INSIDE TUCSON BUSINESS: Mon., May 5, 2008

Oro Valley: most expensive place to build a new home

Due to town-mandated impact fees, Oro Valley is now Pima County's most expensive place to build a new home and unincorporated Pima County is the least expensive, according to a new study released by the Southern Arizona Home Builders Association (SAHBA).

Home buyers in Oro Valley pay $29,067 in mandated fees ( building fees, taxes and surcharges) for the privilege of building a home within that municipality's boundaries — that's nearly $8,000 more than the $21,353 in mandated fees home buyers pay in unincorporated Pima County.

The charges are based on an updated 2007 study by SAHBA for a typical 2,000- square-foot, newly built home at a median price of $237,470.

The $26,434 home buyers in the City of Tucson pay in mandated fees represents 61% of the annual earnings of the average home buyer in the city which SAHBA said is a " financial burden that conflicts with affordable housing and infill initiatives since 20 percent of city residents live below the federal poverty level."

When adding in the cost-to-finance surcharges of $62,748 in Oro Valley, SAHBA said Oro Valley's total costs jump to $91,815 — well above the average Pima County median income of $42,984. The second most expensive place to build in the region is Marana, where the total cost is $88,337. Tucson is No. 3, with a total of $83,494, Sahuarita is $72,173 and unincorporated Pima County is $67,433.

As for fees, Pima County's $6,030 wastewater fee is the same regardless of the jurisdiction. But there are differences when it comes to road impact fees. The highest fee is $4,595 in unincorporated Pima County, $4,050 in Tucson, $3,375 in Oro Valley, $1,694 in Marana and no road impact fee in Sahuarita.