Report: 75% of Durango families cannot afford to own homes
July 27, 2008
By Katie Burford | Herald Staff Writer | www.durangoherald.com
A recently released report shows that nearly three-quarters of families in Durango can’t afford to buy a home and many struggle to pay for life’s basic necessities.
The 2008 Southwest Colorado Index, which covers La Plata, Archuleta, Montezuma, San Juan and Dolores counties, is produced by the Region 9 Economic Development District of Southwest Colorado. It aims to provide a big-picture look at the overall health of communities here by compiling hard data about everything from housing to art and culture.
According to the report, the median price of a home in Durango is $350,000 (based on 2007 data). The qualifying annual income to purchase a home that price is $86,900, based on information researchers obtained from Wells Fargo Bank. But in 2007, the median family income in La Plata County was $60,600, meaning 72 percent of families here don’t make enough to qualify.
“That one to me is just so telling,” said Laura Lewis Marchino, assistant director for Region 9.
The report also looked at rental rates using prices collected from area property managers. Based on these, the average monthly rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Durango is $645, compared with $575 in Bayfield.
Using the guideline that people can usually afford to spend 30 percent of their monthly income on rent, researchers estimated that an annual income of $25,800 would be necessary to afford a one-bedroom in Durango. For a three-bedroom, a person would have to make $43,080 a year.
Lewis Marchino noted the difference between that number and the income necessary to buy a house.
“That’s why rentals are so key,” she said, “because we have a community that can’t buy even if they want to and even if they’re not in debt and even if they’re making a livable wage. There’s still a huge gap.”
The Regional Housing Alliance of La Plata County, an intergovernmental entity form-ed in 2004, aims to close that gap by offering mortgage assistance and other support.
Renters, too, are finding themselves stretched as significant numbers of rental properties are turned into condominiums, shrinking the rental pool and driving up demand. That’s led some longtime residents, like Julie Oskard, to come up with innovative alternatives.
Oskard, who moved to Durango in 1992 and graduated from Fort Lewis College, is currently living as a caretaker, rent-free, in a second home owned by an out-of-town family. She also works two hourly paying jobs, but said she still can’t save the money necessary to buy a home or make monthly mortgage payments even if she did have the funds for a down payment.
“What’s frustrating is that I have professional ambitions and experience, but I don’t know that the job opportunities are keeping up with the growth here,” Oskard said.
“At 39, I also don’t want to move somewhere else and start over because I’ve built a sense of community here and I love it,” she said.
The desire to live in Durango is what prompts many to compromise their financial position in exchange for quality of life. It’s not just a civilian problem, either.
“We all understand it’s a tradeoff - we could all make more working in Albuquerque or Denver but we want to live here,” said Sgt. Dan Shry with the Durango Police Department.
Shry, who was born and raised in Durango, said he is one of few local officers who actually live in town and that most are forced into outreaching parts of the county or into New Mexico to find affordable housing.
“We can say we’re no different than anyone else - it’s tough to make a living here,” Shry said.
The report also estimated livable wages for each of the area communities. In 2007 in Durango, a livable wage for a family of four renting a three-bedroom residence is $33.60 an hour - a 29 percent increase over 2003.
The community that saw its livable wage increase the most in the same period was Mancos, in Montezuma County. Its livable wage rose 49 percent, from $23.13 in 2003 to $34.37 in 2007. Dove Creek, Rico and Dolores also saw big increases.
Lewis Marchino said this is because of the rising cost of transportation - most people who live in outlying communities commute to work - and because of rent increases. This is a change for places that had been considered havens for affordable housing.
“The rents aren’t significantly lower any more,” she said. “Living outside of the area isn’t necessarily helping anymore.”
A livable wage reflects the amount needed to pay for shelter, health care, child care and food.
The report states, “When one earns less than a livable wage, he or she is forced to make undesirable choices such as working two or more jobs, working longer hours, making longer commutes, sharing a residence or giving up basic items such as a telephone or insurance.”
Donna Graves, whom Region 9 contracted to serve as project director on the report, said that most of the figures used to estimate a livable wage come from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and are adjusted using the Denver/Boulder Consumer Price Index. Figures for rent and child care were provided locally.
The report also looked at health care - an estimated 19 percent of La Plata County residents lack insurance - and education - graduation rates for Durango, Bayfield and Ignacio all climbed. The dropout rate in Durango and Ignacio rose, most markedly in Durango, while in Bayfield it fell.
The index, under a different name, was first published in 1996 by Operation Healthy Communities Inc. Region 9 took it over in 2006. The data is updated every two years.
Tim Walsworth, president and CEO of United Way of Southwest Colorado, said the data in the report is highly valuable in helping local nonprofits know whether their programs are having an effect and in supporting their applications for outside grants.
It also helps United Way in deciding where to direct its resources.
“It helps us identify what are the most pressing problems,” he said. “It’s a valuable tool.”
United Way hopes to raise $760,000 this fall for local nonprofits, up from last year’s goal of $725,000.
“It’s a tough economic climate, but our community is very generous,” he said.
Indeed, Region 9’s index cites a 2007 report, The State of Giving, which found that the Southwest region, including the San Luis Valley and Region 9, exceeded both the national and state averages for charitable giving.
To view the entire 2008 Southwest Colorado Index on the health of communities in the region, visit www.scan.org/2008sci.html
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