Affordable housing hit hard by current real estate climate

On a sweltering, midsummer noon, amid the incessant pounding of hammers and the high-pitched screaming of circular saws, Roxana Monge-Zelaya encountered a moment of zen-like bliss.

Taking a break from helping a team of Habitat for Humanity volunteers build a house on Summers Road in Morganton, the young mother of four paused near the center of the structure’s footprint.

A subtle but satisfied smile crept across Monge-Zelaya’s face as she looked around and realized she was home.

“We’re just very excited about the house,” Monge-Zelaya said. “Right now, we’re living in an apartment. We had tried before to apply for other houses, but the interest was so high. Here, the interest is zero.”

The four-bedroom house Monge-Zelaya, her husband, Richard, and their children will occupy in a few months is one of four Habitat builds in an average year.

Not exactly a construction boom, but the program is putting people in homes at a steady pace and chipping away at a massive housing shortage that has put Burke County 5,000 units behind where it should be in order to support projected population growth, according to a housing needs assessment by Bowen National Research.

THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING CRISIS

Affordable housing is an area of special concern.

Inflated home prices, skyrocketing rent, and high interest rates make housing particularly hard to find for folks struggling to make ends meet.

“We are seeing a huge gap in a lot of things,” said Burke Habitat Executive Director Marla Black. “The housing stock, but also the rental market. With rentals being so tight and prices being driven up, it squeezes the person who needs an affordable place to live even further out of the picture.”

Just how far out of the picture is startling. According to Altos Real Estate Research, which updates its stats daily, the median rental unit in Burke County is going for $1,600 per month.

The median household income in Burke is around $53,000 per year.

At that rate, renters would have to spend more than 36% of their income on housing. Anything higher than 30% constitutes Cost-Burdened Housing under the Federal Government’s standards.

The crisis isn’t confined to Burke County, but people on the front line, like builders and realtors, see it more clearly than most.

“The problem is nationwide, but it’s really bad in Morganton,” said land developer Steve Leadbetter of Cottonwood Developers, “because we have a lot of low-paying jobs in our area, and a few rich people, and the rich people don’t care about building affordable housing. They’re just doing their thing.”

But others do care, and they’re doing something about it.

NONPROFITS AND GOVERNMENT AGENCIES HELP

Nonprofits like Habitat for Humanity and Open Hearts Place in Morganton are helping struggling families purchase their own homes so they can begin building wealth.

The two organizations are currently working together to acquire land and begin building an entire neighborhood of affordable homes in western Burke County.

Olive Hill Community Economic Development Corporation (OHCEDC) offers education, support, and counseling to assist homebuyers, especially first-time buyers and marginalized residents, with the challenging aspects of homeownership.

The organization also helps buyers apply for state and federal dollars to help cover down payments and closing costs. In addition, it aids homeowners in avoiding mortgage mistakes and foreclosures and teaches people how to handle their money.

Meanwhile, government-funded agencies like Morganton Housing Authority are keeping people off the streets with rent-control apartments.

But as is the case with most such programs, there are never enough resources to help everyone.

The housing authority’s waiting list for one-bedroom apartments is 439 names long. There are 69 vacancies.

“It’s a great program,” said Housing Authority Executive Director Victoria Smith, “but it’s hard to get into.”

The housing authority owns 280 units, all inside the city limits of Morganton. Rent is based on income, with some clients paying as little as a few dollars a month.

She said some of those who want one-bedroom units are elderly, while others are struggling with problems like untreated mental illness and substance use.

“I think a lot of the one-bedroom people are struggling with mental health issues, and I think that’s a very big factor in their displacement,” Smith said.

“The drug problem is the biggest problem for housing, because they get in it and can’t get off of it. They don’t care what happens to them, and they just spiral. It’s sad.”

Although it’s easier to be accepted into the housing authority program than some others, negative factors like criminal records make it more difficult for some, so they’re more susceptible to ending up homeless.

As you might expect, the nonprofits stay busy.

Beverly Carlton, president and CEO of OHCEDC, said this year has been highly successful despite the tight market. She said Olive Hill averages four to five home purchases per year but has done 10 already in 2024.

“This has been really good, because more people are starting to understand the programs,” Carlton said. “More are coming to our homeowner education classes. I think one reason for that is our partnerships with other people. We refer clients to each other.

“People are just motivated now to get in their own place. Some of them are really in substandard housing, and when you make the information available, people start to come out and take advantage of the programs that can get them out of substandard housing.”

Carlton added OHCDEC has begun cooperating with land developers and other builders and hopes those partnerships can help open up even more housing opportunities.

THE PATH TO A HABITAT HOME

As is the case with the Housing Authority, it’s difficult to get approved for a Habitat house as well. Applicants undergo a strict vetting process.

First, they must live inside the county in substandard or overcrowded housing and must have enough income to make the zero-interest mortgage payment, which Black said usually runs from $600 to $650 per month. They must also have clean criminal records and be willing to invest sweat equity into building their own homes and those of others.

As Habitat folks are fond of saying, it’s a hand-up, not a hand-out.

“There are a lot of hoops to jump through that are legit,” said Donna Ahlrich, one of the volunteers working on Roxana’s future home. “They put in the hours, the equity, and there is an ownership feeling here because nothing is given.”

By now Monge-Zelaya knows that ownership feeling well, and wants others to feel it, too.

“After we get our house built, we want to continue helping Habitat, because we know how it feels to build your own house, and you need people who actually have the knowledge and experience to do it,” said Monge-Zelaya.

“They’re very patient, especially with me, because I have no experience in construction. They’re very kind people. Good-hearted. They have God in their hearts.”