MÁS
Quarterly Magazine by MásDesign
your source for accessible urban planning & Design concepts
A F F O R D A B L E H O U S I N G Explore needed changes to policy, design & construction. WINTER | 2021
I find Winter to be a time of reflection, a time where you think about concepts and concerns more deeply. This ambience to Winter is largely the reason why I selected the theme for this issue of MÁS: AFFORDABLE HOUSING. Affordable housing is the kind of topic (more importantly, the kind of design and development in reality) that warrants deep thinking and a comprehensive practice. Affordable housing requires mindfulness and a well-rounded understanding of the people and the lives being housed and the communities being developed inside and outside of this housing. I have come across various perceptions of affordable housing being considered apart from traditional residential design or treated as temporary, transient housing. However, what may not immediately come to mind is the fact that for multitudes of people, affordable housing can be a more permanent situation. With this in mind, designing and developing affordable housing benefits if consistently approached as a more valuable, enduring, and essential asset within our urban environments. Imagine the journeys, the routines, the experiences of the people living within housing - the users, the inhabitants, of housing really steer the use of space and the shaping of space into individual interpretations of home. Alongside the individual resident is the greater neighborhood or community that is connected via structure and infrastructure, meaning housing encompasses various levels and degrees of life and activity within our cities. Accordingly, affordable housing requires holistic thinking, execution, and maintenance, especially in the realistic context of affordable housing failing to actually be affordable for most people in need. I have lived in affordable housing myself and have experienced its pitfalls - there is a tremendous amount of work that needs to be done to connect people in need of housing with truly affordable options. This Winter, I encourage you to take a moment to reflect on the standing issues within the urban planning and design fields and hope this issue of MÁS will direct you toward reflecting on affordable housing (its failure to provide for those most in need of it and its negative socioeconomic characteristics) as well, for the lack-there-of and/or construction of poor affordable housing has and will continue to severely impact communities and lives.
When AFFORDABLE HOUSING is failed, lives are failed. ~ MÁsDesign
Contents 6
Rooting the Theme
12
The Socioeconomics of Affordable Housing
18
Guest Perspective
22
Application - MÁS Solutions
30
Concluding Thoughts
34
Call to Action
38
Sketch Look Book
40
Word on the Design Street
42
Resources
Appreciating your readership as ever,
MaryDena Apodaca MásDesign Founder | Creator of Más
Más is published quarterly by MásDesign. subscribe for free at www.másdesign.com. EDITORIAL Editor in Chief MaryDena Apodaca
Main Content Creator & Designer MaryDena Apodaca
Article Contributor Dan Cahalane If interested in contributing to a future issue of MÁS, please reach out via www.másdesign.com.
Más
másdesign envision affordable housin
ns a future where ng is standard.
R O O T I N G
The Theme
affordable hou
Affordable housing seems to be inherently complex due to the very definition of affordable. What does affordable mean? Entail? And, according to whom? Well - a specific definition of affordable (despite the endless possibilities and variations that exist) has been selected and applied to the housing market for decades now. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has been the source of what we presently know of as affordable housing. HUD defines affordable as “housing on which the occupant is paying no more than 30 percent of gross income for housing costs, including utilities”. In giving credit where credit is due, HUD has led the concepts and policies oriented around providing greater housing diversity and options for people of different socioeconomic backgrounds and that, in itself, has been a step in the right direction of ensuring people’s base rights and needs are not being ignored and made nonexistent. However, HUD’s 30 percent definition has faced immense setbacks and the affordability of housing for those most in need has become unaffordable. The 30 percent definition has been proving to not necessarily be the most accurate nor viable in understanding affordability. Affordable housing exists for the very purpose (at least when initially conceived) of providing housing (which is a necessity) to those with few resources i.e. low-income households. Essentially, affordable housing is about securing housing for everyone, regardless of socioeconomic background. Unfortunately, this has become more of an ideal outcome rather than a reality when we look at the actual performance of affordable housing. The National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC) publishes a report every year known as Out of Reach - this report researches and analyzes data from all the major sources (HUD, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, and the U.S. Census Bureau) in an effort to highlight the nation's failure to provide affordable housing options in actuality. In Out of Reach 2021, the NLIHC found a general reflection of the affordable housing reality in the US: “Extremely low-income households account for only 25% of all renters, yet they account for 72% of all severely housing cost-burdened renter households” (Out of Reach 2021 report, p. 8). If we choose to stand confidently next to HUD's definition of affordability, why has/is that 30% failing to capture significant percentages of eligible households? Clearly there is a massive discrepancy between the standard understanding of affordable housing and the realistic ability to afford housing.
