policybrief.housing
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Leslie Munoz Policy Brief The San Mateo County Board of Supervisors Must Address the Lack of Affordable Housing. Leslie Munoz [email protected] Issue San Mateo County has some of the highest housing costs as well as a serious lack of affordable housing. This combination limits the ability of people to remain living in the county, reducing the availability of qualified workers for local jobs, increasing traffic, constraining economic growth, and threatening families and communities. Without the leadership and commitment of the County, the situation will not improve. Background While attempting to attract economic development, San Mateo County and its cities have not provided housing necessary to support this growth. The Regional Housing Need Allocation establishes how much housing various counties and towns should build. But, San Mateo County has not cut it. The region as a whole built less than half of what had been deemed necessary, only 42%. In addition, long time San Mateo County residents are being displaced as the area becomes increasingly unaffordable. In response to high housing prices, many workers and residents are forced to either live outside the county and face long commutes or stretch themselves financially and pay more than they can afford for housing. Approximately 60% of those employed in San Mateo County commute in from other counties for work, which has led to increased traffic congestion and vehicle- related emissions, not to mention more time parents spend away from their families changing the family dynamic throughout the county. With tech companies such as Facebook, Google, Apple, and Twitter expanding in the Bay Area, it has been inevitable that housing costs in the surrounding areas would rise. Cities in the region, strangled by Proposition 13, the 1978 ballot referendum that froze California’s property tax rates, have adjusted their properties and stepped up efforts to increase their tax base by attracting more commercial, office,
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Transcript of policybrief.housing
LeslieMunozPolicyBrief
TheSanMateoCountyBoardofSupervisorsMustAddresstheLackofAffordableHousing.
Leslie Munoz [email protected]
Issue
SanMateoCountyhassomeofthehighesthousingcostsaswellasaseriouslackofaffordablehousing.Thiscombinationlimitstheabilityofpeopletoremainlivinginthecounty,reducingtheavailabilityofqualifiedworkersforlocaljobs,increasingtraffic,constrainingeconomicgrowth,andthreateningfamiliesandcommunities.WithouttheleadershipandcommitmentoftheCounty,thesituationwillnotimprove.
Background
Whileattemptingtoattracteconomicdevelopment,SanMateoCountyanditscitieshavenotprovidedhousingnecessary
tosupportthisgrowth.
TheRegionalHousingNeedAllocationestablisheshowmuchhousingvariouscountiesandtownsshouldbuild.But,SanMateoCountyhasnotcutit.Theregionasawholebuiltlessthanhalfofwhathadbeendeemednecessary,only42%.Inaddition,longtimeSanMateoCountyresidentsarebeingdisplacedastheareabecomesincreasinglyunaffordable.
Inresponsetohighhousingprices,manyworkersandresidentsareforcedtoeitherliveoutsidethecountyandfacelongcommutesorstretchthemselvesfinanciallyandpaymorethantheycanaffordforhousing.Approximately60%ofthoseemployedinSanMateoCountycommuteinfromothercountiesforwork,whichhasledtoincreasedtrafficcongestionandvehicle-relatedemissions,nottomentionmoretimeparentsspendawayfromtheirfamilieschangingthefamilydynamicthroughoutthecounty.
WithtechcompaniessuchasFacebook,Google,Apple,andTwitterexpandingintheBayArea,ithasbeeninevitablethathousingcostsinthesurroundingareaswouldrise.Citiesintheregion,strangledbyProposition13,the1978ballotreferendumthatfrozeCalifornia’spropertytaxrates,haveadjustedtheirpropertiesandsteppedupeffortstoincreasetheirtaxbasebyattractingmorecommercial,office,
LeslieMunozPolicyBriefandlightindustrialdevelopmentwhiledisregardinghousingdevelopment.Theresult:Aseriousshortageinaffordablehousing.
Recommendations
TheBoardofSupervisorsisuniquelyqualifiedtohelpaddressthissituationtoensureahighqualityoflifeintheCounty.Whileitcannotitselfenactallofthechangesnecessary,itcanplayanimportantleadershiproleandbringalongthecounty’scitiesinasharedeffort.
1)Repurposelandformixedanddensityhousingdevelopments.
