Texas, Florida and other booming red states aren’t just winning the migration race because of lower taxes and warmer weather — they’ve also embraced an anti-regulation housing strategy that many high-cost states have resisted.

As Americans and businesses continue pouring into southern states, the influx is testing whether fast-growing regions can add enough homes and infrastructure to keep pace. And southern states are keeping up by decreasing regulations that put roadblocks up for faster construction of new builds.

Housing industry leaders say southern states that have prioritized new construction have been better positioned to accommodate growth, while markets burdened by restrictive zoning rules, lengthy permitting processes and other regulatory hurdles have struggled to add supply and keep home prices in check.

ONE SOUTHERN CITY YOU’VE NEVER HEARD OF IS GROWING FASTER THAN ANYWHERE ELSE IN AMERICA

That willingness to build has become a competitive advantage, according to Jim Tobin, president and CEO of the National Association of Home Builders.

«Those economies are wide open. They are inviting more businesses, they’re generally low-tax states and they’ve made housing a priority,» Tobin told Fox News Digital. «They’ve got the land and the will and courage to let builders build in those areas to meet the housing demand for those new jobs.»

The strategy is becoming increasingly important as Americans continue relocating from high-cost coastal markets to lower-tax states.

While rapid population growth can strain roads, utilities and public services, housing experts say states that pair infrastructure investments with homebuilding efforts are better equipped to accommodate newcomers without worsening housing shortages.

ONE TYPE OF PROPERTY IS QUIETLY SAVING AMERICANS THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS

But rapid growth comes with its own challenges, particularly when infrastructure fails to keep pace with new development.

«One of the main complaints is that infrastructure does not keep up with that influx of population or housing growth,» Tobin said. «States that find themselves ahead of the curve are planning those two critical components, infrastructure and housing, together and are going to be better prepared for growth in the future.»

Even states that have prioritized homebuilding continue to face cost pressures that can drive up home prices. According to the National Association of Home Builders, government regulations account for roughly 24% of the cost of a typical single-family home, adding nearly $95,000 to the average price of a new house.

For multifamily housing, the burden is even higher. Tobin said regulations account for roughly 41% of the cost of a typical apartment or multifamily unit, underscoring the role government rules can play in shaping housing affordability.

AMERICA’S NEXT ECONOMIC POWERHOUSE MAY BE RISING IN RED-STATE TERRITORY

Newly built homes line a residential development in a fast-growing Sun Belt market. Housing supply and infrastructure have become key issues as more Americans relocate to the region. (Smiley N. Pool/Houston Chronicle/Getty Images)

The costs have drawn renewed attention from policymakers in Washington searching for ways to increase housing supply and improve pricing.

Tobin pointed to a bipartisan housing package moving through Congress that aims to encourage local governments to reduce regulatory barriers to development and adopt policies that make it easier to build new housing.

The legislation comes as housing affordability remains a top concern for many Americans, with elevated mortgage rates and limited inventory continuing to put homeownership out of reach for many first-time buyers.

NAHB estimates government regulations add nearly $95,000 to the price of a typical new home. (David Paul Morris/Bloomberg/Getty Images)

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The issue has also taken on greater political significance ahead of the midterm elections, as voters continue to rank the cost of living among their top economic concerns.

«The answer to the housing crisis in the country is more supply,» Tobin said. «This bill will absolutely help us build more supply affordably.»

In an open letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy proposed meeting to reach a resolution to the years-long war between their two nations.

«We see that the United States is fully focused on the issue of Iran, and it would be wrong to simply wait until the war in Europe returns to the center of its attention. Ukraine proposes ending this war through direct engagement between us — and you. I am proposing a meeting,» Zelenskyy said in the letter.

«There are countries that have traditionally hosted leaders to resolve issues of war and peace. Switzerland, Türkiye, the countries of the Arab world — many are able and willing to host such a meeting. It is leaders who resolve the key issues. That has always been the case, and it always will be,» he asserted.

18 HOUSE REPUBLICANS DEFY TRUMP TO PASS UKRAINE AID PACKAGE HEADED FOR VETO FIGHT

Zelenskyy suggested that Europe and the U.S. should also be involved in the peace process.

«Since the war is taking place in Europe, and since Ukraine needs security guarantees, while you also seek security guarantees for yourself, it would be logical to involve those who can genuinely serve as guarantors. We believe Europe should be part of this process — those who truly have the capacity to influence the situation. We also believe that the United States must be part of the process. This is what could help shape a new security architecture for our part of the world,» he said.

HOUSE REPUBLICAN DON BACON SAYS HE WANTS ‘PARIAH STATE’ RUSSIA BOOTED FROM UN SECURITY COUNCIL

In this pool photograph distributed by the Russian state agency Sputnik, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting of the Presidential Council for the Implementation of State Policy on the Promotion of the Russian Language and the Languages of the Peoples of Russia via video link at the Kremlin in Moscow on June 2, 2026. (Vyacheslav PROKOFYEV/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

He indicated that Ukraine would agree to a ceasefire during the proposed negotiations.

«Ukraine is ready for a full ceasefire for the duration of the negotiations. This is standard practice, and current developments around Iran only reinforce that point. An attempt to establish real silence is the best way to begin talking to one another. We believe it would not simply be an attempt, but a real ceasefire — if that is what you want,» he noted.

He also suggested a prisoner swap between the two nations, noting, «Ukraine is ready for an all-for-all exchange of prisoners of war, and this could become a good prologue to ending the war. Serious steps must be taken to return civilians and children who were taken away during the war.»

