Countywide Strategic Plan Launches New Housing & Neighborhood Livability Dashboard

The Housing & Neighborhood Livability dashboard is the sixth dashboard now published to support the implementation of the Fairfax Countywide Strategic Plan. There will be a dashboard for each of the 10 Community Outcome Areas. 

The Housing & Neighborhood Livability dashboard presents information under the following topic areas referred to as indicators:

1. Adequate Quantity and Availability of Housing
2. Affordable and Quality Housing
3. Access to Amenities that Promote Healthy Neighborhoods
4. Flexibility and Adaptability of Land Use Rules
5. Preventing and Ending Homelessness

These indicators contain eight headline metrics related to housing costs and inventory, homelessness, the county’s progress towards creating new affordable homes and accessibility to public transit, fresh food locations, mixed-use centers and parks. 

The dashboard is designed to:

• Inform residents and stakeholders
• Monitor progress over time
• Identify any demographic or geographic disparities among residents, and
• Guide community leaders, practitioners and advocates in making data-driven decisions 

Overall, the metrics included in the dashboard help to evaluate the goals of ensuring sufficient housing inventory and affordability within the county and access to amenities that enhance neighborhood quality.

Data Highlights

1. County Makes Progress Towards Goal of Creating 10,000 New Affordable Homes by 2034
   The county has created 1,298 new affordable rental homes between 2020 and 2024. An additional 1,461 units are under construction, and efforts are underway to strengthen the affordable housing pipeline.
2. The Cost of Monthly Rent Increases
   From 2018 to 2023, the market rate average monthly rent increased by 12.3% in Fairfax County, bringing the figure to $2,020. The greatest increase came from four-bedroom units and high-rise buildings. When looking at median rent, Fairfax County saw a lower increase (16.5%) than most nearby jurisdictions, the state of Virginia and the U.S.
3. The Number of People Experiencing Homelessness Increased During and After the COVID-19 Pandemic
   From 2019 to 2024, the number of people experiencing homelessness increased from 1,034 to 1,278. A sharp uptick was visible starting in 2021 when there was also an increase in the number of households with at least one adult and one child. 
4. Residents Have Moderate Access to Public Transit and Fresh Food Locations
   Access to amenities like public transit and fresh food locations, or businesses that sell healthy fresh food options, help enhance neighborhood quality. As of 2024, the majority (63.2%) of Fairfax County residents live within a quarter mile of a bus stop. The greatest coverage is provided by Fairfax Connector. For the same year, 39.3% of residents lived within a half mile to a fresh food location.

For More Information

The Housing & Neighborhood Livability dashboard will be updated yearly to continue to determine trends and monitor progress. All published dashboards may be accessed through the Countywide Data Analytics webpage. Learn about all 10 Community Outcome Areas on the Fairfax Countywide Strategic Plan webpage. For instructions on how to navigate and use the dashboards, watch the Strategic Plan Dashboard Tutorial. For questions about the dashboard, contact Countywide Data Analytics at DMBDataAnalytics@fairfaxcounty.gov.