Collective efforts drive valley’s quest to provide homes

by Sandra Strieby, original published by Methow Valley News, in Methow Home 2023 03/16/23

“Home,” with all its implications, is a compelling concept, one that feeds our souls and imaginations and grounds us on every level. Even the thought of being without a home is frightening; the reality can undermine health and well-being and precipitate a cascade of consequences.

The Challenge

In 2014, the destruction wrought by the Carlton Complex Fire brought the issue of housing to the forefront of public thought. Adequate housing had long been in short supply, and the loss of scores of houses exacerbated an ongoing need. Although the immediate demands presented by the firestorm have receded, the valley’s need for housing has continued to grow and occupies more and more of the community’s conversational bandwidth.

The Methow Valley has become acutely aware of a need for housing that’s affordable, available and stable for everyone who lives here — including seniors and their caregivers, young people experiencing housing instability, individuals and families. Work force housing is critical — communities can’t function without workers, and the cost of housing has outstripped local wage rates.

Intertwined with social and economic concerns is a love of place that, coupled with growing demands on natural resources, brings environmental factors into the conversation. How can we preserve the valley’s character? How can we house everyone without compromising clean air and water or unduly impinging on the other things we value?

In its 2020 annual report, the Methow Housing Trust estimated that the valley’s demand for housing exceeded supply by 350 units. Executive Director Danica Ready says she’s “confident … the need has grown since then.”

At the same time, housing prices have soared, from a valley-wide median of $412,000 in January 2021 to over $647,000 two years later, according to statistics posted by Winthrop’s Blue Sky Real Estate.

Earnings have not kept pace. Although parts of the valley saw wage increases in the neighborhood of 5% in 2022 compared to 2021, earnings grew by only 0.8-1.0% in Twisp, Winthrop, and the surrounding areas, according to data provided by the Economic Alliance in Okanogan.

In no case was wage growth strong enough to match the rise in housing costs. Even middle-income employees — teachers, nurses, and forest service workers, for example — may be hard-pressed to afford the high cost of living in the Methow.

WHAT’S AFFORDABLE?

Definitions of “affordable” vary, and none of them capture the nuances of individual situations and circumstances. Affordability metrics can be useful in framing the challenges, though.

One way of quantifying affordability is the Housing Affordability Index developed by the National Association of Realtors to evaluate buyers’ ability to afford mortgage payments. An index of 100 indicates a balance between the cost of housing and a household’s ability to make payments. Higher numbers indicate that housing is more affordable; lower numbers indicate that it is less so.

According to reports published by the Washington Center for Real Estate Research at the University of Washington (WCRER), Okanogan County’s Housing Affordability Index has diminished steadily over the course of a decade, from 182.6 in 2012 to 77.8 in 2022.

In the third quarter of 2020, the county Housing Affordability Index was 99.7, indicating that costs and ability to pay were close to being in balance. Two and a half years later, affordability has fallen by more than 20 points.

Since housing tends to be more expensive in the Methow Valley than in other parts of Okanogan County, the Methow’s actual Housing Affordability Index is probably even lower than the WCRER reports indicate. The message is clear: would-be homeowners have seen a sharp reduction in buying power.

A more common approach, and one that can be used to evaluate affordability of both buying and renting, is to measure the percentage of a household’s gross income that’s spent for housing. The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) considers households that spend more than 30% of their income on housing to be “cost-burdened,” and those that spend above 50% to be “severely cost-burdened.”

The 2020 Okanogan County Housing Needs Study found 37.2% of Methow Valley households below the Weeman Bridge to be cost burdened or severely cost-burdened; above the bridge, that figure is 26.7%. County-wide, the households most likely to be cost-burdened are renters classified as low-income, very low-income, or extremely low-income. Among homeowners, there are some at every income level who are cost burdened, but low-income, very low-income, and extremely low-income households are more likely to be cost-burdened, and some of those households are severely cost-burdened.

Affordability is one element of the housing equation; other factors are availability and stability. Vacancy rates in the valley are “critically low,” the local Housing Solutions Networks found. People seeking year-round housing have little from which to choose, in part because a high percentage of the valley’s houses are held for seasonal use. Single-person households, in particular, have difficulty finding suitable accommodation.

The Housing Authority of Okanogan County has noted a high demand for one-bedroom units to house individuals living alone, and the 2020 needs study found that, countywide, “The most common renter-occupied household is a 1-person household.”

Instability also plagues valley renters, who often find themselves moving frequently among shortterm rentals and house-sitting gigs, or losing their homes when a house is sold or the owners move into it themselves. None of that bodes well for establishing a stable work force in a thriving community.

The Solutions

In typical Methow fashion, several of the valley’s thought leaders recognized the opportunity in the housing crisis and joined forces to form the Housing Solutions Network. At its inception in 2020, the network core group included five organizations, each with a different perspective:

• Methow Housing Trust. The housing trust was formed to make affordable housing permanently available through a ground-lease model. Qualified buyers who earn 60%-150% of Area Median Income (AMI; a common benchmark for household earnings within a given area) buy houses developed by the trust while the housing trust retains ownership of the underlying land. Restrictive covenants ensure that, when houses change hands, they are sold to housing trust-qualified buyers and prices remain within reach of those buyers. To date the housing trust has built and sold 28 houses; another 45 are under construction or in the development pipeline. A 61-household waiting list attests to the magnitude of need for Housing Trust homes.

