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Introduction:
Defining
Affordable and Workforce Housing
Use
of the word "affordable"in reference to housing is imprecise
at best. It can be confusing and misleading. It can refer to:
- Moderately
priced dwelling units that families earning 60 to 120 percent
of the area median income (AMI) can purchase
- Public
housing for low-income people earning below 50 percent of AMI.
- Housing
that is subsidized through the use of Section 8 vouchers or low-income
tax credits, designed for families earning 50 to 60 percent of
AMI who cannot afford market rate housing.
Fannie
Mae's definition of affordable housing:
- At
least 20% of all units must have restricted rents affordable to
households
earning no more than 50% of AMI OR at least 40% of all units have
restricted rents affordable to households earning no more than 60%
of AMI OR there is a compelling public purpose "namely
continued affordability" which if furthered by the property.
Urban
Land Institute's definition of workforce housing:
- Affordable
to households of low, moderate and above moderate income in a
range of 60 -120% of AMI
Housing
Land Trust Fund of San Francisco Bay definition of workforce
housing:
- Housing
that is affordable to private and public sector workers with incomes
at or below that of teachers and public safety workers.
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In
this report, affordable housing refers to mixed income housing
development that includes all income categories: very low,
low, moderate, above moderate and market rate housing. Workforce
housing refers to mixed income housing that excludes very
low income households.
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Affordable
vs. Workforce Semantics
Objections
to affordable housing are not limited to very low income housing.
Proposed housing for households at 50 or 60 percent of median income
draw critics as well. To counter such objections, the term"work-force
housing" is often used to convey that it is working families
that are being served, not people on public assistance.
Affordable
Housing: Subsidy or Social Equity?
One
of the gravest difficulties in producing affordable housing is that
the demand for housing assistance in the U.S. outstrips federal
and state funding by three to one. One reason for the limited funding
is a lack of general public support for low-income housing programs.
In comparison, housing subsidies for middle- and upper-income families
in the form of deductions for mortgage interest, property taxes
and capital gains enjoy broad support. These deductions total about
$2.5 billion in reduced tax revenues, or roughly three times the
budget for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
(HUD).
(Source:
Millennial Housing Commission, 2002, Table 8).
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03.27.03
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