6
| MÁS by MásDesign
using Affordable Housing Contains Inherent Inequality Housing affordability simultaneously contains an inherent inequality - it is proven in housing affordability's history and present. There is no refuting the income and racial inequality that is deeply rooted to housing affordability in today's age and ignorance is not an excuse. Affordable housing afflicts people of low income and color the most (both forms of inequality are examined in depth on pages 12-15) and injustice walks alongside the failed development of affordable housing projects. We need to cease being in denial (in both our time and action) and focus our collective efforts on the realities and problems of affordable housing. How do we set forth a new path and approach that will lead to versatile, durable, dignified, and sustainable housing for our community members in housing need? Moreover, how do we achieve this new type of housing whilst diminishing racial and income disparities as well? MásDesign, as an urban planning/design organization and via MÁS, hopes to explore and put into action the most feasible and life-enriching solutions.
Lives are on the line in seeking basic shelter... This is, ultimately, the major failure in affordable housing. | Másdesign
Federal understanding of affordable housing
30% or less of income
Winter, 2021 |
7
key terms to know | in affordable housing
AMI
Average Median Income
Used to determine affordable housing eligibility.
Incomes at or below 30% of AMI.
FMR
Fair Market Rent
Renters' estimated hourly wage by region. Based on data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Adjusted using the ratio of renter income to overall household income. 8
| MÁS by MásDesign
ELI
Extremely Low Income
40th percentile of gross rents. Only reflects cost of housing and utilities. Set annually by HUD. Used to develop payment standards for Housing Choice Voucher Program & Section 8 Contracts.
Renter Wage
Annual
Average household expenses Consumer Expenditures Report, 2020 | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
ave. annual expenditures
food
$7,316
$61,334 healthcare
$5,177
Rented dwellings
$4,408
Owned dwellings
$7,473
Housing
$21,409
public/other
$263
education
Transportation
$9,826
vehicle purchases
$1,271
$4,523
Winter, 2021 |
9
the act
realistic parameters
What does it take to connect the average person to housing in 2021?
?
$20.40/hr wage $20.40/hr wage is the 2021 National Housing Wage for a one-bedroom rental home. Source: The NLIHC | Out of Reach 2021. 10 | MÁS by MásDesign
tuality
the actuality is affordable housing is not affordable for multitudes of eligible households across the us.
Present Federal Minimum Wage is $7.25
If you're making the federal minimum wage, you're making 65% less (approx.) than what is needed to rent a one-bedroom unit... Winter, 2021 | 11
The Socioeconomics of Affordable Housing
income & racial inequality
"...the affordable housing s low incomes." | The NLIHC,
consequences to shortage
"85% of extremely low-inc renters could not afford thei and 70% were spending mor half of their incomes on hou costs" (NLIHC, Out of Reach p.8).
Pre pandemic 37 affordable, rental homes available for every 100 renter households with extremely low incomes (NLIHC, Out of Reach 2021, p.8).
shortage
evidence of low w affordability pro
Median asking rent for apart for multi-family constructed b July 2018 and June 2019 was month. This rent is far more th low-wage workers can afford 32% of all renters in 2019 coul this level of rent" (NLIHC, Out o 2021, p.8).
low-income in greatest need 12 | MÁS by MásDesign
shortage is predominantly a problem for renters with extremely Out of Reach 2021
s
come ir rent, re than using h 2021,
wage oblem
Graph Credit: The NLIHC | Out of Reach 2021.
tments between $1,620/ han what - "Only ld afford of Reach
$
$$$
income inequality Winter, 2021 | 13
The Socioeconomics of Affordable Housing
income & racial inequality
"Housing affordability for lo | The NLIHC, Out of Reach 20
Housing affordability is tied to income inequality, which is simultaneously tied to racial inequality.
