The purpose of the housing component in the Comprehensive Plan is to aid in the promotion of efficient and rational development decision-making that stimulates the local economy and provides affordable and safe housing for all residents. The housing component should address policy issues which address and meet future housing needs.

Between 1990 and 1998, the total number of Single Family Unit Building Permits issued moved from a low of 51 permits issued in 1991 to a high of 90 permits in 1994. Between 1991 and 1996, the average monthly number of single family dwelling (new construction) building permits issued in Pulaski County averaged between 4 and 8 permits a month. The data in Table 15 shows mobile home placement (Mobile Homes Set) running at almost twice the rate of new home construction per year. It is important to bear in mind that building permit data for mobile home sitings is subject to overcounting due to movement of trailers within the County, yet given the role mobile homes play in providing low cost housing, it is difficult to quantify new mobile home placement versus the relocation of mobile homes with the available data.

In 1997, the Pulaski County Board of Supervisors paid Virginia Tech faculty for a housing study of the County as its costs relates to select Virginia Counties, primarily in the New River Valley. The housing trends in the past two decades is a function of the population shifts in the County. Growth can be attributed to the location of eight new industries in the County since 1960 and the increasing urbanization in the eastern part of the County. Table 16 can be a useful tool when examining the situation from an aggregate view the amount of Building Permits issued in the New River Valley compared with Building Permits issued in Pulaski County to analyze how much the County has grown in contrast to other localities in the New River Valley. Note should be taken that Table 16 data is based on State data sources and has some obvious differences from locally-gathered data.

One method of determining housing quality in a community is to calculate the number of people per room in a dwelling, the presence of kitchen and bathroom facilities, and whether or not it meets local and state building standards, i.e. the soundness of the dwelling unit. Pulaski County has not conducted a recent survey of these housing structure characteristics to estimate the number of substandard housing units in the urban and rural parts of the County. Such a study is necessary to define target areas for rehabilitation, as it will be necessary to determine the areas of concentrated substandard housing to pursue state and federal funding. Table 17 examines Housing Units, Occupation Types, and the number of units Lacking Complete Plumbing Facilities. This information is useful because it allows a community to monitor the growth in the population and housing stock, the household size, the occupation status of a household (owner versus renter occupied), and the number of units lacking plumbing facilities.

One housing improvement development strategy is the Section 8 Housing Assistance Program for existing housing. This program is funded throughout the Virginia Housing Development Authority, which is the state-level agent for the Department of Housing and Urban Development. The program is toward low-income families who are not able to pay the fair market rent of standard dwelling units. The subsidy is paid to the landlord and is determined by the amount that the tenant can afford to pay. The difference between the fair market rent of the unit and the amount paid by the tenant is the amount of subsidy paid each month by this federal program. This program not only provides rent subsidies for lower income persons, but the subsidies allow rents that encourage local landlords to repair their rental units to qualify them for the subsidy program. Pulaski County does not have designated subsidized housing developments with the exception of a elderly/handicapped development, although the Rental Assistance Office currently provides 196 vouchers to qualified applicants. At this time, 169 vouchers are in use, and 29 are in the market of qualified housing. Table 18 includes monthly rent of dwelling units in Pulaski County with utilities calculated in the costs:

The value of housing is dependent on several general variables. The first of which is the supply of housing, the second variable is demand, and the third is location. In a tight housing market, the supply of housing is reduced, which creates a relative increase in housing costs in proportion to the demand. Of course, there are other factors, or subvariables, which must be included when considering a community's housing costs. Some of these 'subvariables' include economic conditions, vacancy rate, housing location, housing quality, style, and community facilities such as public water/sewer, distance to schools, etc.

Based on demographic data compiled by the County Administration through the assistance of Virginia Tech faculty, nearly 79 percent, or 5,796 units of owner occupied housing in Pulaski County are valued at less than $75,000. Comparisons with other localities indicate that Pulaski County offers affordable housing. Only 54 percent, or 5,375 owner-occupied housing units in Montgomery County are valued at less than $75,000.

Contract rent in Pulaski County is relatively comparable to select localities in and around the New River Valley. 99.2 percent, or 3,074 housing units in Pulaski County rent for less $500 per month. This figure includes all housing unit types. In Montgomery County, only 88 percent, or 9,710 housing units out of 11,029 rent for less than $500 per month.

With a population currently rebounding from a slight decrease in the 1980s, coupled with the fact that household sizes are decreasing (less persons per household) while more industries are potentially locating in Pulaski County, these factors undoubtedly contribute in creating a long term demand for housing in Pulaski County. With affordable housing and two income households the norm, most families can afford housing units in the $75,000 market. And with the current federal and state home ownership initiatives, more and more families, as well as single headed households, can afford to own a home depending on their income and debt load. Table 19 describes current housing values in Pulaski County.