Each year, the City of Greensboro gets about $9 million in federal funds in the form of  Community Development Block Grants from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, better known as HUD.

The money is meant to be used for “housing development, rehabilitation, infrastructure repairs, and community services.”

 Every five years, the city is required to conduct a review of its community and housing needs in order to determine the best use of the money.

To that end, Greensboro residents are being asked to take an online survey, which will be up through March 1, to assist city leaders and planning officials in determining the community’s needs and priorities.

The link is https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/GreensboroCommunityNeeds

The survey is also available in Spanish. That link is https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/EspCommunityNeedsSurvey

The city’s Housing and Neighborhood Development Department, in conjunction with two consulting firms – Civix and HR&A Advisors, Inc. – is currently developing and updating two plans that HUD requires, in its effort to establish community goals and manage resource allocations.

The City of Greensboro has already put in a lot of work on its major housing plan – Housing GSO – in order to better understand and plan for the city’s current housing market.

That plan is also being used to guide housing related investments.

Greensboro and Guilford County have had an extremely interesting housing market in recent years. Multiple large economic development successes and many people moving to the area have put a huge strain on the current housing market, which has contributed to higher housing prices, higher rent, a major homeless problem and higher tax bills.

While new housing is being built – for instance, the much contested one being constructed by farmer and developer David Couch on land that was formerly in Summerfield – there’s still a tremendous shortage of housing in the area.

Three years ago, it was often the case that when a home came on the market in Greensboro, several offers were made on the house the first day with some buyers offering over the asking price.  That’s not happening as much these days, but the housing shortage is still felt in multiple ways.

The new online survey asks questions such as: “Do you feel safe in your immediate neighborhood? (Always, Sometimes, or Never) and  “How would you describe the physical condition of housing in your neighborhood?

Another question on the survey is “Do you think abandoned or foreclosed properties are a critical issue in the city limits of Greensboro?”

Survey responders are also being asked their most important considerations in choosing a place to live from a list of choices:

  • Family nearby
  • Close to work
  • Price of housing
  • Convenient to neighborhood amenities
  • Access to public transportation
  • Access to quality schools/youth services
  • Attractiveness of neighborhood
  • Public safety
  • Other

If you want to learn more about the city’s housing plans you can find a lot of information at https://www.greensboro-nc.gov/HousingGSO.

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