Will Massachusetts’ economic recovery be short-lived?

By Liam Day
April 28th, 2007

Good news, everyone. According to today’s Boston Globe, Massachusetts’ economy is growing again - and at almost 4 times the rate as that of the national economy.

But, a note of caution. Massachusetts’ economic growth is imperiled by - surprise, surprise - the state’s high cost of housing. As tech companies expand, they require young, highly educated workers, precisely the demographic that has shown an aversion in recent years to settling down in old, cold and expensive Massachusetts.

In a macro sense, the solution to Massachusetts’ high housing costs is a fairly straightforward one: increase the supply of housing to meet demand. The question is: does the political will exist in Massachusetts to overcome the entirely rational, though somewhat shortsighted interest those who already own their homes have in seeing home prices appreciate as demand outstrips supply? If it doesn’t, Massachusetts’ renewed economic growth will be short-lived indeed.