19th-century brick houses — Bay City, Michigan by Andrew Jameson is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license
Michigan lawmakers are currently considering the Housing Readiness Package, a series of bills aimed at making housing more affordable by expanding property rights, cutting unnecessary government red tape, and allowing the free market to better respond to the state’s housing needs.
One of the bills included in the package is HB 5529, which would tackle one of the biggest drivers of the rising cost of housing: minimum lot sizes. These requirements artificially increase housing prices by constraining the number of homes and available lots for housing.
HB 5529 fixes this problem by amending the state’s Land Division Act to prevent local governments from having a minimum lot size of more than 1,500 square feet for single-family homes when dividing the land if they are accessing public water and sewer services. This gives consumers more options by allowing homes to be built on smaller, more affordable lots. It also gives property owners greater flexibility to use their land and allows builders to respond to demand for different types and sizes of housing.
By ending minimum lot size requirements, Michigan would join other state and local governments that are reaping the benefits of relaxing such restrictive laws. In 2024, Austin, Texas, cut its minimum lot sizes by 50%, and the city has since experienced a housing renaissance with 120,000 new homes built since.
By cutting down this burdensome minimum lot requirement through HB 5529, Michigan moves closer to a freer, more affordable housing market. Allowing smaller lots gives property owners more freedom, builders more flexibility, and homebuyers more options. Michigan lawmakers should pass HB 5529 and let consumer demand, not arbitrary government mandates, determine how communities grow.