What does attainable housing mean for the fabric of a community? Taking local community housing needs down to the individual level, a vital community role that can have difficulty finding attainable housing is our educators. It’s a scenario that causes challenging dynamics when our teachers, counselors and school support staff can’t always afford to live in the community in which they work.

Attainable housing is critical for educators and other learning-centered roles that are foundational to a community and a significant factor that supports job satisfaction for professionals and stability for our students.

It’s something that Brian Brutyn, associate superintendent for Midland Public Schools, has seen play out in their recruiting and retention strategies within the district.

“We had almost 50 new hires in 2023 within Midland Public Schools and that's just teaching staff. Those numbers have been in the mid 40s and approaching 50 for the past couple of years. But what we've seen is a dramatic shift in the makeup of those new hires. We’re no longer attracting as many people that are new to the region or to the profession, we're attracting people with experience from within the region and within driving distance.

In 2023, of the nearly 50 new hires at Midland Public Schools, 32 of them came to us from around the region with experience and the remaining 15 were brand new teachers to the profession. Of those 15 new to the profession, seven of them were previous Midland Public Schools graduates.

“That's telling us that the attraction we're getting isn't from people moving to the region and we've seen that pattern repeat itself now for the past couple of years. Yes, there is a teacher shortage on a larger scale and not just in Michigan. But when you see that pattern emerge, there is no doubt in my mind that affordable housing is definitely a major factor in selling the region. We’ve had that confirmed from recruiting efforts and stories from candidates that we’ve talked to,” said Brutyn.

“Our HR team goes out and actively recruits. We also have a great communications department who puts together videos and other materials. In fact, that's why I moved here 10 years ago. You can’t convince me otherwise that there is a better place to raise a family,” said Brutyn.

“I brought my kids here when they were in second and third grade. My daughter's a senior this year and we’ve lived the Midland dream. We have done the Midland Dolphins, the Tri Kids Tri, the Dow Run Walk, and gone to the Great Lakes Loons games over the years, as there are so many options that add to a great quality of life. But we’re seeing a trend that people who do move here are not moving to Midland County necessarily. They're grabbing something in Bay City or they're grabbing something maybe a little bit out US-10 to the west. That’s great if that is their choice, but we want Midland to be an attainable option in that mix,” he added.

“We want them living in Midland which allows them to experience all those things, but they just can't sometimes. That's not even only from a purchasing perspective, but it's also something we see from a rental point of view, too. In some cases, they are even having to double up and rent with someone else.”

“We are seeing and hearing it within our population demographics shifting to people that can drive here, rather than attracting people to the Great Lakes Bay Region, and specifically to Midland, which is our end goal. Whether or not this trend is going to continue, we don't know, but I worry that we’ll continue to see this market get more difficult for educators. Midland has seen rising real estate demand and prices, with some properties even being purchased with all-cash offers, some of which I’ve seen up close. That’s worrisome for people coming out of school, many with student loans. Young professionals aren’t in a position to win these bidding wars. They don't have that buying capacity, nor can they afford to pay a 7% mortgage rate over 30 years right now. So, they don't have a chance,” he added.

A recent housing survey conducted with some teachers in Midland found that more than half of respondents thought there was a lack of options in their price range and that the market was too competitive for them to be able to secure a house.

One respondent added, "We live in Midland, but wish we could move somewhere else in the city. We bought a starter home that is now going to be our forever home with the market how it is.”

Attainable housing options are a factor that Brutyn thinks would make a difference in recruiting talent to move here from outside the region.

“We sell all that Midland and the region has to offer, from Midland Center for the Arts, to the recreation groups that meet up at City Forest, to closing off Downtown Midland in the summer and having great restaurants and live music. But housing is the one thing that we don’t have in our toolkit right now when we’re out on the road. Our HR team will recruit and hand out flyers, but along with our salary range, we always get questions about housing options. I don't know how many of them write us off, but it's getting harder and harder for us to bring in people from outside to the region and our stats prove that over and over again each year,” he said.

Brutyn notes that market forces and widespread shortage of teachers is something that has created structural changes in the teaching profession, leading many to change districts much more often than what was seen in the past.

“My hope is that at some point, we can say there are options that are within reach, because that equally helps us with retention efforts. In the teaching profession, it used to be that when you got into a job, you stayed there forever. My dad was a teacher for 45 years and his first rule was you get a job; then you do not move. You keep it. Now it's a different market. You can go anywhere you want to, because there is that opportunity. People will shop around and I don't see that changing anytime soon. So, housing will allow us to be able to retain people, because that’s also tough” he said.

The bottom line is that housing is vital to attracting and retaining qualified educators and the long-term health of our school system. When our educators have access to housing, they can enrich their students, focus on their own professional development and invest in their community in meaningful ways for the long term.

About Housing Forward

A community-based initiative to holistically approach and implement solutions to develop and rehabilitate attainable housing throughout Midland County.

Click here to learn more and reach us at HousingForward@mbami.org.