20% of Black households, 18% of American Indian or Alaska Native households, 14% Latino households, and 10% of Asian households are extremely low-income renters, compared to just 6% white households are renters with extremely low-incomes (NLIHC, Out of Reach 2021, p.8).
"In 2019, 28% of white households were renters, compared with 58% Black households and 54% of Latino households" (NLIHC, Out of Reach 2021, p.7).
people of color in greatest ne 14 | MÁS by MásDesign
ow-wage workers disproportionately impacts people of color." 021
eed
Graph Credit: The NLIHC | Out of Reach 2021.
Looking at the 10th percentile (or lowest-paid 10%), white workers earn more than Black and Latino workers. This is the case across all income levels: "The median black worker and Latino worker earn 24% and 26% less than the median white worker" (NLIHC, Out of Reach 2021, p.6).
racial inequality Winter, 2021 | 15
“Housing is absolutely essential to human flourishing. Without stable shelter, it all falls apart.” ~ Matthew Desmond
G Perspective u e s t
affordable housing policy discussion tends to focus too much on single family zoning. consequently, Housing policy overlooks two key areas to expand the number of affordable housing units available – incentive alignment and transaction costs. Incentive Alignment
Many municipalities try to incentivize developers to build or pay for new units through density bonuses and payment in lieu of construction for density bonuses. These policies are not effective because the density bonuses provided, typically between 10-20% additional units, for affordable housing are not enough to entice developers to build new units. The payment in lieu of construction fee is frequently far below what it would cost the municipality to build affordable housing units or the developer, which is why most developers opt to pay the fee. Fee plus density bonus expands the total housing supply slightly but doesn’t result in the construction of more affordable housing units available for those who need them. I recommend that policy makers consider increasing the size of the density bonus substantially to make it almost stupid for developers not to build the affordable units and raise the payment in lieu of fees to be greater than the cost of building the units themselves. For example, providing a 100% density bonus with a 25% affordable units requirement of total units combined with a payment option greater than the cost of new affordable housing units. This is a better alignment of private sector incentives and policy outcomes, as the developer takes on the substantial benefit of significantly more market rate units in exchange for either the construction of more units or a payment equal to construction costs for more units (reference the table below for more detail). Density Bonuses
in order for affordable housing to expand, we need better alignment between private sector incentives & policy outcomes. 18 | MÁS by MásDesign
Housing Policy developers +
Ways to Expand Affordable Housing
hud
+
the pha
= key players
Transaction Costs The other overlooked aspect of housing policy comes in the form of transaction costs; more specifically, the transaction costs involved in certifying Federally-acceptable affordable housing units. Section 8 housing vouchers are a fantastic solution to affordable housing. Renters pick where they want to live and only pay up to 30% of their income while the government pays the rest of the market rate rent to the landlord. The issue with the Section 8 housing program are the high and variable transaction costs necessary in getting a unit certified as meeting HUD housing quality standards. This requires completing an inspection to ensure that the unit is livable, which is a necessary part of providing high quality affordable housing. However, the inspection standards vary state to state and by the Public Housing Authority (PHA). The timing of re-inspections varies from place to place. Since this information is diffused, it’s not easy to find applicable information to get certified to accept Section 8 housing vouchers, which also makes it difficult for the public to understand and allows for NIMBYs to claim apartments that are going to become a blight on the neighborhood. Together, these issues increase the transaction costs for a landlord through time, recertifications, uncertainty for certification, and uncertainty in entitlement approvals – decreasing the potential supply for rental units available for Section 8 vouchers. I have two simple solutions that could reduce the transaction costs of the Section 8 program. First, municipalities can require all new housing units meet the HUD inspection checklist as part of the Certificate of Occupancy process. This can and should be framed as ensuring housing quality across the region for all residents. This would automatically increase the potential supply of units eligible for Section 8 housing vouchers and potentially reduce the amount of displacement caused by gentrification in urban areas. Second, HUD and the PHA's need to standardize the timing and framework of the inspection process nationwide can be addressed with one reputable website that provides all necessary landlord information. This would make it easier to understand and become a part of the program. Furthermore, this could be an opportunity to increase the time between inspections from once a year to every other year in a bid to reduce inspection transaction costs.
