Study shows housing preferences may shift toward higher densities 

The results are in on what Treasure Valley residents want out of housing.

COMPASS recently released a report on the community preference survey it did last summer. The planning organization found that while in some groups preferences for traditional homes and lot sizes are strong, in other growing groups, preferences have started to shift toward urban designs.

“The existing housing market may reflect traditional preferences for single-family housing on suburban-sized lots,” the report says. “However, the future of housing in the region may shift toward a more compact housing pattern to accommodate demographic changes, such as aging baby boomers and younger families. These two groups, as well as others, sought detached, single-family housing on compact lots as a good use of space and money for their housing choices.”

The shift does not indicate a new preference for the multi-family complexes and developments that are typical for bigger cities. Treasure Valley residents still prefer to have their own walls and small yards.

The study also found that density alone does not determine a resident’s preference. Higher densities “must be done with attractive architecture to integrate into existing communities,” the report says.

And not everyone is prepared to accept higher-density housing, the study found. “Some focus group participants associated high-density developments with renters who do not take care of the property and/or may be involved in criminal activities,” the report says. “Even though national research indicates the correlation between renters and crime/property degradation is not true in most cases, the perception may exist among the greater population.”

COMPASS conducted the survey to gain an understanding of residential market demand specifically as it relates to higher density and transportation. “Transit-oriented” developments are typically those with densities higher than eight units per acre.

The survey’s results were incorporated into a guidebook for COMPASS’s Communities in Motion regional transportation plan.

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