Housing falls far short of local demand

By Ken Stern

Skagit County continues to have a huge shortfall in housing construction, particularly in multi-unit buildings of any type.

The state’s Affordable Housing Advisory Board five-year housing advisory plan, a 75-page report released in May, shows within the county the need for more residential construction and a critical lack of affordable housing options. This mirrors housing needs throughout Washington.

Some 1,300 homes were built in the 2020-2023 period in the county, about 434 annually. That is 38% below the projected production need of 705 homes annually. The lack of supply increases demands and “push(es) both rents and market rate housing prices,” the report notes.

Some 200 less expensive “middle housing” units were built here in 2020-2023. These are moderate-density housing units, up to fourplexes priced for households in the 80-120% of the county’s median family income, about $75,000. Twice as many such units need to be built annually to meet demand.

For multiple family housing for low income families, 57% more units, 230, need to be constructed annually, about 400 total units. The report notes that increasing supply will reduce pressure on rents increasing.

None of the cities of over 15,000 in population, nor the county government for unincorporated area, are tapping the Multifamily Tax Exemption incentive, which exempts the value of the eligible housing improvements from property taxes, for an eight- or 12-year period.

Skagit County has seen a bit more affordable and available rental units for renters with household incomes up to 50% of the median family income, or about $35,000. The increase in units was to 41%, up from 38%, in a 2014 to 2019 comparison. Newer data are not available. Some 60% or more of the county’s poorest residents do not have housing options that they can afford.

Within the county are less than half the subsidized affordable housing supply needed. In 2023 2,504 subsidized units were available for renters with median family incomes up to $35,000. Another 3,175 units are needed, the report estimates.

With the increase in renting housing from 2016 to 2022 came a 16% increase in homelessness in Skagit County, the report states. Homelessness per capita increased 4% statewide in that period.

The housing advisory plan emphasizes that nearly half of the new homes required in the coming decades must be affordable to households earning less than 50% of area median family income. This shortage of affordable housing contributes to homelessness, housing instability, and increasing costs for low- and moderate-income families. The housing advisory plan provides a path for understanding the affordable housing crisis and details recommendations for removing barriers to building more affordable homes.

More information and the report: deptofcommerce.app.box.com/.

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