It’s the ultimate American dream. In fact, buying a home is probably the most important purchase you’ll make in your lifetime.
— from ColoradoHome.org
One of the key initiatives recently adopted by the non-profit Pagosa Springs Community Development Corporation (PSCDC) is the provision of affordable housing… “to ensure local workers have access to quality, affordable homes near their places of employment, contributing to the overall vitality of our community.”
As part of this initiative, PSCDC will host the second Workforce Housing Opportunity Process (HOP) for Phase 1 of a three-year housing project, with ten homes currently under construction in the Trails and Chris Mountain II subdivisions, at the west end of town.
From the PSCDC website:
PSCDC Housing Opportunity Process
December 10, 2024
5:30 to 7:00pm
Ross Aragon Community Center
451 Hot Springs Blvd, Pagosa Springs CO 81147
During this public HOP event, PSCDC will draw up to 8 qualified homebuyers from the pool of pre-approved applicants who can select one of our newly built affordable homes. A neutral party will draw the names to ensure fairness. Each household drawn will have the opportunity to select one of the available homes to purchase.
Homebuyers must be present or have a representative present at the drawing. Homebuyers drawn will have 5 minutes to make their home selection.
Because the ten homes currently under construction are benefiting from government subsidies — reduced County property taxes, reduced Pagosa Area Water and Sanitation District (PAWSD) fees, and donated parcels — PSCDC is holding a public lottery drawing, to make sure the process is as “fair” as possible.
In 2023, the residents — living in an isolated, rural town in southwestern Colorado that’s been trying its best to be a luxury mountain resort — in that town, the residents saw their property taxes increase by 30%, 40%… in some cases, by 100%.
This was not the result of government overreach, per se. None of our local government boards or entities were asking for a tax increase.
True, we may see some requests for tax increases in the near future — the Archuleta School District, for example, is currently holding public presentations about replacing “old” school buildings… and the Archuleta County government is planning to build a new administration building… and the Town of Pagosa Springs has been talking about a possible sales tax increase to address problems with its aging sewer system…
So we might hear those requests, soon enough. But the big property tax increases last year were due to one simple fact: the price of a home in Pagosa Springs has skyrocketed over the past few years, as the result of several factors.
Some of those factors, in no particular order of importance:
A community-wide lack of inventory, especially for starter homes and middle-class homes
Federal and state tax policies that have encouraged ever-increasing home prices
Unchecked conversion of residential homes into commercial Short-Term Rentals — a conversion trend supported by aggressive, tax-funded tourism marketing
High cost of labor and materials for new homes, accompanied by a shortage of building trades professionals
Construction industry focus on larger, higher-profit homes
Zoning regulations and HOA rules that discourage residential density and affordable housing choices such as manufactured homes
An effective real estate industry with an interest in promoting high prices
The retirement of Baby Boomer Generation, bringing with them pensions from 45-50 years of relatively high-paying employment
A County-funded airport recently expanded to accommodate private jets
Homeowners who expect to make a profit when they sell property for more than they paid for it
As I said, those factors are in no particular order of importance. But taken together, they help explain why property taxes increased dramatically in Archuleta County in 2023.
They also help explain why homeowners insurance has skyrocketed for many or us — when your home value increases, so does your fire insurance. If you live near a flammable forest during a period of drought, that also affects your insurance rates.
Of the factors listed above, most of them are beyond the control and influence of local governments. The Town of Pagosa Springs, for example, has instituted policies aimed at limiting Short-Term Rental conversions, but 85% of our residential housing is outside the town limits, and is under the jurisdiction of Archuleta County with a different set of policy goals — and on most cases, also governed by the Pagosa Lakes Property Owners Association.
Only one of these factors can be directly influenced by an ordinary citizen. We can stop asking high prices when we sell our homes. But if we did that, how could we afford our next house? Homes are overpriced almost everywhere, especially in desirable communities.
We can look, for example, at the price of a modest home in the Pagosa Lakes subdivisions.
Our local real estate industry has managed to help increase the price of a typical home by nearly $200,000 in just five years. That same typical house sold for less than $200,000 in 2012.
Here in the Daily Post, we’ve published a number of articles taken from the StrongTowns.org website. Strong Towns is a non-profit that got its start in 2008, when Chuck Marohn — a long-time engineer and planner — began posting his thoughts about why our cities and towns are so often financially dysfunctional, and arguing that a “bottom up” approach would work better than a “top down” approach.
In other words, start with the people who are actually experiencing the problems created by society and government, rather than starting with the bureaucrats.
Under Mr. Marohn’s leadership, Strong Towns has grown to include thousands of contributing members.
Mr. Marohn recently published a book, with fellow Strong Towns contributor Daniel Herriges, entitled “Escape from the Housing Trap”. I wrote briefly about their book here in the Daily Post.
Yesterday, I ran across an interesting podcast that featured Mr. Marohn, in a debate about housing with Nolan Gray, Director of Legislation and Research with ‘California YIMBY’.
From the California YIMBY website:
California YIMBY’s mission is to make California an affordable place to live, work, and raise a family. Achieving our mission will put California on a path of broad-based economic prosperity, creating vibrant, livable, and inclusive communities for everyone.
That’s what some of us want for Pagosa Springs. A vibrant, livable, and inclusive community for everyone.
How do we get there, from here?