$
- Dan Cahalane, MCRP | MBA policy
Cost
housing
Dan Cahalane is a practicing Planner in the U.S. with public policy, economic policy, and design experience. Winter, 2021 | 19
A F F O R D A B L E H O U S
I
N G
also me
eans
c o m m u n i t y
APPLICATION
Más solutio
Minimum wage has tremendous impact on a person's ability to a Minimum wage builds a person's income - a low minimum wage As proven on pages 10-11 in reference to the actuality of housing affordability, minimum wage in the US has a fundamental influence on a person's financial ability to afford the few options that exist in the affordable housing market. With the present Federal Minimum Wage set at $7.25 and the 2021 National Housing Wage being $20.40, you can begin to grasp how very unaffordable housing is for multitudes based on wages, which essentially equates to income. The NLIHC | Out of Reach 2021.
22 | MÁS by MásDesign
ons
afford housing. Why?? e means a low income.
minimum wage as housing policy
key minimum wage facts
LABOR
11 of the 20 largest occupations in the US pay a lower median hourly wage than what a full-time worker needs to earn to afford a modest apartment at the national fair market rent (NLIHC, Out of Reach 2021, p.5).
REGION
In only 7% of all US counties (equates to 218 out of more than 3,000 counties nation wide - Puerto Rico not included) can a full-time, minimum-wage worker afford a one-bedroom rental at fair market rent (NLIHC, Out of Reach 2021, p.4).
PATTERNS
In 45 states and the District of Columbia, median gross rents increased faster than the median renter income between 2001 and 2018" (NLIHC, Out of Reach 2021, p.4).
Winter, 2021 | 23
APPLICATION
Más solutio
If affordability, in the affordable housing context, is defined by m we will likely see realistic and attainable housing options across
urgency for solutions More than 40% of wage earners can't afford a one-bedroom rental home. | NLIHC, Out of Reach 2021, p.5 60% of wage earners can't afford a two-bedroom rental home. | NLIHC, Out of Reach 2021, p.5
Minimum w as housi has great p solution other equa solutions o develop
obvious problem of affordability
Housing is literally out of reach for multitudes of people. 24 | MÁS by MásDesign
minimum w policy wil and aff housing
ons
minimum wage, then s all income levels.
wage treated ing policy potential as a (alongside ally important on the design & pment side).
wage housing ll likely yield ford more g options.
minimum wage as housing policy The Solution MásDesign proposes rethinking the 30% definition of affordability: looking at minimum wage instead and directly setting rents according to minimum wages (across all regions and within each state). Minimum wages vary; therefore, rent levels (especially affordable housing rent levels) should also vary in a way that reflects what a person actually earns and can, accordingly, handle in terms of expenses. Minimum wage =
1 The New Definition of Affordable 2 The Setting of Realistic Variability in Rents
3 Housing Policy & Not Solely Treated as Economic Policy
4 A Stronger Indicator of People's Spending Capacity
5 A More Accurate Reflection of the Complexity Behind People's Expenditures & Earnings
6 The Elimination of the Inherent, One-Size-Fits-All Flaws of the 30% Definition
Winter, 2021 | 25
Más solutio
APPLICATION
In addition to policy changes, the design and development appr housing contains immense space for change. "Too expensive" is In terms of the design and development of affordable housing, there exists an all-too-familiar excuse: "It's too expensive." The structural, material, and time costs associated with designing and constructing massive-scale housing has posed as a tremendous hindrance to the existence of more affordable housing and higher-quality affordable housing. With that reality, an acute question comes to mind: How do we combat both the factual expense and excuse of expense in a way that better facilitates the development of affordable housing and provides affordable housing options in greater abundance? Although few and far between, a handful of noteworthy architects and urban designers are thinking about innovative ways to approach both the layout and construction of affordable housing, thereby, stifling the common "No it's too expensive" challenge.