PENTAGON SLASHES NATO COMBAT COMMITMENTS AS TRUMP PUSHES EUROPE TO DEFEND ITSELF

President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky shake hands at a news conference following a meeting at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club on Dec. 28, 2025, in Palm Beach, Fla. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

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«If you do not personally come to the conclusion that it is time to end this war, Ukraine will continue fighting for its existence. We will have those who support us. But you, too, will have to fight much harder for your own existence — not Russia’s, but your own. And this is not a threat from me or from Ukraine. It is a fact of Russian history that you know well: when Russia grows tired, change comes,» Zelenskyy warned Putin.

A sitting Democratic senator, who is one of Graham Platner’s top donors, is now drawing backlash for shrugging off the most recent allegations of misconduct that have followed the controversial Maine Senate candidate.

Platner has received $10,000 in the form of two $5,000 donations from Rhode Island Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse’s leadership PAC, according to Federal Election Commission records reviewed by Fox News Digital.

One donation from Whitehouse’s Ocean PAC came in March of this year. Another one was made last October. Notably, the most recent donation was made before former Governor Janet Mills, a second Democratic candidate for Senate, suspended her campaign at the end of April.

Although Whitehouse’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment, the donations show the high degree of confidence lawmakers like Whitehouse have in Platner’s ability to unseat the moderate Republican incumbent, Susan Collins, R-Maine, currently holding office in a blue-leaning state.

WATCH: DEM SENATORS EXCUSE PLATNER’S CONDUCT AT CRISIS HUDDLE WITH EMBATTLED MAINE CANDIDATE

Whitehouse has been among Platner’s most constant supporters among lawmakers in the U.S. Senate, calling the controversial candidate «wonderfully appealing» in an interview with Politico.

«He’s off to a really strong start and has a wonderfully appealing local background and story,» Whitehouse said.

Whitehouse has remained supportive of Platner even as troubling details have emerged of Platner’s past web history, views and personal conduct. Most recently, reporting for The New York Times chronicled accounts from several of Platner’s former romantic interests, including allegations of rape fantasies, heavy drinking and violent episodes.

Despite the troubling allegations, Whitehouse told reporters he wasn’t alarmed by the reporting.

«Seems like a lot of nothing. I mean, the only one who had anything to say that seemed ‘unsettling’ was a woman who works for right-wing political operations,» Whitehouse reportedly told NOTUS after reading the article.

His reaction drew immediate backlash online.

«Whitehouse is the guy who grilled Brett Kavanaugh about ‘boofing.’ Just unreal,» Washington Free Beacon reporter Chuck Ross wrote in a post to X, recalling Whitehouse’s grilling of President Donald Trump’s 2018 Supreme Court Justice nominee over high-school slang in a search for possible improprieties.

SENATE CANDIDATE GRAHAM PLATNER SENT EXPLICIT TEXTS TO MULTIPLE WOMEN WHILE MARRIED, WIFE SAYS: REPORT

U.S. Senate candidate from Maine Graham Platner speaks during a campaign event on May 17, 2026, in Portland, Maine. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

«To the people just now learning that Sheldon Whitehouse is an amoral cretin, your ignorance to this point has been a choice,» GOP consultant Luke Thompson wrote on X.

«Is there a more contemptible man in the Senate than Sheldon Whitehouse?» TPUSA spokesperson Andrew Kolvet wrote on X.

«Sheldon Whitehouse, ringleader of the smearing of Kavanaugh, is a very bad person,» Capital Research investigative researcher Parker Thayer wrote on X.

«What an absolute dirt bag,» Republican operative Matt Whitlock wrote on X. «Dismissing a vivid account of physical abuse because it happened to a Republican operative is the most [Sheldon Whitehouse] thing I’ve ever heard.»

Amber Duke, the editor-in-chief of the DailyCaller, also blasted Whitehouse’s seemingly uneven application of scrutiny.

«What happened to this energy, Sen?» Duke said, highlighting a tweet Whitehouse had put out during Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearing.

«Today I stand with women who are brave enough to come forward with their stories of abuse and mistreatment. They deserve to be heard and credible allegations must be investigated. We must believe survivors, not bully them,» Whitehouse had written at the time.

«Sheldon Whitehouse is the same guy who accused Brett Kavanaugh of being a rapist because he wrote ‘boofing’ in his yearbook,» conservative writer Bonchie wrote on X.

Apart from the Thursday report, Platner has received backlash for making off-color remarks on sexual abuse, race and terror, for a tattoo associated with Nazi imagery, and, most recently, for potentially interacting with several women outside his marriage in inappropriate ways.

Platner has also called himself a «communist» in previous posts online.

Among other resurfaced comments, Platner once blamed rape victims for failing to protect themselves in a now-deleted Reddit post.

«How about people just take some responsibility for themselves and not so f—ed up when they wind up having sex with someone they don’t mean to?» Platner wrote in 2013.

Whitehouse has his own controversial past, including details about his family having a membership at the exclusive Bailey’s Beach Club, formerly known as Spouting Rock Beach Association, which is rumored to have an all-White clientele.

«I think the people who are running the place are still working on that, and I’m sorry it hasn’t happened yet,» Whitehouse said in 2017, referring to allowing minority members. «It’s a long tradition in Rhode Island, and there are many of them. And we just need to work our way through the issues.»

SENATE DEM CANDIDATE WHO WROTE HE ‘BECAME A COMMUNIST’ NOW SAYS HE WAS JOKING

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse speaks with journalists at the Blue Zone during the COP30 UN Climate Change Conference in Belem, Para State, Brazil, on Nov. 14, 2025. (Pablo Porciuncula/AFP)

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Platner, who looks poised to take the Democratic nomination to challenge incumbent Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, met with senators earlier this week, reassuring them about his prospective candidacy.

Maine will hold its Senate primaries next Tuesday.