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Ashland Housing Strategy Implementation Plan

The City of Ashland and the consultant ECONorthwest, with funding provided by Oregon Department of Land Conservation and Development completed the Housing Implementation Stradegy Plan in 2019.

Housing affordability in Ashland has been a challenge for a decade or more. Median home
prices and rents in Ashland are higher than in the surrounding area. Recent housing studies
show a shortage of housing for very low- and low-income residents and housing price
escalation that has outpaced income growth. Few market-rate apartments have been built in
Ashland over the past decade, but builders have continued to produce ownership housing,
including condominiums and townhomes. Meeting Ashland’s housing needs and mitigating
further escalation in housing costs will require development of a wider range of housing
options, including multifamily rental housing.

City staff and officials are working to understand the obstacles to multifamily rental housing
development and to develop a strategy and implementation plan to address housing
affordability and availability in the city. The Oregon Department of Land Conservation and
Development (DLCD) provided a grant for ECONorthwest to support the City in preparing this
housing strategy. ECONorthwest worked with City staff throughout this process and obtained
input from the Planning Commission and City Council on the results and draft
recommendations.

This report describes the demographic and market conditions that drive
for-sale versus rental housing in Ashland, evaluates a set of potential strategies to increase
multifamily housing production, and offers recommendations for next steps.