Survey Challenges Northampton County’s Housing Affordability Assumptions

Grassroots review of 54 local workers finds $1,500 rents and $200,000-plus homes largely beyond reach; advocates call for zoning amendment to return to Planning Commission

NORTHAMPTON COUNTY, Va. — A grassroots survey of more than 50 Eastern Shore workers is raising questions about whether the housing prices being characterized as affordable under a proposed Northampton County zoning amendment reflect what many local workers can actually pay.

The survey, conducted over more than two months, included 54 people working primarily in retail and service-sector jobs. According to the report, workers were interviewed at or associated with businesses including Ace Hardware, Food Lion, Dollar General, McDonald’s, Family Dollar, AutoZone, Advance Auto, Hardee’s and Royal Farms.

The findings are being circulated as Northampton County considers Zoning Text Amendment 2026-001, a proposal involving development in areas surrounding the incorporated towns of Exmore, Nassawadox, Eastville, Cheriton and Cape Charles.

The survey’s authors contend that the amendment’s approach to affordable housing does not align with the economic circumstances of the county’s lower- and moderate-income workforce. They are also calling on the Northampton County Board of Supervisors to return the proposed amendment to the Planning Commission, allowing commissioners additional time to complete their review and issue a recommendation.

Survey finds a significant affordability gap

According to the survey report, county officials have characterized homes in the $200,000-to-$300,000 range and rents of about $1,500 per month as affordable to portions of Northampton’s workforce. The proposed framework, the report says, could provide development incentives when a percentage of units are offered within specified affordability ranges.

But interviews with workers produced a substantially different picture.

Of the 54 workers surveyed, only seven lived in homes they owned, according to the report, while 22 lived with their parents. Those who owned homes generally lived in households with two or three incomes, and five of the homeowners surveyed said they had received help from their parents when purchasing their homes. The survey also found that many men interviewed worked two jobs, while many mothers and wives worked part time.

Twenty-five respondents said buying a house was essentially outside their expectations. When all participants were nevertheless asked what they might be able to afford, none said they could manage the survey’s initial range of $180,000 to $200,000.

The report says the overwhelming majority believed a home costing roughly $80,000 to $120,000 might be within reach, although not necessarily under their present circumstances. Seven respondents indicated that they might be able to afford a home in roughly the $90,000-to-$140,000 range if they had a down payment; according to the survey, none of those seven currently did.

Renters reported a similar divide.

Apartment rents reported by those surveyed generally ranged from $700 to $900 per month. Among the 11 respondents renting houses, the highest rent reported was $1,150, and most of those renters were supported by two or three household incomes.

According to the survey authors, none of the 54 respondents said they could afford rent of $1,500 per month.

County housing inventory also questioned

A separate document accompanying the survey attempts to put Northampton County’s existing housing supply and development capacity into perspective.

A chart titled “Northampton by the Numbers — housing inventory and need gap” estimates 5,440 housing units in the county. It divides those homes by value, with 22 percent listed below $100,000, 28 percent between $100,000 and $200,000, 18 percent between $200,000 and $300,000, 17 percent between $300,000 and $500,000 and 15 percent above $500,000.

The same chart attempts to compare estimated household income bands with housing price ranges and available inventory. The authors use that analysis to argue that Northampton’s housing problem is principally one of affordability rather than simply the number of potential housing units.

The accompanying survey document similarly claims that more than 400 houses are currently for sale in Northampton County and that roughly 3,500 vacant lots could accommodate new homes. Those figures are presented by the authors as evidence against the need for additional high-density development.

Editor’s Note: Those inventory figures and the conclusions drawn from them are assertions contained in the submitted materials and would require independent verification before being treated as official county housing statistics.

A second graphic in the accompanying material examines Northampton County land use by acreage, showing agricultural land as the largest category at about 51.5 percent, followed by conservation land at approximately 31.3 percent. Smaller portions are shown for residential and other uses.

One worker illustrates the numbers

The report also offers a detailed case study intended to demonstrate the difference between an income-based affordability formula and the money workers actually have available after basic expenses.

One worker interviewed reported earning $42,000 annually from two part-time jobs — 20 hours at a convenience store and another 20 hours with an employer in Accomack County. Because neither position was full-time, the worker said they received no employment benefits. The reported take-home income was approximately $34,000.

The reported expenses included a $300 monthly car payment, $250 for utilities, $350 for health insurance and $150 for internet, telephone and television. Those figures did not include food, gasoline, credit-card debt, vehicle repairs, clothing or car insurance. They were paying $750 per month to rent a two-bedroom home from a relative.

Using gross income alone, the report calculated that 25 percent of his $42,000 salary would amount to $10,500 annually, or about $875 per month, for housing. But the authors argue that such formulas can obscure the effect of unavoidable expenses on what a worker can realistically spend each month.

The example underscores the broader argument emerging from the survey: a housing unit may meet a technical definition of affordability yet remain financially inaccessible to many people working in Northampton County.

Debate now turns to Planning Commission review

Along with the affordability survey, organizers issued an “Action Alert” asking residents to contact the Northampton County Board of Supervisors and request that ZTA 2026-001 be returned to the Planning Commission.

According to the document, the Board of Supervisors ended the commission’s review before commissioners had completed their work. The organizers say the Planning Commission has indicated that it could finish its review and make a recommendation to approve, deny or modify the amendment within 60 days.

The submitted materials characterize the zoning amendment as potentially allowing higher-density, cluster-style residential development around the county’s incorporated towns.

The survey organizers are urging residents to ask supervisors to give the Planning Commission those additional 60 days and to make their correspondence part of the official record for ZTA 2026-001. They are also encouraging residents to attend the Board of Supervisors meeting scheduled for 6 p.m. Sept. 8 at the Northampton County administration complex in Eastville.

The dispute now involves two related but distinct questions: how much additional housing Northampton County should permit around its towns, and whether the housing produced under the proposed regulations would actually be affordable to the workers the policy is intended to serve.

The 54-person survey is not a scientific or statistically representative countywide housing study, and its findings should be viewed within that limitation. But it adds first-hand accounts to the zoning debate and raises a question likely to remain central as supervisors consider ZTA 2026-001:

Affordable according to which measure — and affordable to whom?

About the Author

Wayne Creed

Administrator

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