Inclusionary Housing Bylaws | SEB Housing

 While 80% of Massachusetts cities and towns voted last November to save 40B, it is clear from my experience that most suburban communities don’t like it and would rather have developers use their own inclusionary bylaws to create affordable housing. Having researched many of these bylaws, I have to conclude that the economic realities of developing mixed income housing has been ignored in drafting these bylaws. In order to stimulate or induce affordable housing development in lieu of any “as-of-right” development options, there needs to be an economic or financial incentive, yet most inclusionary bylaws totally fail in this regard. The Governor’s “Smart Growth Tool Kit” has developed a model inclusionary bylaw which allows 2 additional market rate units to be built for every affordable unit required. This makes sense to me as the economic loss of creating an additional affordable unit can only be offset by adding 2 more market units (in some communities with lower land values and lower market prices, a 1-for-1 ratio might work). I don’t know any suburban bylaws which allow this level of density bonus. Without viable incentives, it is not surprising that so few affordable units have been produced statewide using inclusionary bylaws in the past 10-15 years.

Why are these bylaws weak?? DENSITY rears its ugly head again; the suburbs want single family homes on decent sized lots; sure, you can cluster, they say, but only by providing the same number of units as allowed by right. It doesn’t work…

We know, based on the MIT study of a few years ago, that the average vacant lot in the Boston suburbs is zoned for 1 acre at a minimum. With home ownership inevitably on the decline because of the tightening of mortgage requirements, we are not going to see single family homes on acre lots in high demand and whatever that demand may be, it will not address the housing needs of the majority of working households.

So, if we are going to be serious about addressing our housing needs, and if 40B is not viewed as a “friendly” tool, then make the inclusionary bylaws work. (And making them work for rental housing is another issue entirely)

SHOW ME AN INCLUSIONARY BYLAW WITH PROPER ECONOMIC INCENTIVES!

This blog "Inclusionary Housing Bylaws" originally posted HERE.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

What Assets are considered under the 40B Housing System?

Image
Massachusetts is an expensive residential market, so Chapter 40B was added to the Affordable Housing Law system much time before. The goal was to make 10% of the community's houses affordable for the Massachusetts residents. The process consists of devoting almost 20% to 25% of the units to low to moderate-income families. These affordable units include townhouses, single-family homes, condominiums, and duplexes. These units can be sold as new units or can be resold by the homeowners who are planning to move to other houses or cities. But, before taking any home under Chapter 40B, you must take advice from the 40B Compliance consultant . The consultant will guide you about the required guidelines and assets that are required under 40B. Assets Considered under Chapter 40B Under Massachusetts Comprehensive Permit Law or Chapter 40B, the shortage of housing societies was addressed in the city. This Anti-Snob Zoning Act reduces the unnecessary barriers through an approval process
Read more

Affordable Housing Lotteries Services | SEB Housing

Image
SEB Housing has been a leader in the affordable housing field in Massachusetts for over 40 years. We have been involved in marketing and executing affordable housing lotteries and lease-ups and sales of more affordable units than any other lottery agent in the state. We are an Affordable Housing Consulting group that works with developers and management teams and applicants in the tasks associated with the housing. To know more, contact us at 617-782-2300.
Read more