Pender County’s new manager responds to resident affordable housing concerns

PENDER COUNTY, NC (WWAY-TV) – As Pender County continues to see a boom in population and development, the cost of housing has become a major concern for many looking to move there.

“Affordable housing is a complex topic, there’s a lot of pieces that go into it,” said Colby Sawyer, Pender County manager.

Since Dec. 1, 2025, Sawyer has been the county’s new manager.

“There’s a lot of opportunity to see some really good things here that help Pender County grow but also help it grow in a way that meets what our community wants to see,” Sawyer said.

One of those things is affordable housing.

The county reports it is the second-fastest growing county in North Carolina, but the median home price averages around $430,000.

During a November County commissioners meeting, Chair Randy Burton pointed out that the price point is out of reach for younger generations.

“Folks that are coming out of college, coming out of high school, just starting their career to have an affordable home that they can get into that a mortgage won’t kill them,” Burton said.

Sawyer said this is a multi-faceted problem and many factors are out of the county’s hands.

“There is of course the supply side, the affordable housing stock, are there enough units that have been built that would meet the definition of affordable,” said Sawyer.

He said another issue is defining what affordable housing is.

“Because you can look at five or six different metrics to define affordable and they will all give you a different answer,” Sawyer said.

Sawyer said there’s really only one indirect way the county can help.

“What we can do indirectly is work on things like economic development when we bring good, high paying jobs to Pender County we open the door to affordable housing and I prefer to think of it as attainable housing,” Sawyer said.

He adds that strong community services like park and rec facilities and quality education systems can reduce out-of-pocket costs. Some residents have called for a development moratorium to slow un-regulated development.

Sawyer said the county’s legal team is looking at that option.

“Development in general is just very difficult to control, there is very limited ability by local government to control and regulate development and so we do what we can with the tools were given,” Sawyer said.