An inquiry reveals that the provision of affordable housing is a major real estate concern in Long Island.

A vast majority of Long Islanders would like to see extra housing choices, including cost-effective and ecologically responsible possibilities, but many remarked that they do not support densely packed housing, a new survey uncovered.

Experts argued that the poll results show a significant discrepancy, setting a difficulty for Long Island officers.

"There's an obvious conflict," said Daniel Lloyd, founder of Minority Millennials, an organization seeking to bond young people of color with employment and civic participation.

He noted that many people wish to sustain Long Island's character, but at the same time, they are reluctant to make alterations to create sufficient housing. He pointed out that this is a debate on Long Island stopping them from coming to a resolution of the housing problem.

According to Amy Emmatty, who works as chief research officer for Productions Plus -- a firm from Detroit that joined forces with Hofstra to evaluate the survey -- there is a mutual acknowledgement that there are not plenty of housing choices accessible on Long Island.

"Seven out of ten survey participants claimed an issue with the amount of housing options, likely caused by an affordability issue," she explained.

The analysis revealed large amounts of 'cognitive dissonance' when it comes to housing issues.

A survey of 2,910 people residing in Nassau and Suffolk counties, conducted from August 3rd to September 1st of 2022, found high levels of 'cognitive dissonance' concerning housing matters. The study was a combination of online surveys and "intercept interviews" done by teams which went out into different communities to reach a larger section of the Long Island population that might not otherwise be accessible online.

'Cognitive dissonance' on housing issues

The survey has a precision of 2 percentage  either way.

As evidenced by the survey, a majority of 70% of people who responded said that housing availability on the Island was an issue. 45% of that group went so far as to say the availability was a "big problem", and the other quarter labeled it as a "small problem".

The survey indicated a discrepancy between responses to the housing problem.

Residents of Long Island are displaying dissimilar desires regarding housing opportunities on the Island, as determined by a survey, with the variance being determined by whether the participant was a homeowner or not.

Out of those surveyed, 68% expressed a desire for cheaper housing, while 19% said they were willing to accept the current pricing and 13% wished for less. In contrast, 52% desired fewer "dense housing options".

63% of respondents showed favor for constructing housing that is more sustainable and eco-friendly, while 44% were pro in the favor of providing more low-income housing; compared to 27% who dissented.

An investigation carried out by Hofstra University, which correlated answers with voting status and politics, showed that there is an outstanding demand for inexpensive housing. Those who had not registered to vote were markedly more likely to back the building of affordable housing (64%) than those registered (43%). Democrats inclined to support the construction of affordable housing (61%) more than both independents (39%) and Republicans (26%). Those classifying themselves as highly liberal strongly supported it (77%) compared to those who described themselves very conservatively (31%).

Continuing their study, Hofstra experts noted in spite of backing for low-priced and environmentall-friendly housing units, only 20% of poll-takers intended to bring in denser housing to the zone.

Gwen O'Shea, president and CEO of the Community Development Corporation of Long Island, a not-for-profit housing company located in Centereach, commented that "as soon as people hear the word 'density' [they] panic at the idea of 300 or 500 units." However, she underlined that Long Island "doesn't have very many spots where a 25-floor construction can stand".

O'Shea revealed that there is a massive requirement for an affordable housing complex just as the one her organization and Conifer Realty aided to build, which had 45 units, in Port Jefferson.

She reported that this week, for the 45 apartment units, there were 1,400 applicants. She noted that the apartments, most of which are one-bedroom, are made available to those with incomes from 30-95% of the median income on Long Island ($30,540-98,000).

"But if the sentiment is that you want more housing, that implies that it has to look different from a single-family house." O'Shea declared.

Kathryn Llewellyn, 67, a Long Island native, expressed that she has always found the area to be overcrowded and is unable to do anything significant as a result.

"It's overpopulated enough," she explained in the interview.

Despite having family on Long Island, Llewellyn commented that she finds all the bustle of the area unbearable. She expressed that weekends are too tumultuous, noting that the traffic is horrendous and she doesn't want to experience the beach overcrowding. She firmly stated that the Island's population is already overcrowded, and she will not be leaving anytime soon due to her daughter and parents living in the area.

Llewellyn declared that she was no millionaire yet was "struggling to get by" on Social Security and minor investments after retiring from a major airline. "I don't need more house options. Let us focus on making taxes lower, rather than looking for affordable housing," she commented.

Steven Schopp, a 78-year-old retired music educator who resides in Westbury, gave his own feedback in the poll. His opinion was formed after his son went house-hunting, where he found something unexpected.

When my son searched for a house six years prior, I was taken aback to find that numerous homes he had explored had apartments inside of them. He didn't pick one of those, Schopp said. Though he understood that is how folks are embracing increased property taxes.

Schopp expressed his worries about what he called Long Island's failure to advance. He said that when he arrived in 1967, there was a feeling of development and advancement. Yet now, he was astonished to see that "nothing had changed in the following 50 years."

He articulated that, upon presenting the notion of either redevelopment or newly built housing to the Nassau Coliseum area, he noticed that any ideas were instantly met with rebuke. "It's disheartening," Schopp commented.“It's like no matter what you come up with, someone's got a bone to pick with it. To me, the real issue plaguing Long Island is no progress being made or done."

"Politically, there appears to be a shortage of innovative ideas," he commented. "No one can make much of a tangible difference."

Lloyd, a member of Minority Millennials, expressed a similar opinion.

He relayed that strong leadership was a necessity on the issue of housing, expressing that "too many people are content with the way things are, which has an adverse impact on society."