Flathead Building Assoc Letter of Support Tronstad 5-17-24
May 17, 2024, Dear Kalispell City Councilors,
The Flathead Building Association is a non-profit membership organization with over 45 years of experience dedicated to promoting professionalism, credibility, quality and vitality in the building industry to the benefit of its members and citizens of Northwest Montana.
The FBA has over 250 members. Over 60 of the members are Builders/Remodelers and 190 are Associate & Affiliate members representing sub-contractors and businesses related to the construction industry, including major financial institutions and title companies. These businesses work together to create a positive environment in support of the construction industry of the Flathead Valley.
We’re writing to express our concern about the shortage of housing supply across Flathead Valley that continues to lead to high housing costs. Just recently, with a nationwide shortage of roughly 1.5 million housing units, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) has called for attention to this issue, unveiling a 10-point housing plan. In that effort NAHB Chairman said,
“The lack of homes is the primary cause of growing housing affordability challenges. Any policy that seeks to improve affordability without addressing the need to increase the supply of single-family and multifamily for-sale and for-rent housing is doomed to fail.”
This shortage echoes what we are seeing in the Flathead Valley. An economic study completed by the University of Montana Bureau of Business and Economic Research reported that an additional supply of 1,500 homes per year must be added over the next 10 years to rebuild housing inventory and provide competitive prices in the Flathead.
We know these staggering numbers reflect the real-life experiences of so many families in the Flathead Valley who are unable to find housing, which is why we encourage the City Council to be proactive in addressing this crisis.
We are committed to doing our part to help boost housing production to meet the needs of the Flathead Valley and make homeownership and renting more affordable. But as the NAHB has pointed out - we cannot do it alone. We must recognize the importance of boosting housing supply and implement practical solutions, like increasing density and allowing more flexibility for developers, to address this challenge.
We support opportunities to increase housing supply, especially those that will increase homeownership opportunities for middle-income families in the Flathead Valley.
Sincerely,
Mark Freidline Executive Officer