Young pros face challenges finding middle-income housing in Stark County

Stark Economic Development Board and Strengthening Stark work together to make affordable housing a reality for Stark County.

Like many young professional couples across the country and here in Stark County, Carson and Mercedes “Merce” Brown had great expectations when they started their search for a home to buy more than a year ago.

But the Browns, who moved to this area from Madison, Wisc., realized early on in their middle-income housing search that they’d need to make a few sacrifices.

The couple rented an apartment in Madison before moving to northeast Ohio. Before investing in their own home in Stark County, the Browns rented in Summit County.

“We were surprised by the higher-than-anticipated rents here in Northeast Ohio,” said Carson. “Some rentals in Cuyahoga, Stark, and Summit counties were higher than what we were paying in Madison. We were also surprised by the lack of quality in our apartment here, based on the rent we were paying.”

A lack of available inventory and aggressive competition are driving rental rates up significantly in the region.

That’s when the Browns decided to search for a home of their own, so they could begin to build some equity. That search for middle-income housing lasted more than one year.

Not many options.

“We looked at about 25 homes throughout our homebuying process,” said Merce. “As first-time homebuyers, we sort of had to reset our expectations related to square footage and move-in readiness, so we could find something affordable.”

According to Merce, only three of the 25 homes she and Carson looked at fit into their new lower square-footage requirements, were in their price range, and were within communities they preferred.

“We wanted to be in Stark County to be close to work,” said Carson. “But there were some neighborhoods in Stark County where we really wanted to be because of school systems, access to shopping and dining, and other factors.”

Carson and Merce ultimately decided to purchase a home in Jackson Township, with a Canal Fulton address. The couple liked the affordability and tranquility of the community and its proximity to the office.

“Stark County is an ideal place,” said Merce. “You have all the dining and retail you want, with lower taxes and proximity to Akron, Cleveland, and Columbus. We made the decision to move to Stark County to take advantage of all of that.”

Not quite perfect.

Merce said the couple had to invest several thousand dollars into repairs — new carpeting throughout, patching drywall, painting throughout, refinishing the garage floor, etc. — for their new home to meet their move-in ready expectations. She added that the home is also expected to need a new roof in less than five years.

“We’re happy with our purchase,” said Merce. “We feel we overpaid for something that was less-than-spectacular. But we are very happy with where we landed.”

More middle-income housing options in Stark County would help ease the affordability gap many homebuyers are experiencing.

Support and sensibility.

The Browns were fortunate to have family friends in real estate and finance who could help guide them through the middle-income housing search process. Fortunately, their mortgage payment isn’t twice as much as what they’d been paying in rent. And, at the time, they were in the enviable position of being a dual-income household with no dependents, unlike many other homebuyers.

The rising cost of living has impacted the Browns, but the couple is prudent when it comes to discretionary spending. Carson and Merce shop at budget-friendly grocery stores, limit dining out by making most meals at home, and minimize entertainment expenses as they build a “safety net.”

It doesn’t have to be this way.

The Stark Economic Development Board and Strengthening Stark are teaming up with multiple community partners in an attempt to alleviate our county’s middle-income housing crisis and take aim directly at the affordability gap many renters and homebuyers are experiencing.

Middle-income housing is designed for households that can comfortably afford a housing cost ranging from $800 to $2,000 per month. As the Browns discovered, the inventory for both renter- and owner-occupied units in this range is scarce.

With a goal of increasing the supply of middle-income housing units in Stark County, the Stark Economic Development Board and Strengthening Stark understand there will be a need to transition to innovative new building methods and rethink traditional standards of home size, lot size, and parking spaces. These innovations are being explored. Our community must stop operating under the mantra of, “This is how we’ve always done it.”

The Stark Economic Development Board and Strengthening Stark are taking a leading role in making sure this middle-income housing movement builds a strong foundation. It is the core of what these organizations do. A community can't grow jobs, wages, or opportunity if the people doing the work can't find a home they can afford here. Closing that affordability gap is just as much a part of building a stronger Stark County as anything else being worked on in our community. 

The vision is a Stark County with plenty of middle-income housing that enables young professionals, single parents, working families, retirees, and others to live life comfortably, not having to cut back on entertainment or penny pinch for groceries.

That vision can become reality. But this middle-income housing movement will need widespread community buy-in and support. To provide your feedback, or to find out how you can lend a hand, reach out to the Stark Economic Development Board at 330-453-5900, Strengthening Stark at 330-453-5628, or visit https://www.starkcoohio.com/

Follow the progress by engaging with our social media channels (Facebook and LinkedIn), email us at info@starkcoohio.com, or check out our housing report online.