Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress has released a new report highlighting the affordability crisis for housing in the region. The report revealed that stagnant wages, increasing rents, and skyrocketing home prices have shut down the path to homeownership in the region.
The report, Out of Reach Hudson Valley 2023, uses federal, state, and local data to examine the gap between wages and the cost of rental housing for those living in the nine-county region. Pattern for Progress also examined the affordability of homeownership throughout the Hudson Valley by comparing median home prices to the mortgages for which typical families would qualify in each county. Included in the nine-county region: Columbia, Dutchess, Greene, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster, and Westchester counties.
The data shows a persistent and clear trend across the entire Hudson Valley: the cost of housing has pushed beyond reasonable levels of affordability for most of our neighbors.
The report also revealed that the median price of a home in the Hudson Valley exceeds mortgage qualifications for the typical household by more than $100,000 in all nine counties studied. For a two-person household, the gap is anywhere from $109,609 in Putnam County to $280,699 in Westchester County.
According to migration data from the Internal Revenue Service, more people have moved out of the Hudson Valley than into it for 24 of the last 25 years. This trend has resulted in a net loss of 134,505 people since 1996. State education data shows there are 34,088 fewer children in our schools than in 1996. These trends are both connected to and partially caused by the relatively high cost of housing in the Hudson Valley.
Elected leaders must take notice of the hard truths surrounding housing, and work toward policy that helps make living in the Hudson Valley more affordable. Several potential solutions including modifying zoning laws, changing lending rules, and increasing housing stock have all been suggested, however, little progress has been made.
The region’s housing affordability crisis is literally dividing families. Many who grew up in the area are forced to relocate because buying or renting close to home is outside of their budget. At this very moment, so many of our friends and neighbors have worked hard to position themselves to be homeowners, however, their goal of homeownership is becoming increasingly out of reach. It’s time leaders at every level of government come together with a plan to solve the housing crisis, because a failure to deliver on affordability is no longer an option.
