Housing: The New Luxury

This story map aims to analyze the factors that have caused the housing crisis on MDI, specifically in Bar Harbor, and to analyze whether there are potential solutions. I've lived on the Island since my first year at College of the Atlantic, and I've heard many stories of the severity of the housing crisis. I've heard of students scrambling to find quality housing or horror stories of the inadequate housing people settle for because they feel they have no other option. I listened to COA faculty and staff who have to commute off the Island because they can't afford to live where they work. I've heard of people sleeping in cars and couch surfing because of how hard and long it takes to find somewhere affordable to live. Affordable housing should be a right, not a privilege.

The affordable housing crisis is a very multifaceted issue and a very complicated one. Therefore, I will primarily focus on Bar Harbor, Maine, and other tourist towns such as Park City, Utah, as a place of comparison. The housing affordability factors that I will primarily be focussing on are Zoning, Land Use, and Economics.

Park City is home to the largest ski area in the United States, Park City Mountain Resort, with more than 7,300 acres. The Deer Valley Resort was also named the number one ski resort in North America by the Ski Magazine readers. Both of these resorts attract ski-loving tourists from all over the United States and abroad. Also, Park City was named America's Favorite Town of 2016 in an article by  Travel + Leisure  because it integrated the arts and "outdoor bliss." An example of the integration of the arts is the winter Sundance Film Festival which happens every January. Park City's historic district is home to a variety of amenities such as a museum, galleries, boutiques, and restaurants. Park City is also home to Olympic Park, an athlete training facility, and Gorgoza Park, a winter activities park including snow tubing.

In 2015, a study was completed which analyzed the effects that tourism had on Summit county. The study found that tourism was the single largest component of the economic base and that travel and recreation related job comprises  about half of the job pool in Summit county .  Park City's economy is 68% dependent on tourism  which includes property taxes, sales taxes, resort taxes, and fees from construction related businesses. Visitor spending accounted for over $500 million annually. With the data collected, the city of Park City found that most visitors (33%) stay in a vacation home or a condominium, 11% stay in their own vacation/second home, and 23% stay in a hotel/motel type lodging. And the average length of a stay was 6.7 nights.

Killington is located in the Green Mountains and is home to two popular ski resorts. The area also includes many hiking paths. One popular path is called the Thundering Falls Trail. A rental property management Vacasa named Killington the best place to buy a vacation home for the winter season.

Aspen is located in Colorado's Rocky Mountains, and is known primarily as a ski resort town. Aspen also provides many options for year-round outdoor recreation. Even the rich and famous are drawn here, so much so that Aspen's Red Mountain is nicknamed "Billionaire Mountain." Aspen is also known as one of the most expensive ski towns, but it gets even pricier when you're in the same areas as the billionaires. Many homes sell for over  $25 million! 

Moab is a gateway town to the Arches National Park. The unique rock formations draw people from all over.

Tourist towns, some known as "mountain towns," all have one thing in common: a recreation-based economy. Due to these towns' natural beauty and outdoor activities, tourists flock to these towns and bring workers, new businesses, new residents, and of course, money. However, these types of economies come at a cost. According to  Headwaters Economics research , housing costs more in recreation towns compared to non-recreation towns. Several factors cause this, but the fact that the recreation brings an influx of tourists, the demand for housing (whether that be short-term rentals, vacation homes, or long-term housing) skyrockets, and if the supply does not match the demand, the prices go up. This heavy demand to experience these beautiful places is kicking out the very people who live and work in the areas, leaving them to seek housing outside their county, or at least further away. The income rate of the jobs within the area of recreation does not consider the economic environment, meaning the salary of many local workers is too low to live in the very place they work. To visualize these relationships better, here are two maps.

To go into depth on the housing crisis in vacation towns, let's use one area as a case study: Mount Desert Island, Maine.

 MDI has been a destination town since the late 1800s and the early 1900s . The island was as a place to escape the city. Many wealthy families built their summer homes on the island.

The Rockefeller family donated a large chunk of their land, which eventually became Acadia National Park. Acadia National Park has attracted a variety of people over time due to its natural beauty. Many artists were drawn to MDI to paint its natural features, which only aided MDI's popularity.

More recently, within the past few decades, MDI's popularity has become a growing problem for the local workforce and families. During the warmer months, the tourist season is at its peak. People come from all over the country and abroad. Bar Harbor's hotels, B&Bs, and short-term rentals became booked with tourists, and Bar Harbor's streets were crowded. As time went on, more and more individuals saw an opportunity to invest in vacation properties. As time went on, a larger and larger percentage of the housing stock shifted into short-term rentals. These are rentals aimed towards tourists because the owners of the houses realized they could make more money by renting their home short-term to wealthy tourists than renting their home long-term to the residents. However, this is only one part of the growing affordability crisis on MDI. A  study  was completed in 2018 to get a better idea of all the factors that play into the lack of available, affordable homes on MDI, short-term rental being one of them.

One of the main factors contributing to housing affordability is land-use policies. These policies can influence growth in development costs, leading to a lack of interest among developers. Overall, the regulations are not overly restrictive on MDI. Yet, some areas have policies that constrain affordable housing development projects. There are areas where lot size and setbacks do not allow for added density, which could help with the housing demand.

Another factor that inhibits affordable housing is, of course, cost. The land and construction costs tend to be much more on the island compared to off the island. The local trends impact the costs for labor costs and availability and national trends of material costs.

Overall the common threads seem to be:

1. The local workers cannot seem to live on the wages they earn unless they leave the area where they work to find a more affordable option for their income.
2. The popularity of these areas attract many wealthy individuals, which creates a broader gap in income inequality.
3. The demand for housing is higher than the supply of housing, which makes the market much more competitive when buying a home.
4. The local median income is not sufficient to buy a home that is within the median home value.
5. There's a boom in the short-term rental market rather than in year-round dwellings.
6. The amount of developable land is decreasing.

Various solutions have been used all over the country to provide affordable housing options. Below, I will first explain some solutions completed on Mount Desert Island. Secondly, I will explain some solutions achieved by the other recreation-focused towns previously mentioned.

Affordable housing is a highly complex issue. The affordable housing crisis cannot be solved quickly by a small number of people. There needs to be a collaboration of private organizations, businesses, government agencies, and nonprofit organizations. Developing housing is not cheap, which is why help from multiple players could help balance out the cost burden.

Towns need more creative solutions, and the city officials should help make sure these solutions are allowed and adjust zoning regulations if need. There should also be more regulations on short-term rentals. Every town and city should aim to focus on their community rather than their significant revenues from the tourist season. Or at least balance accordingly.