Kent County has made modest progress in addressing its housing shortage, but still faces significant gaps for middle-income households, according to a new study from Housing Next.
The county's population is expected to increase by 14% over the next 25 years, putting additional pressure on an already tight housing market.
"What we haven't done very well over the last 20 years is build starter homes for middle-income families," said Ryan Kilpatrick, lead consultant for Housing Next.
Since 2022, Kent County has added more than 6,000 housing units, which has slightly reduced the overall housing gap. However, Kilpatrick emphasized the need for specific types of development.
"What we really need are places that have infrastructure to allow smaller homes on smaller lots, and to allow two units or four units that are connected to each other, that can be sold or rented in the community," he said.
John Bitely, president of Sable Homes, described the current building environment as "extremely difficult." He points to regulatory hurdles as major obstacles to affordable development.
"Our communities, even though they will give us lip service, they know we need more reasonably priced homes, when it comes to zoning, when it comes to codes and so on, they stop us behind the scenes at every place they can," Bitely said.
The study projects that by 2030, Kent County will face a rental housing gap of nearly 12,000 units. Despite these challenges, there are signs of improvement.
"Our five-year gap, compared to the last time we updated the study, has shrunk a little bit, and that's directly responsible for some of the development we've seen, especially in the rental market," said Joshua Lunger, vice president of government affairs for the Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce.
Lunger noted increasing awareness about housing needs. "There's a lot of creativity. I found that the pendulum does seem to be swinging. So more elected officials, more planners, more citizens, I think, are aware of the need."
Housing Next hopes community leaders will use the housing assessment to continue making improvements.
"If each community selects a handful of places where we can do a little bit more, we can build a little bit more, but do it in a really nice way, that is what allows us to build our way out of this housing crisis," Kilpatrick said.
Residents having trouble finding suitable housing can find resources by calling 211.
WATCH: Kent County narrows housing gap, but middle income homes remain scarce
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