Newly constructed housing is even higher, requiring an income of $85,000.  Vermont’s slow pace to develop new, moderate priced housing along with the tightest rental market in the nation leaves many Vermonters scrambling for affordable housing.  

“The initial cost of land is what starts builders out at such a high plateau.  Add building and permitting costs for new construction and it’s hard to build new housing that is affordable for Vermonters,” says David Mullin, Executive Director of Green Mountain Habitat for Humanity. The habitat model is different, though. Forty percent of the cost of building a new home is labor and Habitat has a strong advantage.  “We’re a nonprofit that brings community members together to build new housing.  With no labor costs, we can sell our houses for approximately half of the market value, at cost, with zero percent interest on the mortgage.”

With the downturn in the economy, more and more working families are unable to afford their current housing and are seeking other affordable housing options.  “We’re seeing households with salary cuts from $40,000 to $30,000 with no cushion; or those that lose their job as a banker or computer programmer and can’t find a new job with the same salary to pay their bills,” said Rita Markley, Executive Director of the Committee on Temporary Shelter (COTS), the largest provider for the homeless in Vermont.   

COTS opened the Housing Resource Center in October 2008, a homelessness prevention program that provides low-income households with a small subsidy to save their housing during a crisis period and prevent homelessness as they find new employment or find more affordable housing.  Since opening, COTS has prevented 235 households from becoming homeless, and their emergency shelters are full even though they recently added 10 temporary rooms for families and 16 beds for individuals. 

“We need to raise the consciousness of the community,” says Mullin.  “In Vermont you often don’t see the poverty like down south with the shacks and tar roofs, but it is here. Like the single mother of five living in a one bedroom mobile home and working as a janitor at the local school. We see it.”

The State Legislature’s recent $7 million budget cut in its core state funding to the Vermont Housing Conservation Board (VHCB) will “seriously impact nonprofits supporting current (affordable housing) projects,” said Mahnke.  VHCB funds the acquisition, rehabilitation and construction of affordable housing by nonprofit housing organizations. The Governor is considering even further cuts now that would “virtually zero out VHCB’s state housing funding,” added Mahnke.  “Funding for Habitat projects is at risk like many VHCB funded projects.
Green Mountain Habitat for Humanity relies on VHCB funding to build affordable housing.  Mullin says that they will have to seek out more support from the community if limited VHCB funding is redirected to support programming and rent rather than construction of affordable housing. 

The 59 percent rise in unemployment over the last year has only increased the need for more affordable housing options.  In Vermont, 43,000 families experience a “severe burden,” spending more than 50% of their income on housing and utilities.  This is more than families in any other state in New England, even beyond the national average. 

“In Burlington, with a one percent rental vacancy rate, four college students can rent an apartment for $1,200 and only pay $300 each.  Many families can’t compete with that,” said Markley.  The Vermont Housing Council estimates a current statewide shortage of 21,000 affordable rental units.  “The solution,” said Mahnke, “is to build more affordable housing and more rental assistance to fill the gap.”