A Healthy Community Houses All

The price and availability of housing is having a profoundly negative effect on people and communities in Chelan and Douglas counties. For many years, our region has not been able to house all of our residents, particularly low- and middle-income earners, which has created an ongoing and growing crisis.

Having a home is a basic need that helps build a strong foundation for everything else in life. Ensuring that all residents, regardless of income level, have access to housing is key to a vibrant economy and our quality of life.

The Chelan-Douglas Housing Solutions Group, a collaborative made up of residents who work in the housing sector, has researched and recommended 15 initial ways to increase the region’s housing inventory. To read the the group’s report, please click here.

What is Affordable Housing?

The government defines affordable housing if a family spends no more than 30% of their income to live there.

We are not alone. Communities across our state and beyond are experiencing these same challenges.

In early March 2023, the state Department of Commerce released housing needs projections for the next 20 years for counties throughout the state.

Based on a medium projected population growth, Chelan and Douglas counties need 17,000 new homes over the next 20 years, with about 50 percent of those homes for people making less than the area’s median income.

What can we do?

As a community, there are many things we can do to help guide what our response is to the housing crisis. Learning about the key issues and determining how you can get involved is key.

Here are a few ideas to get you started:

Residents & Individuals

Share your story
Educate yourself
Attend forums and planning meetings
Support local organizations
Build an ADU
Follow & share posts
Donate land to Trusts

Organizations & Businesses

Share your story (recruiting and workforce)
Share content created by Housing Our Valley
Attend forums and planning meetings
Partner with organizations such as OVOF on events and other awareness activities
Look for opportunities to build diverse housing types
Donate land to trusts

Latest News

Why the Starter Home Is Disappearing in America

The idea of the traditional “starter home” — a modest, affordable place that helps first-time buyers build equity — is becoming increasingly difficult to find in today’s housing market, as builders and buyers confront rising costs, larger floor plans and shifting local regulations.

Courtesy: Photo by Glenov Brankovic on Unsplash
For decades, starter homes were commonly understood as smaller houses that might need renovation and were often intended as temporary stops before moving up to something larger. But that long-standing model no longer aligns with modern housing realities, where prices and home sizes have steadily climbed.