Orange County NC Website
Community Profile <br />In 2000, the population of Orange County is estimated to be 111,982. Of that number, <br />approximately 77 percent were White, 16 percent were African American, and 7 percent were of <br />other minority groups including American Indian, Asian, and Hispanic. The fastest growing <br />segments of the population are of Asian and/or Hispanic descent whose population has more <br />than doubled since 1993. <br />Further, it is estimated that approximately 12,280 of all households in Orange County were <br />considered .very low income, with incomes between 0-SO percent of median family income <br />(MFI). With the exception of whites, a disproportionate percentage among all other racial groups <br />was very low income, ranging from 37 percent of the Native-American population to 44 percent <br />of the African-American population. <br />HOUSING AND COMMUNl{TY <br />DEVELOPMENT NEEDS <br />Conditions <br />The high cost of homeownership has forced many families to purchase housing in other counties <br />and commute into Orange County for work. The inflation of the rental market by University of <br />North Carolina-Chapel Hill (UNC-CH) students has caused hardships for families with incomes <br />below 50 percent of MFI. Larger rental units are particularly scarce. <br />Market Conditions <br />According to the Orange County Economic Development Commission, the average new home <br />sales in 1999 was $247,661, and for an existing home the price was $200,601. To purchase this <br />new home a low income family of four persons would have to spend approximately 7.9 times <br />their annual wages. For an existing home, the family would have to spend approximately 6.4 <br />times their annual wages. In both of these instances, the low-income family need to have more <br />money than they earn and is certainly well above the HUD standard for affordable housing. <br />(U.S. Department of HUD standards define affordable owner occupied housing as purchasable at <br />2.5 to 3.0 times total family annual income.) <br />The rental housing market, inflated by the ability of University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill <br />students able to gay mazket rents, is beyond the means of families with incomes below 50% of <br />the area median. In 2000, it is estimated that rental units represent 43% of the county-wide <br />housing market and approximately 67% of those rental households experience an extreme cost <br />burden -~ paying between 30°k to S0% of their income for rental housing. <br />Each year, HUD publishes existing housing Fair Market Rents (FMRs) for metropolitan areas <br />and non-metropolitan counties in the country. These FMRs are based on the fortieth percentile <br />of standard quality rental units occupied by recent movers. Public housing units, newly <br />constructed units, and substandard units ,are excluded from the calculations. FMRs are <br />established by unit size (number of bedrooms) and include an allowance for utilities. <br />