Friday, August 16, 2013

Developer incentives don't provide enough affordable housing

From the NY Times:

For years, New York City has tried to create more affordable housing by encouraging developers to include apartments for low- and middle-income households in return for being allowed to construct bigger buildings.

But a new report by the office of City Councilman Brad Lander, a Brooklyn Democrat and housing expert, says that that strategy is producing too few affordable units and that the city should require developers to build more of them.

The report, to be released on Friday by Mr. Lander and the Association for Neighborhood and Housing Development, which represents nonprofit groups that promote affordable housing, found that the optional program known as inclusionary zoning had generated about 2,700 permanently affordable units since 2005, or less than 2 percent of all apartments developed in the city during the same period.

Under the program, the city allows developers of market-rate housing to build more units than would normally be allowed when neighborhoods are rezoned for new development, as long as they make 20 percent of the new homes affordable.

Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and the real estate industry have favored the exchange of more density for affordable set-asides on a voluntary basis. But affordable housing advocates and some mayoral candidates argue that the time has come for mandatory programs to make a dent in the housing shortage for low-income New Yorkers.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

WILL PETER VALLONE TELL THIS TO THE ASTORIA HOUSES?

WILL JIMMY VAN BRAMER TELL THIS TO THE QUEENSBRIDGE HOUSES?

Anonymous said...

Messages all in caps hurt my eyes.

Anonymous said...

I don't understand why they keep building coops that require 20 percent down when there are soooo many coops that went into foreclosure that will not be resold anytime soon because no one really has 20 percent to put down. 20 percent on a 200000 dollar coop is 40000!! Not too many people these days have 40000 especially not as a first time home buyer. 10 percent down would even be more realistic.

Anonymous said...

All in all they do need more affordable housing in queens......they should give native born new yorkers first priority though.

Anonymous said...

Someone whines about their eyes about twenty words and ignores 20,000 people about to get the shaft.

Must be a politician.

Anonymous said...

"I don't understand why they keep building coops that require 20 percent down when there are soooo many coops that went into foreclosure that will not be resold anytime soon because no one really has 20 percent to put down. 20 percent on a 200000 dollar coop is 40000!! Not too many people these days have 40000 especially not as a first time home buyer. 10 percent down would even be more realistic."
I think 20% is fine. 10% is realistic but to whom?! ONLY THE BUYER!!! Americans spend more than they make! I think it's sad that people don't even have $40k as a down pmt. Even to a 1st time home buyer. A first time home buyer isn't 18 years old. They should have at least $40k. This is what's wrong with American people! I didn't grow up with silver spoon in my mouth. You work hard and you learn how to move your money. After 5yrs of working you SHOULD have $40k even after allocating your expenses! You should be able to manage your own funds and manage your own expenses and adjust accordingly to save enough. It's virtually impossible not to have $40k! (unless you're a McDonalds worker)

Anonymous said...

"After 5yrs of working you SHOULD have $40k even after allocating your expenses!"
I guess you live in your mothers basement. Fool.