A Community in Dire Need of Housing

Taos is a community that should be thriving.  Yet it is not.  Its median income is significantly below that of the region, state and nation.  The median wage paid someone with a job is similarly far below the region's state's and nation's.  New housing completions were down 85% over the past decade, and as a result the County lost over 3,000 housing units.  The loss of units coupled with a stable demand resulted in by far the highest increase in rents and mortgages in the region and state - and far above the U.S. average.  The net result: housing has become dramatically less affordable and available - in a County that is dependent economically today and into the future on tourism - especially generated by one of the premier ski areas in the world.  The housing crisis affects both the welfare of the people today and into the future, as Taos compares extremely unfavorably with competitive ski areas which succeed because affordable and attractive housing is available for both guests and staff - absent in Taos.  So a community that should be thriving - drawing tourists and new residents alike to a community of spectacular beauty (that caused Ansel Adams, Georgia O'Keefe and D.H. Lawrence to call Taos home), world-class skiing, historical importance and year-round outdoor activities (white-water rafting, hiking, etc.) - is instead on life-support.  The cure is in the hands of government - which has both the authority (the laws dating back to 1934) and the funding adequate to right the course.  Hopefully, it will - especially after reviewing the documents below that are filled with important data - both raw and comparative.