Multifamily growth dominates Gaithersburg housing pipeline; staff flags shortage of larger units and high renter cost burden

City planning staff told the mayor, council and planning commission on Sept. 8 that recent housing growth in Gaithersburg has been dominated by multifamily rental units and that the supply of larger rental units is limited. "Housing growth in the city in recent years has primarily been multifamily," Laura Mayfield, a city planning staff member, said.

Mayfield and Kirk Eby presented data showing about half of the city’s housing stock is multifamily and that the active residential pipeline through the forecast period is mostly multifamily rental. Using CoStar data, staff said most multifamily rental units are studios or one‑bedrooms and that larger units have consistently lower vacancy rates, which may indicate unmet demand for two‑ and three‑bedroom units. "We calculated citywide vacancy rates by unit size, and saw that the larger units had lower vacancy rates, which could indicate unmet demand for larger units," Mayfield said.

Staff summarized affordability measures: median gross rent rose (adjusted for inflation) from 2010 to 2022 (the largest increase between 2010 and 2016), and rents in Gaithersburg are higher than the metropolitan area average but lower than Rockville. Mayfield said roughly half of renter households are cost‑burdened (spending 30–50% of income) or severely cost‑burdened (over 50%). The presentation cites a housing supply gap for households with incomes between about $80,000–$120,000 and for those under $40,000.

The city’s housing element requires 15% affordable units in new multifamily projects, staff noted. At the work session speakers and members of the public raised policy questions—whether the city should require a share of larger units in multifamily projects to meet household sizes that average about 2.67 persons and whether to prioritize preserving existing affordable market‑rate units facing redevelopment.

Public comment underscored the lived experience behind the numbers. Jeanette Rosenbaum, a resident who lives just outside city limits, described accepting a Gaithersburg job and taking the least‑cost rental available despite being cost‑burdened. David Mullins, a Gateway Apartments resident, said many low‑wage workers who service local institutions need access to near‑by, affordable housing and transit. Staff did not propose an ordinance or motion at the work session; instead they framed findings for the master‑plan process and future public engagement.