Itisunderstoodthattheneedofhousingatallpricelevelsisneeded,butinsteadofbuildingmarketratedevelopmentswithacoupleofunitslistedbelowmarketwhichiscurrentlyapopulartrendallthroughoutthecounty,theCountyshouldbuildmixed
developmentswithbelowmarketandaffordablehousingunits.AffordablehousingorganizationssuchasMid-PeninsulaHousingpartneredwithcompaniessuchasWellsFargoandthecityofSanMateotodevelopaffordableproperties.Bydoingso,wecansharethecostbetweenallstakeholders,providegreateramountofhousingforresidents,promoteahealthycommunitywhereallincomelevelsareconsidered,andmostimportantlyreallymakeabigger,positiveimpactonthelivesofSanMateoCountyresidentsandthefightagainstthecurrenthousingcrisis.Homeownersandresidentswhoarenotfamiliarwiththeunbalanceofworkandhousingintheareawillopposeduetothebeliefsthatifwebuildmorehousing,homeownerswilllosevalueoftheirbiggestinvestment,theirhome.ButaccordingtoAssemblyMember,RichGordon,morehousingatallpricelevelswillnotimpacthomevalues.Changeisinevitableandouronlyoption.Wemustadapttothechangesandhelpallofthosewholiveheretoacceptthatchange.
2)ExploreRentcontrolasatleastashort-termoptionuntilmorehousingisconstructed.
TheSiliconValleyeconomyhascreatedanintensedemandforhousing,drivinglandlordstoraiseprices.Theaveragerateforatwo-bedroom,one-bathroomapartmentinalargeapartmentbuildinginSanMateois$2,593.Landlordsareraisingmonthlyrentsatridiculousandirrationalrates,leavingtenantswithnochoicetomoveout,oftenwithoutoptionsofaffordablehousing.Byregulatingtheamountofrentlandlordscanchargetenants,residentscancontinuelivingintheirhomeswithoutworriesof
LeslieMunozPolicyBriefdisplacement.Opponentsofrentcontrolarguethebestsolutionforthecrisisistobuildmoreaffordablehousing.Althoughthisistrue,wecan’trelyonthisbeingouronlyoption.Itwouldtakedecadestorampupthehousingsupply.Itisasolutionthatoncethedecisionismade,itshouldnottakelongtoseeimmediatechanges.Itiscostefficientsinceittakessomepressureoffthecountybynothavingtoplanandfundforasmuchaffordablehousing.Italsoputstheresponsibilityonlandlordstonottakeadvantageoftenantswhoseincomeisnotreachingtheincreasedrentrates.Itmakeshousingaright,notacommodity.
Only6%ofhousingstockinSanMateoCountywasbuiltafter2000,whilemorethanhalfofthecounty’shousingstockwasbuiltpriorto1980.
3)IncentivizelandlordstoacceptSection8Vouchers
TheHousingAuthorityofSanMateoCountyhasgivenqualifiedresidentsSection8Vouchers,buttheproblemisthatlandlordsarenotacceptingthem,primarilybecausetheycanrentunitsathigherrents.TheCountycanincentivizelandlordstoacceptmoreSection8Vouchersbyofferingpropertytaxcuts.Thiswillpushmorelandlordstohappilyrenttotenantswhoareoflow-income.Doingsowillreducethepressureofbuildingnewhousingdevelopmentsaswellasinsurealreadybuilthousingpropertiesarenotvacantduetohighrents.
Conclusion
Itistimetostoptalkingandstartacting.Ifwecontinuetodelayaction,SanMateoCountywillseethenegativeoutcomesin
LeslieMunozPolicyBriefthefollowingways:
• Thecountywillnotbeabletohousepeoplewhowork,whichwillstifletheeconomicenginethatdrivesthecountiesprosperity.
• Businessesespeciallyindowntownareaswillclose,hinderingthelocaleconomyandcommunityvitality.
• Homelessnesswillincrease,costingthecountymoreforsocialwelfareprograms,puttingmorepressureonalreadyimpactedagencieswhoprovideservicesforhomeless,andhurtingthequalityoflifeinthecounty.
• SanMateoCountywillloseitsdiversity,asonlythosewithhigh-incomeswillbeabletoaffordtolivehere.
