Asked what her vision was for the Kootenai County housing market in 20 years, Kiki Miller couldn’t say for sure Wednesday night. 

But the Coeur d’Alene city councilor was certain about one thing: “What will it look like if we stop doing the work right now? Not very good. Not very good.” 

Miller gave a presentation on housing issues before about 25 people at a gathering of Kootenai Strong, a new non-partisan community group.  

Miller is the founder of the Housing Solutions Partnership, which has been leading efforts to address North Idaho’s housing crisis. While acknowledging a lack of affordable housing has forced many locals to leave the area, Miller cited several areas of progress.

HomeShare, which matches homeowners with tenants, has placed about 60 people in rooms.

The Panhandle Affordable Housing Alliance's "Miracle on Britton" project — deed-restricted, shared-equity homes reserved for households earning about $75,000 to $126,000 — broke ground last year in Post Falls. Home prices will be about $290,000-$430,000. 

And Miller has high hopes for the expected release of preapproved ADU designs that will provide a streamlined permit process for building units detached from the main home that complies with local building codes. The idea is to make it easier for increase housing options. 

But the picture isn't all positive. 

Miller said someone earning $93,500 and securing a mortgage interest rate of 6% could afford a home at $410,000. 

That might sound like a lot, but the median sales price of a single-family home in Kootenai County last year was $526,500.  

And according to the US Census Bureau, the median household income in the county was $77,034 in 2023.

Miller said of those moving here, 54% are coming from out of the region. Of those, many are retirees, secondary home buyers and investment property buyers.

"The reason that's important to us as a community is they’re not going to work when they get here," Miller said.

But she said things like developer incentives, deed restrictions, development agreements, land trusts and shared equity projects can provide some help. 

One man said perhaps zoning restrictions could be used to require builders to construct smaller homes on smaller lots, rather than all the larger homes going in, but Miller said a developer isn't going to put $200,000 homes on $300,000 lot. A 3,500-square-foot home will make a single lot worth a million.

“It’s not zoning, it’s density," Miller said, adding supply and demand come into play as well.

Miler said they have work to do.

“We can't go back, so we must find a way we can make a difference," she said.