Friday, September 4, 2009
Stalled housing may stay that way
Turning Stalled Projects Into Moderate-Income Housing
By Jennifer 8. Lee, NY Times
City and state officials are trying to turn half-filled and half-finished developments into moderate income housing, but the programs are proving difficult to create.
With budgets tighter than ever, there are few financial incentives to entice developers and lenders.
There are the practical challenges of selling apartments to buyers for far less than what their neighbors paid.
One plan, still in its early stages, would offering homebuyers state-financed mortgages for units in buildings where some have already been sold to market-rate buyers. Another program would set aside $5 million for $40,000 grants to 125 homebuyers. And Assemblyman Hakeem Jeffries introduced legislation on Tuesday to help developers refinance troubled loans worth up to $150 million in exchange for turning some of their units into moderate-income housing. [NYT]
1 comment:
New York City runs up against the realities of basic mathematics. You cannot build 100% of the housing for 5% of the population and expect it to be rented or bought.
The free market, everyone's gospel until it rears up and bites them in the ass.
Did you know that "market rate" doesn't always mean expensive and exclusive?
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