Eastern Sierra Housing Needs Study

​Study Evaluates Housing Market Conditions and Identifies Unmet Housing Needs

​Eastern Sierra, CA – The Collective Housing Committee (CHC) – comprised of Inyo County, Mono County, the City of Bishop, the Town of Mammoth Lakes, and the Eastern Sierra Council of Governments (ESCOG) – today released the 2026 Eastern Sierra Regional Housing Needs Study, a comprehensive analysis of housing conditions, needs, and challenges facing the region’s workforce households. The study was prepared by consulting firm BAE Urban Economics and will serve as the foundation for the forthcoming Regional Housing Toolkit.

​The study finds that the Eastern Sierra region faces a significant and growing housing crisis, driven by a combination of limited land availability, high construction costs, and an existing housing stock that is misaligned with the needs of the workforce. Population and household growth has been flat to negative over the past decade, with Mono County experiencing the largest population loss. These declines are projected to continue, driven in part by the high cost of living and the displacement of lower-income households.

​The study’s quantitative housing needs model estimates a total of 3,262 households with unmet housing needs across the region. Of this total, 1,767 low-income households earning 80 percent of Area Median Income (AMI) or below had unmet housing needs, as well as 1,248 moderate- to upper-middle-income households, earning between 80 and 150 percent of AMI, and 247 upper-income households earning more than 150 percent of AMI. The study finds the greatest unmet need among smaller households who may be best served by studio and one-bedroom units, which also tend to be more naturally affordable.

​The study finds that the housing crisis is having a direct impact on regional employers. Nearly two-thirds of businesses surveyed for this research report that housing availability hampers their ability to recruit and retain workers, which limits owners’ ability to maintain and grow their businesses. Employers and workers alike report a need for an increased supply of dedicated long-term rental housing, both apartments and single-family homes, as well as starter homes affordable to first-time homebuyers.

​These findings will inform a Regional Housing Toolkit to be developed by the CHC, identifying tools that participating jurisdictions can use, both individually and cooperatively, to address the region’s identified housing needs over the next three to five years.

​The full report is available at https://escog.ca.gov/housing-needs, along with presentation materials for each community. Interested parties may also provide contact information at this site to be kept up to date on next steps. For more information about the study or the Regional Housing Toolkit process, please contact: Elaine Kabala, Eastern Sierra Council of Governments (ESCOG), at [email protected]