The housing issue in Churchill County can be likened back to an entry-level economic course with an exercise in basic supply and demand. There are very few houses available to meet the current demand and the result is higher than reasonable prices for rent and sale.
Several factors have led to this rising demand; the growth at the Tahoe Regional Industrial Center and a saturation of the housing market in Reno has driven people west looking for reasonable prices, the continued growth at Naval Air Station Fallon and a lack of sufficient base housing, along with planned industrial growth in Churchill County and several new companies opening operations.
During his report to the county commission two weeks ago, Economic Development consultant Bruce Breslow said he projects 1,500 new jobs for the area in the next five years.
Citing a Housing Needs Assessment completed in 2019 by EKAY Economic Consultants and the Center for Regional Studies at the University of Nevada, and paid for by Churchill County, Breslow said there is a housing shortage in Churchill County. Anyone who has tried renting a home here during the past will say the same thing, and they’ll tell you for free. With only 241 housing units being built in Churchill County over the past ten years, the ratio of homes listed for sale or rent out of the housing inventory in the community, was at 3.2% at the time of the study.
According to the report, median sales price for a new single-family home was $292,750 compared to $204,523 in 2014. That is a 42.8% increase in nearly five years. The report also shows a median rental price of $1,100 for a 1,281 square foot home. Currently there are two homes for rent in Fallon, one a two-bedroom, one bathroom for $975 per month and the other a three-bedroom, two bathrooms for $1,850. There is a waiting list at all the apartment complexes.
The Housing Needs Assessment projected an estimated demand for residential housing under a low-growth scenario of 840 housing units. Under a high-growth scenario, there will be a demand for 2,411 residential units over the next five years. The report assumed historical growth rates in support industries, but high growth in industrial employment.
In an effort to meet the demand for housing, Churchill County Commissioners have been strategically preparing infrastructure through the county-wide water and sewer system. They have also purchased two parcels of land north of Coleman Road that could potentially be used to attract builders to the community. Currently, county staff is working on the engineering phase of the 31-acre project, completing an environmental review and preparing the property to make it ready for the necessary utilities that would make it attractive for a housing project. That process includes identifying potential funding sources including state and federal agencies.
“We saw this as an avenue to help get some property close to town that would be good for housing,” said Marie Henson, county building official. “It became available, so the county decided to facilitate that.”
Robert Erquiaga, legal and administrative director for the City of Fallon, said there are currently several active building projects in the city. Darren Simper, Sage Creek Construction is building homes south of Sherman Street, Dan McCreary is building on North Maine Street, as well as Cory Plazier and Bob Hammond who both have projects within the city limits as well.
Breslow also said during his report to commissioners, that the base is 230 houses short of what they need to meet growing demands.
Housing Director Shelly Carter says the Navy housing report identified that there is a deficiency with military housing. The current housing project will provide 219 homes and is projected to be completed by September 2021. Information in the Navy study is captured regarding community rental availability and projected personnel that will be reporting to NAS Fallon. Once the military housing is occupied, the next steps for base housing is to “monitor demand signals” and once data concurs with the final housing report, that triggers steps to move forward with further expanding the military housing. There is no definite timeline, and Carter says, “each project is different based on location and needs.” It could be two years before ground is broken on a new project there.
County Commissioners have repeatedly put housing as a top priority for the community. Henson said, “We are working as hard as we can to figure this out.”
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