Charlotte's 2019 Affordable Housing Report (SB316)
Senate Bill 316 required municipalities with a population of at least 90,000 to submit a report to the NCGA Committee and Division by October 1, 2019.
This report was to include:
The amount of affordable housing units currently in use in the municipality that are subsidized by local government revenue, tax credits or under local government oversight.
Detail the strategies the municipalities are employing to limit the cost of privately developed housing.
And include how the municipality is engaging in the 12 activities addressed in the bill.
Affordable Rental Units
Report Highlights
Rezoning for density necessary to assure the production of affordable housing:
Charlotte
Many Charlotte rezoning requests are for residential projects with increased density. For some of these requests, a commitment to provide moderate income housing is included.
Raleigh
In 2013, the City adopted a new Unified Development Ordinance (“UDO”), which made it substantially easier to develop diverse housing types. Multifamily and commercial districts were replaced with new mixed-use districts, nearly all of which permit housing as a principal permitted use. Density in these districts is unlimited; development intensity is regulated by the permitted number of building stories, which can range from 3 to 40.
Considering subsidies to waive construction-related fees:
Charlotte
Charlotte has not implemented this concept.
Raleigh
To date, such subsidies have been indirect and limited to gap financing in Low Income Housing Tax Credit projects where such fees are a part of the total development costs and in the provisions of loans to individual homeowners rehabilitating their homes.
Encouraging the rehabilitation of existing uninhabitable housing into moderate income housing:
Charlotte
Charlotte operates an extensive housing rehabilitation program with the goal of preserving affordable housing assets, facilitating healthy living environments and assisting seniors to age in place. Programs include a moderate repair program for homeowners, and funding for multifamily rehabilitation with existing lead hazards. Each year, the City and its partners provide services for an average of 160 households.
Raleigh
Given supply and demand and other market factors at work, there are very few uninhabitable housing units within Raleigh that are suitable candidates for rehabilitation. Most often, deteriorated stock is redeveloped by the private sector or in some instances, acquired by the City for redevelopment into affordable or moderate-income housing.
Read the Full Reports
“A study by NMHC and the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) found that regulations account for an average of 32.1 percent of multifamily development costs and that in a quarter of cases, that number can reach as high as 42.6 percent. Similarly, NAA’s Barriers to U.S. Apartment Construction Index found that complex approval systems are correlated to affordability issues – especially in complex urban markets.” - National Apartment Association Press Release