How experts are addressing housing affordability today
 | Wade Jurney Executive Chair National Home Corporation |
 | Sarah Wheeler Editor in Chief HousingWire |
Overview
If anyone personifies operational toughness in housing, it’s Wade Jurney. National Home Corporation, where he serves as executive chairman, builds entry-level homes across Florida, Texas and the Carolinas at an average price of $250,000. That number alone makes people pause.
He is democratizing homeownership and using operational excellence to price more entry-level, first-time buyers into the marketplace. This is huge.
After sessions on housing inventory, where interest rates are headed and the profile of today’s first-time homebuyer, it becomes clear why housing affordability is top of mind in 2026. In this session, Wade Jurney will discuss practical operational and pricing approaches that can help expand access to homeownership.
Session Notes
- Key Takeaway: In this candid, interview-style session, Wade Jurney argued that housing affordability won’t be solved by marginal tweaks—it requires deliberate cost discipline at every step of homebuilding, from lot selection to ceiling height. The most effective lever isn’t incentives or gimmicks, but building smaller, simpler homes faster, even when that means pushing against consumer expectations and industry norms.
- Affordability starts before the builder ever shows up. Land entitlement, zoning, and developer-imposed restrictions often lock in higher prices long before construction begins—leaving builders limited room to maneuver.
- Small design choices have massive qualification impact. Every $1,000 increase prices 115,000–150,000 families out of the market; features like 9-foot ceilings or upgraded finishes can displace hundreds of thousands of potential buyers.
- Homes are shrinking again—and that’s necessary. Average home size has fallen from a 2017 peak (~2,700 sq ft) to under 2,000, reflecting a return to functional housing over aspirational excess.
- Value engineering is relentless and standardized. Using identical kitchens, lighting SKUs, window sizes, and simplified layouts reduces cost, speeds construction, and enables lower margins at scale.
- Builder margins are far thinner than most assume. A “good” year is ~20% gross margin, but concessions (especially rate buydowns) often consume most of that, leaving net margins closer to single digits—or less.
- Rate buydowns are powerful but ethically tricky. While they improve monthly payments more efficiently than price cuts, large buydowns risk inflating sale prices and leaving buyers exposed if they sell early.
- Manufactured housing has promise—but isn’t turnkey yet. Regulatory, logistical, and social barriers still limit adoption, even though it could materially lower costs long term.
- Leadership Lens: True affordability requires structural cost reduction, not just financial engineering. Builders, lenders, and policymakers should align around smaller homes, fewer mandated features, faster turn times, and fewer regulatory frictions—because affordability gains at the margin don’t scale, but disciplined simplicity does.
