The Johnson County Housing Study prioritizes the need to maintain existing attainable housing throughout the county. Houses in good condition now are not guaranteed to be in good condition in the future. Many areas of Johnson County are older and have increased needs for regular property maintenance. This is a heavy expense for some households. These are areas to conserve and ensure homeowners have the funds to upkeep the homes.
The strict cost of a mortgage, rent, property taxes, and insurance are not the only costs a household bears. Transportation, childcare, and property maintenance or other major expenses for Johnson County residents. Addressing household expenses that impact the overall cost of living is a way to make housing in Johnson County more attainable.
The Johnson County Housing Study prioritizes the need to increase the variety of housing product types, especially in the middle-density. The “missing middle” housing types include duplexes, fourplexes, cottage courts, and multiplexes, and require economies of scale to be profitable for many larger private market developers. These house-scale buildings provide solutions along a spectrum of affordability to address the mismatch between the available U.S. housing stock and shifting demographics combined with the growing demand for walkability.
Affordable housing is achieved when housing expenses do not exceed 30% of household income. Additional financial burdens can also impact the ability for many to afford housing in Johnson County. The Johnson County Housing Study prioritizes the need to increase the financial ability of builders and developers to try different attainable housing types by creating mechanisms to share or reduce risk. Solutions that address both individual and developer costs, risk and funding gaps are beneficial in creating affordable housing opportunities in communities.
The Johnson County Housing Study prioritizes the need to establish, create, and develop a network of housing advocates as an over-arching goal to achieving safe, stable, and attainable housing. Recent community engagement through surveys and the Housing for All Task Force made it clear that a vast number of community members understand the housing needs and support projects to address them. A grassroots network would bring diverse knowledge and experiences to housing discussions in Johnson County and could open more community communication with City officials.