"Impact fees are a very controversial item ... in many communities. In fact here in Wake County, we just had a debate about those. But ... there is a way to sort of soften the blow of impact fees," says Dr. Walden, a professor in the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics.

"And that is, if the local government that is charging the impact fees doesn’t take the money and simply put it in the general fund so it can be spent anywhere, but instead takes those impact fee revenues and puts them in a special fund that is spent for things that homebuyers can directly see -- like road improvements, sidewalk improvements, in some cases perhaps building new schools.

"Then, actually studies show that, number one, homeowners are much more accepting of impact fees, and, number two, they can actually have positive effects on the local economy.

"That is to say that normally if you impose an impact fee that increases the cost of housing, you may see housing activity slow down in that local county or community. If, however, homeowners can see where impact fees are being spent, and they are being spent on something they value, then again those same studies show that the housing market is not adversely affected."