Magellan Strategies is proud to work with municipalities across Colorado on the tough issues that so many communities face at the local level. One example is our partnership with the Loveland Housing Authority.
Our innovative approach provided real, actionable insights on how Loveland residents define affordable housing and how they think the problem should be addressed. The key findings highlighted below equip local leaders throughout Colorado with relevant data on affordable housing.
Key Findings:
- Respondents were asked how they would define affordable housing. Many said housing should not cost more than 30% of a household’s income, and the housing itself should be apartments, townhomes, or condos, not a single-family home. Many feel affordable housing should be for families and individuals on low incomes that cannot afford housing of their own without government assistance. Other respondents mentioned affordable housing should be for individuals with disabilities and the elderly.
- Among all respondents, 17% think housing initiatives are moving in the right direction, 31% do not, and 52% do not have an opinion. This is a good benchmark for the Loveland Housing Authority to build upon with communication and resident outreach campaigns moving forward.
- Among all respondents, 55% had an opinion of the Loveland Housing Authority, with 37% having a favorable opinion and 18% having an unfavorable opinion. The Loveland Housing Authority’s 2 to 1 positive image ratio is a positive measurement. However, 33% of respondents have heard of the LHA but did not have an opinion, and another 11% have never heard of the organization. These opinion measurements should be looked at as a benchmark to build upon with future public education campaigns.
- Among all respondents, only 7% said they were very familiar and 29% somewhat familiar with the LHA’s mission and programs. Thirty percent were not too familiar with them and 34% were not familiar at all. Female respondents were much more familiar with the LHA’s programs (44% very/somewhat familiar) compared to male respondents (28% very/somewhat familiar).
- Thirty-two percent of respondents think finding affordable housing is a big problem and 27% say it is somewhat of a problem. Among respondents who rent their home, 63% say finding affordable housing is a big problem compared to only 14% of respondents who own their home.
- Respondents were asked what they thought the City of Loveland, communities, and non-profit organizations should do to address the problems of affordable housing. Many respondents stated population growth as the primary reason housing has become unaffordable but did not follow up with a solution. Other respondents mentioned working with developers to create more affordable housing or increase that as a requirement. Some residents indicated a concern that affordable housing developments bring down property values of other homes or attract undesirable neighbors. Many seniors mentioned the challenge of finding affordable housing while living on a fixed income.
- Respondents were asked to choose a housing initiative that they thought would be the most beneficial to the Loveland community. Among all respondents, 42% chose “affordable rental units and products” and 33% chose “affordable home ownership products”. Among female respondents, rental units were preferred (48%) compared to 35% of male respondents.
- Respondents were asked if the lack of affordable housing options negatively impacts the economic strength of the Loveland community. Among all respondents, 68% said yes, 18% said no, and 13% did not have an opinion.
- After respondents read information questions about the Loveland Housing Authority and its history they were asked again if they had a favorable or unfavorable opinion of the organization. Among all respondents, 75% had a favorable opinion of the LHA, 18% had an unfavorable opinion, and 7% had no opinion. Compared to the “uninformed” image rating question asked earlier in the survey, the LHA’s favorability rating increases by 38 points, moving from 37% to 75%.
We encourage interested parties to go deeper into the data and download the survey deliverables which are linked at the top of this page.
If you are interested in a survey exploring what residents in your community think about affordable housing or any other pressing issue, give us a call today!
