Does the City put this stuff up for competitive bidding?
The City Council will decide today whether to pay a private firm to do a comprehensive housing market study of Austin.
Denver-based BBC Research & Consulting is up for a $142,435 contract to identify housing trends in Austin and forecast future demographics and growth.
City officials say the study, to be done by the end of the year, is needed to plan for Austin's long-term housing needs amid a rapidly changing housing landscape in which more residents are having difficulty finding affordable homes.
I can forecast future demographics and growth with the best of them. It's easy: Concoct future growth rates, then extrapolate. Seriously. I'd be willing to do that for, say, $72,000, and I'd even throw in the housing analysis for free. (I'm already doing "housing analysis" for free.)
Sigh. I sound like a crotchety, middle-aged white guy.
