BRUNSWICK, Ga. – A growing shortage of workforce housing in Brunswick and across the Golden Isles is putting mounting pressure on local workers and the employers who rely on them.
As the region’s population continues to climb, community leaders say the demand for affordable homes is outpacing construction, and the gap is widening.
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Homes are being built, but not fast enough.
“We import from the surrounding area, basically half of our labor every day, so people are driving in from all over,” said Ryan Moore, president and CEO of the Golden Isles Development Authority.
Moore says the shortage is hitting lower and middle-income workers hardest. The average income in Brunswick is about $35,000 to $40,000 a year, he said, making even a $160,000 home out of reach for many families.
Glynn County ranks among the top 10 in Georgia for housing shortages, with an estimated need for more than 9,500 additional homes. Moore says years of underbuilding created the backlog.
“We just have not built enough new housing over the past few years,” he said. “In 2024, we finally got to the largest number of houses built in a year, and prior to that, it was 2007.”
The biggest gaps are in the professions that keep the community running: municipal workers, police and fire, health care, tourism, manufacturing, and construction.
News4JAX visited a community designed to help fill that missing middle — not luxury, not low-income, but “attainable.”
Real estate developer Hillpointe is among the companies focusing on housing for families who fall between traditional affordable housing and high-end rentals.
“Brunswick is a special place for us. It was one of our first projects,” said Marcus Wiedower, Hillpointe’s vice president of external affairs. “You’ve got affordable housing, which is 60% below AMI. You’ve got 120% and above, which is luxury, and we hit that gap between 80% and 120%.”
Wiedower says local workers often face two undesirable options: older properties that haven’t been maintained or newer luxury rentals that strain their budgets.
“There’s no entry-level homeownership. There is no attainable rental where you can actually save some money,” he said. “Very little in that middle market, and that’s something we’re doing very well.”
Development is expanding along the Highway 99 corridor, where several large-scale multifamily projects are underway. Still, prices continue to rise, in part driven by retirees relocating from other states.
“This is a destination where people want to be. It’s a fun place to be,” Moore said.
He added that some homes under $200,000 do exist, just not in the neighborhoods many buyers prioritize.
“If you drew a 2-mile ring around Brunswick, you could find over 30 homes below $200,000,” he said. “What I would encourage the next generation of homebuyers to think about is that when you move into a neighborhood, you become part of that neighborhood — and you can make it what you want.”
The city of Brunswick is also investing in new workforce housing. Using millions in grant funding, officials are advancing construction at Reynolds Cottages, where the first homes are expected to go on sale early next year.