With city of Langley officials continuing to debate the merits of authorizing developers to build homes which could sell in the $400,000 to $500,000 price range, city leaders have commissioned consultant Donna Keeler to examine the very real need for affordable housing.

At Wednesday’s council meeting, Keeler said the study would assist the city to get federal and state grants that might become available.

“Right now, a family making $38,000 per year can’t afford to buy a house,” she said.

“At current prices, a family would have to turn over fully half of their income to pay the mortgage,” she said.

The generally accepted definition of affordability is for a household to pay no more than 30 percent of its annual income on housing. Families who pay more than 30 percent of their income for housing are considered cost burdened and may have difficulty affording necessities such as food, clothing, transportation and medical care.

Keeler noted that young families can’t afford to move here, and that’s one reason why South Whidbey School District’s enrollment continues to drop every year.

“Housing prices have risen 47 percent, but the cost-of-living has gone up only 11 percent in the last 10 years,” Keeler said.

The study will help city officials as work continues on updating Langley’s comprehensive plan, the document that will guide growth in the seaside village over the next two decades.

“The purpose was to give both the city council and the housing committee of the comprehensive plan solid information on which to base their policy decisions,” said City Administrator Walt Blackford.

Despite the gloomy picture for affordable housing, there is hope on the horizon. The Housing Land Trust program provides leased land on which people can build their homes, which dramatically lowers housing costs. A similar program could be adopted by the city.

Unfortunately, Langley has limited high-density zoning areas.

And within Langley’s current areas of low-cost housing, at Glenhaven and Brookhaven, there are waiting lists.

Keeler commended the city for both developments, but urged the council to consider more of the same.

Langley officials want to do more, and city leaders will devote more time in the coming weeks to talk about potential policies to address affordable housing.

“Affordable housing has been a priority of this administration and it is something that is sorely needed,” said Mayor Neil Colburn.

Councilman Robert Gilman noted that renowned architect Tom Bender will be in Langley Nov. 28 to discuss the means to create housing that is realistically affordable.

The next Langley council meeting will be 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 6, at City Hall.

Jeff VanDerford can be reached at 221-5300 or jvanderford@southwhidbeyrecord.com.