide crisis.” She highlighted the impact of 7% mortgage rates, rising home prices, and historic inventory shortages that have left many families and first-time buyers with limited options. Builders, she explained, are facing high material and labor costs, along with local zoning restrictions that make building affordable homes nearly impossible.

Prokopiak shared legislative initiatives he has introduced, including measures to expand moderate-income housing, stabilize rents, and increase overall housing supply. Other recommendations from the panel included streamlining zoning approvals to reduce costs and speed up development timelines.

House Majority Policy Chairman Ryan Bizzarro (D-3) summed it up by calling housing a “human right” and stressed that improving access to affordable homes would strengthen communities and support long-term economic growth.

For Bucks County homebuyers, sellers, and investors, this discussion could signal coming changes in local housing policy — changes that may open the door to more inventory and new opportunities in the real estate market.

Source: Rep. Jim Prokopiak, September 9, 2025