Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Housing topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Kerrville consultants: housing demand rising; study and survey point to affordability gap
Summary
Consultants told the advisory committee an updated housing study and community survey show strong demand for new housing and acute affordability pressures: roughly 30% of homeowners and nearly half of renters are cost-burdened, while single-family inventory remains tight.
Consultants leading Kerrville’s comprehensive-plan update reported that an updated housing analysis and a summer community survey confirm rising housing demand and significant affordability pressures. Caitlin Admire, project manager for Freese and Nichols, said the updated housing study identifies roughly 1,400 for-sale units and 725 rental units in the demand profile and noted 800–900 new single-family lots already in development that will meet near-term needs.
The consultants and committee members said affordability is the dominant concern. “Approximately 30% of homeowners are considered housing cost burdened,” Admire said, and the consultants estimated 48.5% of renters are cost-burdened, with 25% of renters “extremely housing cost burdened.” Committee discussion linked those figures to workforce and service gaps: participants said teachers, first responders and restaurant employees increasingly cannot find local housing at entry-level price points.
The community survey, which drew 427 responses, also prioritized a wider variety of housing types and price ranges, respondents’ comments showed. Admire said the survey and the housing study both pointed to a need for so-called "missing middle" housing—duplexes, four-plexes and accessory dwelling units—that can deliver lower price points than single-family lots.
Staff and consultants discussed potential regulatory and incentive tools to address supply and affordability. Options included allowing smaller lot sizes, widening allowances for duplexes and small multifamily near downtown, pattern or form-based zoning to permit flexible uses while maintaining neighborhood scale, and evaluating short-term rental rules to reduce their effect on housing supply.
Committee members and participants emphasized that some of the barriers are market-driven—land costs, materials and labor—and that municipalities have limited levers. Still, a number of members urged using zoning adjustments and city incentives to encourage development of missing-middle housing and to expedite stalled apartment projects cited by residents.
The consultants said the full updated housing report and raw survey responses will be made available to the committee and public for further review. The advisory committee will continue refining housing recommendations as the plan moves toward a projected adoption next June.