PRECEDENT
ALEJANDRO ARAVENA
Open Source 26 | MÁS by MásDesign
| Chilean architect | executive director of elemental, architecture group | pritzker Prize winner for open source design
ons
roach to affordable s no excuse.
open sourcing design
open source = design as public knowledge design innovation Open source design means design that is made free for public use by the original copyright owner or creator. The point behind Aravena's approach to open source design is to develop low-cost, incremental housing. Via open source, Aravena provides free, downloadable designs for affordable housing projects. Simultaneously, the open source approach provides governments and developers with materials and tools this helps counter the "too expensive" argument. Elemental's Quinte Monroy development in Chile in 2004 launched their innovative design with Aravena as their Executive Director. On a small budget, Elemental built the frame and main, essential spaces for each house. The remainder was left for residents to complete over time. Overall, Elemental's mission is to reduce poverty, engage local communities in stages of the design process and the design itself, and provide resources to make affordable housing less expensive and more sustainable. Winter, 2021 | 27
Más solutio
APPLICATION
We must open our policy, design, and construction eyes, see the already available, and strive to better affordable housing develo
"We hope we will be able to rule out one mor for why markets and governments don't mo direction to tackle the challenge of massiv urbanisation." ~ elemental
+
OPEN SOURCE DESIGN MEANS HOUSING PLANS ARE MADE FREE AND ACCESSIBLE TO THE PUBLIC, FOR PUBLIC USE. 28 | MÁS by MásDesign
Monterey Development by Elemental (Now Open So
ons
e innovation that is opment.
re excuse ove in this ve rapid
ource) | Mexico, 2010 | Photo Credit: Dezeen.
open sourcing design The Solution MásDesign proposes more innovative approaches to the design and construction of affordable housing. With the example set by Elemental and Alejandro Aravena via open sourcing low-cost housing, we can see the possibilities and, more importantly, the feasibility of designing and building affordable housing with less material and cost. Regardless of the common and unique parameters designers and developers must work within, the "too expensive" excuse is proving to be only that, an excuse. Open sourcing affordable housing designs would mitigate the cost of construction in time and materials and would open the market to other design contributors with more effective solutions to offer. open source design = 1 Free Design to Encourage More Affordable Housing Projects
2 A Truly Public Asset
FREE DESIGN IS NOT TABOO
3 Public Accessibility to Successful & Feasible (Low-Cost) Design
4 Opening More Investment in Affordable Housing
5 A Sound Base Design That Can
Be Modified to Specific Regulations, Building Codes, Etc. Winter, 2021 | 29
c
oncluding Thoughts affordable housing With proposed changes to the understanding of affordability in economic terms, the glaring facts that prove affordable housing options in the US are far from actually being affordable for eligible households (especially for those making the lowest incomes), the inherent income and racial inequality tied to the present approach to affordable housing, the guest perspectives providing reflection from the individual's standpoint, and the exploration of more innovative and sustainable solutions, MásDesign concludes with an eagerness for change.
Affordable housing in the US is failing (and has failed) to provide shelter for those it is explicitly meant to support. Change is required across the board in policy, design, construction, and community. The entire approach and the entire set of contributors must be reconsidered and open to different methods and more versatility - it is imperative, for we are referring to the housing of lives. Every life has a right to basic essentials - shelter is one of them. If we continue to fail affordable housing, we will continue failing lives and communities. More significantly, we will continue to fail and hinder specific lives and communities that have been trapped in the failures of affordable housing for decades. It is time for being up to date on socioeconomic data, astute and relevant in our writing and application of policy, proactive and serviceable in our design, ingenious with our use of time and materials, and adaptive and flexible in our overall execution.
