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Attainable Housing in St. George

In 1949 Congress declared that the United States should work to ensure a “decent home and a suitable living environment for every American family.” From that time down through the early 1990’s St. George was a relatively small farming community with a small town atmosphere where housing was very affordable. Then, almost overnight, St. George was discovered and, just as people moved West in 1849 during California’s gold rush, people have migrated to St. George by the thousands for the climate, quality of life, family atmosphere, scenery, low crime rate, and job opportunities. In August of 2006 the U.S. Census Bureau named St. George as the fastest growing metropolitan area in the United States. In addition to this explosive growth, St. George has also experienced a phenomenal rise in the cost of housing. Of 275 metropolitan areas surveyed throughout the United States during the first quarter of 2006 St. George ranked first in terms of housing appreciation. St. George is currently ranked ninth in the nation and the average cost of a single family detached home is $341,266. Due to relatively low wages and the high cost of housing, purchasing a home has become almost impossible for many service oriented and entry level professionals. This has led to a high employee turnover rate for many businesses in the St. George area and recruitment has also been similarly affected because few people have been willing to relocate to the area because of the high cost of housing. The following is a list of full-time, service oriented and entry level professional positions in St. George with their actual annual starting wages: These salaries would qualify professionals in these positions for a loan of between $130,000 and $215,000, assuming they had no debt and a 20% cash down payment which is not enough to qualify for a single family home in St. George. In previous years employees working in St. George could reside in surrounding communities where the cost of housing was lower but now transportation costs have sufficiently increased to eliminate any money saved by commuting. In other words, families can no longer drive themselves away from the problem. This housing crisis has caused the St. George City Council to reflect back on Congress’ admonition to ensure a “decent home and a suitable living environment for every American family.” The City Council has directed city staff to look for creative solutions to make housing more attainable for service oriented and entry level professionals. Some of these solutions include the down payment assistance program, which offers $10,000 toward the purchase of a home, and the owner occupied rehab program, which offers $5,000 toward home improvements. Both of these programs are funded by the City of St. George and administered by Color Country Community Housing. They have been very successful and are currently available to anyone who meets HUD’s income requirements and lives within St. George.The City of St. George is also exploring other options, including partnering with other organizations to develop attainable housing developments within the city that would target a purchase price of under $200,000 for a single family home. These partnerships could bring the cost of housing down for qualified individuals by providing donated land, services, and/or materials for the project. For example, a joint effort between the City of St. George and Intermountain Health Care is currently underway that will provide several attainable housing units adjacent to the new Children’s Justice Center that will be constructed on 500 South near its current location. Because this new development will be located in a key area of the downtown that is close to businesses, shopping centers, and transit stations it will offer residents the opportunity to walk, ride the bus, or drive based on their individual needs and where they need to go, which could also significantly lower their transportation costs. This development is expected to be a revitalizing model for future developments and is part of a much larger vision that incorporates other projects like the new Town Square currently under construction.Attainable housing developments, such as the one mentioned above, typically have increased density in order to achieve higher affordability. Many residents believe that attainable housing developments will lower property values and raise crime rates due to the increased density and the lower income individuals who live in the developments. However, just the opposite is true. The negative connotation attainable housing developments have received in the past has been due largely to poor design standards and lack of up keep on the property. If the development is designed right in the beginning, it will be an asset to the community in the long run. The design standards being introduced are the same as those utilized more than fifty years ago including tree lined streets that make the neighborhood walkable, front porches that bring families out of their homes and into the community, recessed garages that emphasize the home and the family who lives there, and green areas that provide a place for children to play. Cities across the country are creating great neighborhoods that are attractive with increased density by making the connection between good design standards and affordability. These traditional, pedestrian oriented neighborhoods are places where those who live there meet and know their neighbors. Like any growing city, the City of St. George has experienced and overcome many obstacles and challenges. As people continue to move to the area the need for attainable housing is ever increasing and with the support of the community St. George can continue to be a vibrant community that ranks as one of America’s top places to live, work, raise a family, and vacation.

City of St. George Newsletter
inSide St. George — Volume 3 — April 2007
for the full text of this newsletter go to: www.sgcity.org/inside/