10 Difficult Steps to More Housing

10 Difficult Steps to More Housing

Monterey County, Calif., is a lot like Sarasota County. South of the San Francisco Bay area, what was once an agriculture-dominated area is becoming increasingly urbanized and growing. Monterey County's total population is about 415,000. Sarasota County's population by contrast is about 350,000. The median price of a home in Monterey is $265,800. And like Sarasota, Monterey County has an increasing housing affordability problem.

Not only is there this fact - 85% of workers in Monterey County need housing priced at $376,000, but 50% of the homes there sell for nearly $400,000. All you have to do to understand Monterey's affordable housing problem is to read the principles enumerated in its comprehensive plan. It's like reading Sarasota County's comp plan.