• Room One. As the valley’s one-stop support center, Room One has a broad interest in human well-being, and provides comprehensive, individualized support to meet community members’ social and health needs. In 2022 Room One helped people with direct assistance or referrals related to housing more than 140 times — significant in a community the size of the Methow — and continued to assist young people experiencing housing instability through its Youth Housing Support Program.

• TwispWorks. In support of its mission to promote economic vitality, TwispWorks focuses on creating opportunities through its Methow Investment Network. To date, the investment network has invested millions of dollars in local enterprises. Now it’s turned its attention to the valley’s housing conundrum and is exploring ways to support development of stable, affordable housing that will boost economic vitality.

The network is exploring creation of a Program-Related Investment—similar to a grant program, but with the expectation of repayment — dedicated to creation of rental housing and funded with charitable contributions.

• Methow Valley Citizens Council (MVCC). For more than 45 years, MVCC has worked to maintain the valley’s natural environment and rural character. That long history of action and advocacy has endowed the council with a deep understanding of local land and water resources, and the ways in which development can support or undermine the integrity of natural systems. MVCC advocates conscious decision making to support the valley’s needs while preserving those facets of the environment that the community values, and works collaboratively to foster long-term solutions.

• Methow Conservancy. The Conservancy’s mission is “to inspire people to care for the land of the Methow Valley,” and its approach is multifaceted. As a land trust, the Conservancy is directly involved in stewardship of the valley’s resources.

The organization also understands the role of people and communities in caring for land, recognizing that living here is a powerful inspiration and adequate housing is necessary to make that possible. The Conservancy is also a clearinghouse for housing and other data through its State of the Methow project.

Together, the members of the core group represent interests in the Methow Valley’s people, environment, and economy — the three elements of the triple bottom line that has proven as relevant to community sustainability as it is to business management. In 2020 the group reached out to the community for guidance in defining housing needs, and the following year released a list of 26 action-oriented solutions calculated to address those needs.

The Methow Valley needs adequate supplies of affordable dwellings for ownership, long-term rental, and short-term or seasonal rental, the Housing Solutions Network determined. The network’s solutions list includes projects aimed at meeting each of those needs, along with planning and administrative strategies that will focus resources and build capacity throughout the valley.

The Housing Solutions Network has also expanded beyond its original five-member core group, and now comprises more than a dozen organizations and individuals who meet regularly to compare notes and seek input, identify obstacles, and share successes. The network includes:

• The Housing Authority of Okanogan County, which provides, acquires, and preserves housing for low-income residents.

• Jamie’s Place, which provides long-term elder care using the Green House model, and is also involved in housing for the community’s caregivers and other members of the work force.

• We Methow, a grassroots groups advocating for action on behalf of working people who face a growing disparity between earnings and the cost of housing.

• The Okanogan Coalition for Health Improvement, a network of health care providers working to eliminate health disparities; the coalition has prioritized affordable housing as a focus area, citing its influence on access to health care, mental and emotional health, and child development.

• The towns of Twisp and Winthrop develop and implement housing policies and regulations to guide development in support of residents’ health, safety and welfare and each town’s long-range vision.

• Representatives of the Milltown Planned Development proposed by Hank and Judy Konrad, which would provide a mix of affordable housing, commercial space, and community amenities on land the Konrads own in and adjacent to Twisp.

• Methow at Home, which supports residents who want to age in place, and has partnered with homesharing platform Silvernest to encourage seniors with extra bedrooms to consider sharing their houses, long- or short-term. What’s emerged from the conversation is a web of connections between organizations that have obvious roles in housing and ones that seem less evident. Collectively, the housing brain trust has made substantial inroads on the Housing Solutions Network’s action list, both on the ground and in the realm of long-range planning and barrier removal. Some notable successes include:

• Winthrop’s Town Council declared a housing crisis in the Methow Valley late in 2021; the town’s planning commission and staff have since reviewed Winthrop’s policies and regulations related to affordable housing and recently requested further guidance from the council.

• Housing Action Plans now being developed by the towns of Twisp and Winthrop will provide data, a roadmap, and a framework for meeting housing needs throughout the valley.

• Two tiny houses have been installed for caregivers at Jamie’s Place, providing stable, affordable housing for the caregivers and helping to ensure continuity of care for the resident elders

• The Housing Authority has made plans to develop 22 apartments in Winthrop on land owned by the Methow Housing Trust, and is currently seeking funding for the project; significantly, the development will be heavily weighted toward one-bedroom units to meet the identified need to house single individuals.

• The Housing Trust has acquired land for 11 new houses in Twisp and has nine houses under construction in Winthrop.

Several other projects are on the drawing boards or under discussion, a further reflection of the community’s attention and responsiveness to the valley’s need for adequate housing. Those projects are likely to unfold over a period of years.

In the meantime, the Methow will continue to grapple with its housing challenge. It’s a big and complex one that will require patience and perseverance. The valley is revealing its true nature in steady progress toward the goal, one housing unit, one household at a time.