Walter Crutchfield from Vintage Partners, which took over development of Presidio in the Pines, said the supply of homes under $300,000 in Flagstaff is extremely limited. New homes in that price range are gobbled up as soon as they appear on the market, he said. Some are grabbed by families, but demand from college students is also putting pressure on the market.

Building more housing geared toward students would take some of the pressure off the housing market for working families, Crutchfield said.

He said the cost of construction was also expensive. Some of the cost is related to the price of land in Flagstaff and some due to delays getting the product to market. But building a home in the $300,000 range was doable. Vintage has hired a number of builders to build homes below the $300,000 price range in Flagstaff.

Crutchfield recommended that the city set fixed impact fees for utilities, fire and police services for new construction instead of negotiating with each developer. This would make it easier for a developer to know what some of its costs would be before starting construction. It would also mean less time negotiating with city staff, which would lead to a quicker build process and more product reaching the market quicker.