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The county's two home builders associations commissioned Elliot Eisenberg to counter the notion that residential development doesn't pay for itself and to support their opposition to school impact fees being considered for Beaufort County.
Policymakers often underestimate the benefits of home construction, Eisenberg said, in part by failing to account for activity the industry indirectly generates in other segments of the economy.
"If you add up the effects over a decade, the numbers become quite staggering," said Eisenberg, who presented the findings at Palmetto Electric's Hardeeville facility.
Eisenberg, who has produced many similar studies on other communities, began by adding governments' revenues from:
• Construction itself
• Its ripple effects and
• A resident's spending.
He then compares that total to the cost of services, such as public safety and schools, that are required to support new housing.
In Beaufort County's case, the 890 homes built last year would generate about $100.4 million in revenue for local governments and only $79.9 million in costs over 15 years, he said.
If the study had been done a few years ago, when building was booming, both the cost and revenue figures would have increased considerably -- and the governments' surplus would have been greater, he said.
Eisenberg's visit comes after state senators last session introduced bills that would have allowed Beaufort and Jasper counties to levy school impact fees on developers.
The proposals were supported by some local government leaders but opposed by many Realtors and home builders and ultimately not enacted.
After his presentation Wednesday, Eisenberg cautioned government leaders to tread carefully when considering raising impact fees or otherwise impeding home builders because they could drive dollars to more friendly communities.
"Whatever good you're going to get is going to go to Savannah or wherever," he said.
Fred Washington, chairman of the Beaufort County Board of Education, said he remains committed to the need for impact fees, unless local governments can devise some other way to ensure money is available to build schools when necessary.
"If someone identifies the money to set aside for facilities absent impact fees, then we will kill it," he said. "Has anyone done it?"
Sen. Tom Davis, who sponsored the Beaufort County bill, could not attend Wednesday's presentation but said he planned to meet with Eisenberg and other government officials today.
Davis said the home builders' input would help him decide how to approach the issue of funding infrastructure and public service needs in the future.
"It's an important factor in my deliberations," Davis said.
