March Virtual Open House for the Syracuse Housing Study
Let's get started!
This open house is organized into three stations and we encourage you to go through them in order. At each one, you will learn about data that has been gathered and analyzed to date, as well as key findings.
A survey at the end will provide you with an opportunity to provide feedback and let us know what you think.
You are at Station #1
Current Conditions
One-third of all residential properties in Syracuse show signs of chronic disinvestment
As part of the Syracuse Housing Study, over 35,000 residential properties in Syracuse were included in a fall 2022 survey that rated each property based on exterior conditions and signs of both investment and disinvestment. Over 11,000 properties (33%) received a rating of “4” or “5,” which was an indication that multiple signs of disinvestment and physical distress were apparent.
At the same time, 27% of all properties received a rating of “1” or “2,” which meant that they showed signs of active ownership and healthy levels of upkeep. In the middle were over 14,000 properties (40%) that received a rating of “3,” which meant they did not show signs of physical distress, but nor was active investment apparent.
Property Condition Score
Note: This property condition survey included properties with residential uses, including single-family homes, duplexes, small and large apartment buildings, and buildings with a mix of residential and commercial uses.
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There are several areas in Syracuse where healthy property conditions and blocks with significant levels of disinvestment are very close to each other—often separated by a major street.
Areas that are predominately yellow (“3”) may appear to be mostly stable today but are vulnerable to decline without stepped-up investments by property owners.
Only a few neighborhoods in Syracuse are dominated by properties that show healthy signs of investment and upkeep
A neighborhood-level analysis of the 2022 property condition survey reveals that healthy residential properties—those that received a “1” or “2” rating—make up more than half of all properties in just four neighborhoods—Winkworth, Meadowbrook, Sedgwick, and Strathmore. In most neighborhoods, unhealthy properties (“4” or “5” rating) outnumber the healthy ones or are roughly as numerous as healthy properties.
Share of Healthy and Unhealthy Properties in Syracuse Neighborhoods Based on 2022 Survey
Housing demand is soft or weak in most of Syracuse
With the exception of areas along the edges of the City of Syracuse, demand for housing in much of the city—what households with options are willing to pay for housing in a given location—is soft. This is especially true when housing demand in the city is compared to housing demand in the rest of the county, state, and U.S. For example, the median home value in Onondaga County in 2021 was just 63% of the U.S. median. In the City of Syracuse, it was far lower—at just 41% of the U.S. median.
The map on this poster is an attempt to identify different levels of housing demand within the City of Syracuse. It measures strength of demand using eight measurements that gauge the ability and willingness of current or prospective property owners to pay for and maintain residential property.
Private investment to strengthen housing conditions: where is it most likely to occur?
At its core, this map shows where the private market is more likely to produce and sustain healthy housing and neighborhood conditions because a return on investment can be anticipated by homeowners and investors. In other words, there is a stronger financial rationale to invest in new or improved housing in areas where demand is stronger.
In areas where demand is weaker, the private market is less likely to produce these outcomes. The weaker the market, the larger the role that public subsidies and incentives will need to play for housing investments to happen.
In no Syracuse market, however, is there a financial rationale for the private market to produce new affordable housing designed to meet the needs of low-income households. That is always an activity that will require a public subsidy or incentive of some kind.
Where demand is higher in Syracuse, the following tends to be true:
Housing conditions are better and there are fewer vacancies
Levels of investment in existing or new housing are stronger
Housing prices are higher, reflecting a higher willingness to pay
Price appreciation against inflation will be stronger (property values keep up with inflation)
There are fewer households with low incomes (low ability to pay for housing) because prices are higher
Where demand is lower in Syracuse, the following tends to be true:
Housing conditions are worse and there are more vacancies
Levels of investment in existing or new housing are weaker
Housing prices are lower, reflecting a limited willingness to pay
Price appreciation against inflation will be worse (property values tend to lose ground to inflation over time)
There are more households with low incomes (low ability to pay for housing) because prices are lower, but they still struggle to pay for their housing
View the Station #1 Current Conditions posters as a PDF
The information on this page was part of the March 2023 Open House for the Syracuse Housing Study.