It is time for affordable housing change change that generates a sustainably just and positive impact on people's lives. 30 | MÁS by MásDesign
in order for affordable housing to succeed, versatility must be applied to its policy, design, and development. cease applying uniformity to an inherently complex matter
$
Re-Define Affordability In Realistic Terms
| What actually equates to affordable, especially for those making minimum wage and who are in the greatest need of affordable housing? | The present 30%, across-the-board definition of affordability is becoming more and more irrelevant and detrimental to the development of affordable housing.
Change Housing Policy & Regulation
| More effectively align housing and economic policies (e.g. MásDesign's proposed minimum wage as housing policy). | If planning policy and regulation wish to encourage and support affordable housing, then update local codes and regulation in order to make affordable housing more feasible.
Innovate Design & Construction
| Explore the priority of making the design and construction of affordable housing lower in cost, thereby mitigating the "too expensive" excuse that too often stifles affordable housing projects. | Learn from present precedents (e.g. Aravena and Elemental) and consider new, innovative techniques in design and construction, such as open source design and incremental design - both utilize more egalitarian methods and provide governments, developers, and members of the public with the tools and resources to build housing at low cost. Winter, 2021 | 31
MAIN OBJECTIVES OF AFFORDABLE HO 1
Connect People to Housing
2
4
Provide Community Building Opportunities
+
32 | MÁS by MásDesign
Keep Connection betwe
+
OUSING | ACCORDING TO MÁSDESIGN 3
Provide Diverse Housing Options
een People and Housing Sustainable
Time
5
Build Spaces Designed for Life & Dignity
Winter, 2021 | 33
Call to actio
Affordable housing has faced and contin obstacles, and, with lives on the line see urgency in making affordable housing a those most in need is high.
For this Call to Action, MásDesign encou following in your approach to affordabl
Really familiarize yourself with US Ce Statistics, and HUD data, as related to
Understand the socioeconomic, polic that have impeded the affordability o
Go back to the drawing board in term materials that go into affordable hou There’s a need for innovation in unit l
Think of ways to mitigate the “it’s too directly (beyond common methods to down existing buildings). Be truly pro change of all changes and help elimin
I NNOV A T E 34 | MÁS by MásDesign
on
nues to face major eking basic shelter, the actually affordable to
urages you to try the le housing:
ensus, US Bureau of Labor o affordable housing.
cy, and design factors of housing.
ms of the designs and using construction. layout and options.
THE R E I S NE E D
o expensive” obstacle oday, such as filtering oactive and introduce the nate the excuse of expense.
THE A P P ROA CH Winter, 2021 | 35
"The root cause of the housing problem in this country is the large and growing gap between the cost of decent housing and household income, particularly renter household income... The housing crisis among america's poor is real. For most of these housholds, housing costs are increasingly out of reach." | Excerpt from the 1989 Out of Reach Issue; Prepared by Cushing Dolbeare
sketch look book
Key Design Elements for Affor
Copyright © 2021 by MásDesign. All rights reserved. Please do not copy in any digital or physical form or via any digit
1
Essential Features for Affordable Housing Communal, Natural Space e.g. a rooftop garden/courtyard
Individual Outdoor Access e.g. a Juliet balcony Proper Fire Egress e.g. a proper fire escape separate from access points
Character on the Facade e.g. mark the neighborhood and community’s character; design a facade that residents resonate with
Multiple Access Points with Varying Modes of Access e.g. one entrance leads to stairs, another leads to an elevator, etc.
38 | MÁS by MásDesign
Communal Space Connected to Well-Defined Entrances the Street Network with Homely Features e.g. lighting, plantings, framing
rdable Housing - MásDesign Concepts
tal or physical method without permission from MásDesign. If interested in any of the designs, please contact MásDesign at www.másdesign.com.
