"And this is a completely reasonable fear," Wrightsman said during a presentation at a conference hosted Friday by the New Hampshire Fiscal Policy Institute.

But times have changed, and those fears are rooted in the past, she said, citing recent research that refutes key components of the myth.

First, Wrightsman cited a September study commissioned by New Hampshire Housing that reviewed housing growth data in several towns and confirmed an ongoing decline in the number of public school students per housing unit.

For every 100 housing units built in the past decade, researchers found the new construction produced about 16 additional public school students. The impacts were higher for single-family homes (with about 40 students per 100 units built) and lower for multi-family rental properties and condominiums (with about six students per 100 units built).

These ratios are smaller than the myth might lead you to believe, and schools often have capacity to take on additional students, in light of decades of declining enrollments, Wrightsman said.

Second, Wrightsman cited a study commissioned by the New Hampshire Association of Realtors that found new home construction generates more in additional tax revenue than it costs in additional education services.

Although the financial impacts vary based on the type of housing built, Wrightsman said the myth-busting result is clear: "It's net positive across the board."

In a recent statewide needs assessment, New Hampshire Housing concluded the state currently has a shortage of more than 23,500 residential units, with nearly 90,000 units needed by 2040 in light of population growth estimates.

To help tackle housing-related issues in the 2025-2026 legislative term, the New Hampshire House has established a standing committee dedicated to housing-related bills.