January 13, 2015

Washington State Dept. of Commerce Releases Comprehensive Statewide Housing Study

OLYMPIA, WA (1/12/15) – Over 390,000 Washington households pay more than 50 percent of their income for housing expenses, Faith Li Pettis, chair of the Affordable Housing Advisory Board (AHAB), told the Legislature today.

“Since 2000, incomes in the state have declined by 2.4 percent but median rents have increased 7.8 percent in real dollars,” Pettis said. “Over the next five years, Washington’s population will grow, but most of that growth will be among low-income households.”

Pettis and Tedd Kelleher, a Department of Commerce managing director of housing programs, briefed the House Community Development and Tribal Affairs Committee on findings from the 2015 Washington State Housing Needs Assessment, the first comprehensive, statewide look at housing needs in more than a decade. The data will help the state, cities and counties, and private and nonprofit entities make the most effective policy and funding decisions to meet the state’s affordable housing needs.

To read more, see the full Washington State Dept. of Commerce press release by clicking here.

You also can read the full 2015 Housing Needs Assessment of Washington State report by clicking here.

Click here to read a news segment and listen to comments by Faith Pettis from Oregon Public Radio.