2
Communal Space Concept for Affordable Housing Shared, communal spaces are very essential to affordable housing. Why should low-income housing lack the assets that have become bread and butter to higher-income housing? Designing and incorporating courtyards, gardens, walkways, pocket parks, etc. into affordable housing projects is tantamount, as an asset and community source for residents. Spaces that encourage gathering and are accessible to all residents often result in community building. Affordable housing, like any other housing, has a right to community development. The design of the affordable housing itself should have mechanisms and features that foster community among the residents as well as between the housing area and the greater environment it sits within. As illustrated in the sketch above, the design of these shared spaces are most successful as a community asset when well-rounded. They contain seating, green infrastructure and/or plants, lighting, and a connection to the housing itself via a strategic location (for instance, a central location accessed by multiple pathways).
Winter, 2021 | 39
Word on the Design Street
40 | MÁS by MásDesign
Current events, News, Views Do you enjoy reading up on urban planning, urban design, or general design news? MásDesign does, so here is a small scoop on what is going on in the greater environment with regards to AFFORDABLE HOUSING.
whyy [pbs/npr] | plan philly “Philly passes bill that aims to encourage affordable housing in desirable neighborhoods” By Aaron Moselle | September 30, 2021 https://whyy.org/articles/philly-passes-bill-that-aims-to-encourage-affordable-housing-indesirable-neighborhoods/
Key Words: developer dominance; common, detrimental setbacks Philadelphia City Council has passed a bill in hopes of encouraging developers to build more affordable housing in "desirable areas". This bill modifies the city's existing Mixed-Income Housing Bonus program, which allows developers to construct buildings larger than permitted under zoning law if they incorporate affordable housing units or contribute to the city's Housing Trust Fund. This fund allocates money to new affordable housing projects and the renovation and/or maintenance of existing housing. Unfortunately, the Mixed-Income Housing Bonus program has seen fewer than 24 affordable housing units built by developers since being launched in 2018. Most developers opted to contribute to the Housing Trust Fund instead. The bill recently passed by the City Council only applies to developers planning to build properties with at least 10 units. Additionally, developers planning to build properties with less than 10 units will not receive mixed-use bonuses if they choose to contribute to the Housing Trust Fund instead of building affordable housing. MásDesign found this news from Philadelphia noteworthy, as it demonstrates very common yet detrimental obstacles affordable housing faces in the context of developer dominance. A wide variety of incentives have been offered to developers to encourage affordable housing projects, and most have resulted in economic loopholes or developers not grasping the value of affordable housing beyond short-term profit. However, this news also serves to remind the impacts that derive from policy (e.g. zoning) paired with these incentives and how any dissonance between them just further hinders the building of affordable housing. 'We're trying to force the issue of affordability. Having affordability in our neighborhoods should no longer be up to the whim and desire of developers. And we're using policy to force that issue.' ~ Jamie Gauthier, Councilmember Winter, 2021 | 41
R E S O U R C E S
Whether you are looking for precedents, researching methods, MásDesign has you covered in terms of resources. To pair with t affordable housing, check out the list below for top, comprehe organizations leading the way in terms of housing policy and de resources for socioeconomic and housing data.
Public initiative national low income housing coalition (NLIHC) Public Policy & Public Advocacy | Public Resources, Policy Shaping & Social Justice Related to Low-Income Housing https://nlihc.org/
planning & design elemental | alejandro aravena Planning & Architecture | Open Source Design for Low-Cost Housing & Incremental Housing http://www.elementalchile.cl/en/
woodpecker wpc Building Material Innovation | Affordable, Low-Cost Housing Design & Construction https://woodpecker.com.co/
42 | MÁS by MásDesign
or curious about visual styles, this MÁS issue centered around ensive affordable housing companies/ esign innovation, as well as credible
policy & statistics u.s. bureau of labor statistics Economic & Social Data/Statistics |
https://www.bls.gov/
u.s. census bureau Demographics |
https://www.census.gov/
u.s. dept. of housing & urban dev. Affordable Housing Policy & Data |
https://www.hud.gov/
Winter, 2021 | 43
policy makers city planners
designers the public
developers
| we must all come together & address the fails in affordable housing. ~ MÁS Winter, 2021 | 45
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