Teton Motors provides rental models to workers at below-market charges

Teton Motors’ 12 rental models vary from a studio to a three-bedroom residence. Auge declined to say how a lot workers pay month-to-month in lease however did describe it as “anyplace from 40 to 60 p.c underneath market.”
Within the fourth quarter of 2021, the common market lease in Jackson for a one-bedroom unit was $2,141 per 30 days whereas a two-bedroom unit was $2,772 per 30 days, according to the Jackson/Teton County Affordable Housing Department, which collects rental knowledge in town’s 5 important residence complexes.

Teton Motors’ models are rented out on a month-to-month foundation, and workers can reside in them so long as they need, Auge stated.

“We realized that there was at all times going to be this want,” he stated. “There was at all times going to be a housing scarcity. Particularly throughout the peak seasons, summer season and winter. And clearly, we’re not a seasonal enterprise. We wanted to have individuals have someplace year-round.”

Individuals working all forms of jobs with the group have used the worker housing over time, from salespeople and detailers to managers and workplace workers. One worker rented a unit for eight years. Some staff used the housing whereas they saved sufficient cash to purchase a house outdoors of Teton County the place homes price considerably much less however require an extended commute, Auge stated.

Marilyn Garcia, Teton Motors’ title clerk and receptionist, rents a three-bedroom residence above the collision heart. She beforehand labored for the corporate and left however returned a yr in the past, drawn in by the housing provide.

“That is why I got here again to work right here,” stated Garcia, who famous she pays $1,500 per 30 days in lease. “I’ve three children. So after they had a three-bedroom residence out there, I jumped on it.”

As an alternative of a 45-minute commute every manner from different cities alongside the Idaho-Wyoming border, Garcia walks a block and a half to the dealership and will get to reside and work in Jackson.

“For me and my state of affairs, if I didn’t have housing, I might not be capable of reside in Jackson,” she stated.