The Housers Podcast

Vermont isn't just shrinking in population, its aging. The state has 30,000 fewer working age citizens between 25-40 then it did 25 years ago. This, while modest population gains during the Covid-19 pandemic has reversed.

For those of us at the Innova802 Crew, we see the effects every day. Many citizens on fixed incomes, who represent a larger share of the population, cannot afford increases to taxes for education, infrastructure and public healthcare subsidies.

For many, the gut reaction is to say, no new Vermont citizens, no new Vermont students, no new Vermont employers taking in public investment dollars. While this may seem intuitively correct, it is in fact the path to a downward economic cycle that becomes very challenging to reverse, especially for rural states.

We hosted Kevin Chu, Executive Director of the Vermont Futures Project during season nine of the Are We Here Yet? podcast. One year later, the Innova802 crew had him back to talk about the effort to get all Vermonters on the same page, writing a book of growth in order to create a more livable Vermont bursting at the seams with opportunity and the right balance between caring for our neighbors and having the ability to pay for it.

Listen to VFP on Marketplace

This Are We Here Yet? podcast is in association with the Innova802 podcast.

This conversation on rural development is so important, we're hosting it on The Housers Podcast, too!

We're joined by Julie Marks of the Vermont Short Term Rental Alliance (VTSTRA) to take a deeper look at what STRs mean to the Vermont economy and what role STRs play or don't play in the housing crisis in Vermont and in the country. Listeners will get a sense for the profile of many STR owners and what role STRs can play in housing people under a variety of circumstances.

In the Housers hometown of Rutland, VT local leadership has opposing views on the role of STRs. We hope to spark a vibrant and balanced conversation to benefit our community's housing ecosystem through our podcast and advocacy for the use of STRs.

Julie will be joining us on April 25, 2025 1:30PM for a live and in-person discussion during the monthly meeting of our advocacy group Partners in Housing. This will take place at The Hub CoWorks and by remote meeting.

Host and founder Scott Graves is asking some tough questions for all of us to ask in our own communities. How do we get beyond a place of manufactured scarcity and support all forms of private and public housing development to meet our middle market needs?

Find Scott's Latest Essays from An Artist Audio recording on The Housers Podcast and the Are We Here Yet? Podcast. Find his housing advocacy work, along with Housers Stephen Box and Mike Waugh at partnersinhousingvt.com.

Co-hosts Stephen Box and Scott Graves rattle on regarding the four rules Alexandre Behringused when he took charge and began scripting the critical moves, not all the moves, just the critical moves for the Brazilian Railroad.

He implemented four rules with a focused commitment to the destination which he defined as financial solvency and operational efficiency.

Can a similar tactic be leveraged to solve Vermont's ongoing housing crisis? Can Vermont then be an example to the rest of the United States for solving our national housing dilemma? Are we in over our heads at The Housers Podcast? We say, go big or don't build any housing!

Find the companion article for this podcast in the Mountain Times 'Accidental Activist' Column by Stephen Box.

Stephen Box and his family moved to Rutland VT from Los Angeles. Like many others they left the city during covid to seek their fortunes in rural America. Stephen is an accidental activist. He doesn't take no for an answer. As founder of Partners in Housing, as columnist in the Mountain Times and a Rutland Houser Stephen looms large over a community of dedicated small-scale landlords serving their city. When he connected with developer Scott Graves in 2024, a match made in heaven was forged. Enter Mike Waugh, technologist and sometime contractor working on a platform solution for helping small-scale housers to scale.

They are the Housers and they are bringing together Housers, Wrappers and Supporters to make this corner of Vermont a home for more of their working class neighbors. In partnership with the Mountain Times. Find MT real estate special here.