ABOUT RDI MODEL
TCOG Is Excited to Partner with ImpactData Source to Bring the Innovative RDI Model to our Texoma Communities at No Cost!
This tool help local governments answer a critical question before approving new residential development.
The Residential Development Impact Model helps assess housing investments, calculate break-even points, and support smarter, data-driven decisions.
Just enter a few basic details—number of homes, construction cost, and timeline—and the tool will:
- Estimate tax revenue (property, sales, etc.)
- Calculate added costs for services (police, fire, sanitation)
- Show how long it takes to break even
Simply enter your data—our consultant will handle the design and support you in making smart decisions.
What is RDIM?
RDIM is a web-based application designed to assist economic developers and local government officials in evaluating the economic and fiscal impacts of residential development.
How does it work?
Users gather detailed information on prospective projects through electronic questionnaires or direct data entry. The platform uses this data to provide real-time calculations of economic and fiscal impact, including job creation, capital investment, and residential development metrics such as the number of new homes and anticipated relocations. It also estimates tax revenues and government service costs over multiple years, tailored to the community’s specific tax structure and demographics. The platform allows user to model various economic development incentives and calculate the return on investment and payback for these incentives. The platform offers customizable reporting options to help users effectively communicate projected impacts to stakeholders.
What have we done to help get you started?
We’ve prepared a customized Excel spreadsheet based on available data (population, employment, household counts); General Fund expenditures by function (based on the latest publicly available budget or audit); and a default assumption about how each function’s costs are distributed between residential and commercial-related service demand. These costs are then allocated across households and businesses to estimate the average per-household/per-business cost as well as the marginal costs or providing services to additional households and businesses. What results is a set of per-household and per-business costs and projections that you can use to evaluate the impact of new development.
What do we need from you?
First, confirm or revise General Fund expenditures by function. Second, adjust the allocation of costs to residents vs. businesses for each function, if the default assumptions don’t reflect your community’s reality. Third, refine the marginal cost percentages that reflect the share of a function’s costs that would be incurred with growth. Example: Public safety costs may scale more closely with growth (e.g., 40% marginal costs) whereas General Government or Administrative costs may scale less (e.g., 10% or less).
What happens next?
Once submitted your city-specific cost inputs will be integrated in the RDIM to more accurately estimate the net fiscal impact of future housing projects.
Where can you go for help?
If you have any questions about RDIM, the assumptions used, or how to complete the worksheet, please feel free to reach out to Paul Scheuren (paul@impactdatasource.com) at 512-524-0892. He’s happy to assist!
TIMELINE
If you missed your 1st webinar intruding the RDI Model was held on May 29th, 2025, click here to see the recording webinar
Passcode: r.3j5wE#
RESIDENTIAL FUND COST MODEL - INSTRUCTION!
Purpose
The Texoma Council of Governments, in partnership with Impact DataSource, is developing an economic and fiscal impact model to evaluate new residential developments across the region. This Residential Development Impact Model will enable
communities to estimate the return on investment for potential residential projects and establish a break-even timeline for recovering public costs.
With project-specific inputs like the number of new residential units, construction costs, and project timelines, the model will estimate sales tax, property tax, and other revenues for municipalities, counties, and school districts. It will also include estimates of the additional costs that local jurisdictions will incur to serve new households and residents. Ultimately, this tool will help communities better assess the long-term impacts of residential development and make more informed planning decisions.
This model is focused specifically on ongoing operating costs — i.e., the recurring services funded through the general fund — and does not attempt to account for onetime capital costs or infrastructure improvements tied to individual development projects.
What We’ve Prepared for Your Review
For your city, we’ve prepared a customized Excel sheet based on available data, including:
- Population, employment, and household counts
- General fund expenditures by function (based on the latest publicly available budget or audit
- A default assumption about how each function’s costs are distributed between residential and business-related service demand
Additionally, we have allocated these current costs across households and workers to estimate:
- Average per-household and per-worker costs for these city services
- Estimated marginal cost of providing services to additional households or workers as a percent of the current average cost.
The result is a set of per-household and per-worker costs, and a set of marginal cost estimates that can be used to evaluate the service impact of new residential
development proposals.
What We’re Asking You to Do
Please review the worksheet with your city name in the list below and provide updates where appropriate:
(1) Confirm General Fund Expenditure
Confirm or revise general fund expenditures by function. In most cases, we were able to pre-fill this information from publicly available data; in a few instances, we are asking you to provide the details.
(2) Adjust the Allocation of Costs
Adjust the allocation of costs to residents vs. businesses for each function, if the default assumptions don't reflect your city’s reality
(3) Refine the Marginal Cost %
Refine the marginal cost percentages — these reflect the share of a function’s cost that would be incurred with growth. For example:
a. Public Safety costs may scale more closely with growth (e.g., 40% marginal cost)
b. General Government / Administrative costs may not scale significantly (e.g., 10% or less)
How This Will be Used
Once reviewed and finalized, your city-specific cost inputs will be integrated into our Residential Development Impact Model. This will allow the model to more accurately estimate the net fiscal impact of future housing projects by combining:
- Customized marginal costs
- Project-specific revenue estimates (e.g., property tax, sales tax, other applicable revenues.)
Due Date
For a printable version, please click to the file below
Worksheet Template
Please review the worksheet with your city name in the list below and provide updates where appropriate. Then, adjust the cost allocations to residents and refine the marginal cost percentages.
This project was made possible with funding from the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA), with deep gratitude to the Texoma EDD's Consortium, local economic leaders, chambers of commerce, regional planners, the City of Denison, Texoma Workforce Solutions, higher education institutions, Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs), tribal and rural community representatives, and all of our stakeholders, partner organizations, and supporting institutions. We are especially thankful for the dedicated volunteers, including the staff of the Texoma Council of Governments (TCOG), whose time, energy, and commitment helped bring this effort to life. Special thanks to Austin College for generously hosting us and coordinating a warm and welcoming space for this initiative.
Contact: Mailinh Nguyen, Regional PC, Texoma EDD, Texoma Council of Governments (TCOG), email: mnguyen@texoma.cog.tx.us