Finding an apartment or home to rent or buy is difficult in Wrangell, leaving many scrambling for a place to live.
“Wrangell is extremely tight, plain and simple,” said Bennett McGrath, owner of Anchor Properties in Petersburg. McGrath’s business focuses on home sales in Wrangell, Petersburg and Sitka. Kathleen Harding with MoveToWrangell.com is the only agent based in Wrangell.
A survey of landlords conducted by the state earlier this year showed no vacancies for one-bedroom apartments and homes in the Wrangell/Petersburg census area.
In addition, rent has increased over the past year. According to September’s edition of Alaska Economic Trends, issued by the Department of Labor, Ketchikan and Wrangell/Petersburg rents increased the most of any communities in the state the past year.
The median rent in the Wrangell/Petersburg census area went from $904 in 2020 to $950 this year. In Ketchikan, the median rent climbed from $1,115 to $1,230.
Though even with the increase, Wrangell’s rents were still the lowest among the 10 areas in the state surveyed for the report. Sitka’s rent was highest at $1,323, followed by Kodiak at $1,270.
The report said the Wrangell/Petersburg area was the only place where single-family homes were cheaper to rent than apartments.
For those looking to buy, there are only four single-family homes listed in Wrangell, with a few sales pending as of Sept. 10.
“What is showing up in just Wrangell in the MLS [Multiple Listing Service] is four homes,” said Sarah Holmgrain, the owner of Petersburg Properties. “There are a couple in Kake, eight in Petersburg. It’s very tight now.”
“What we’re seeing are homes that are move-in ready going quickly,” she said. “If they even need a little bit of help, a little cosmetic, they’re still going quickly.”
According to Holmgrain, the average sold price 2020 for homes in the Wrangell/Petersburg/Kake area was $174,211. In 2019 and 2018, the average sold prices were $158,092 and $148,285, respectively. Those numbers don’t account for people who sold the homes without an agent or agents who didn’t list homes on the state MLS.
“We’re coming off the best season I think Sarah [Holmgrain] and I have ever had,” McGrath said. “A lot of people are coming up from down south. Petersburg and Wrangell are the last enclave in the Southeast that haven’t been exploited as far as price goes. You get a lot of bang for your buck.”
Several factors have led to the increase in demand, chief among them are people relocating for jobs, lower taxes, and a simpler way of life.
A look at the Wrangell community page on Facebook will show posts from folks moving to the island from across the Lower 48, including Utah, Florida, New Hampshire and California, to name a few.
According to a report issued in March by the Pew Research Center, “The number of homeowners [nationwide] increased by an estimated 2.1 million over the prior year. … This matches the largest prior net increase in homeowners that occurred during the housing boom between 2003 and 2004.”
“Lots of people are refinancing and making that leap to buy because the rates are so low,” Holmgrain said. As of Sept. 10, the rates were 2.7% for a 30-year loan and 2.25% for a 15-year loan.
The lack of housing doesn’t seem to have a ready remedy.
“The Economic Development Committee met [Sept. 8] and started having a conversation on … how can it be addressed,” said Carol Rushmore, economic development director for Wrangell. “You’ve got a lot of factors happening here. Mainly it’s SEARHC who opened the hospital, who’s doing a lot of hiring. And then you have Crossings who has a lot of seasonal [workers]. Not just Crossings but other businesses will have the seasonal workers come in.”
That makes it next to impossible to secure a rental during the summer months, she said. However, permanent residents brought in due to SEARHC’s hiring efforts has made the long-term housing market tighter still, she said.
“To help the moving process, SEARHC will work with new hires to provide housing leads and, if possible, connect them with available housing options,” Maegan Bosak, senior director of lands and property management, wrote in an email. “If housing cannot be secured prior to relocating to Wrangell, SEARHC will provide temporary housing to new hires while they search for options.”
The borough has been working to develop the former Wrangell Institute land, near Shoemaker Bay Loop, for residential housing. That will have to wait, however, until the borough and federal Bureau of Indian Affairs can conduct a ground search of the property as part of a national effort to ensure no gravesites or cultural artifacts at the former Native and American Indian boarding schools.
A lack of housing can be frustrating for house hunters and those trying to attract employers and employees alike to the island.
“There’s zero, nothing available on the market. If there is, it happens overnight, it’s who you know, and we’re seeing the values of property going up, too,” Rushmore said. “I’m talking with somebody right now who wants to start and move their business here. It’s difficult. They’re having housing issues, trying to figure out where they will live, or if they have a number of employees, what will happen there.”
“There have been some builders that have built some housing for rental purposes,” Rushmore said. “I do think you have some developers that could potentially build some additional multi-family or duplexes or something along those lines.”
Rushmore said the city is working with SEARHC to accommodate the organization in its efforts to create housing for its workers. However, nothing definite has been planned by the health care organization.
“At this time, there is no timeline for such projects,” Bosak said. “Traveling medical staff are typically provided housing as part of their contract. Our housing roster is a mixture of SEARHC-owned apartments and rental units leased by SEARHC from local landlords. Travelers are provided housing assignments by the housing services manager.”
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