“Less than 10% of rental units are affordable to renter households earning 50% of median renter income (MRI), according to new research released today by Freddie Mac (OTCQB: FMCC) Multifamily. Building on last year’s ‘Diminishing Affordability – Inescapable’ report, the new study isolates renter income to more accurately capture the availability of affordable housing to individual renters.”
This is the first of a five-part series entitled “Why Buildings Matter” presented by Chris Mathis of Mathis Consulting Company (MC2). In this episode, Chris provides an excellent overview of why energy-efficient buildings are so important.
By Collin Huguley – Staff Writer, Charlotte Business Journal
“A Charlotte developer is moving forward with a pair of workforce housing projects in Rock Hill after receiving key approvals.
Dunbar Place Apartment Homes
Tartan Residential, a Charlotte-based developer of workforce
and affordable housing, is planning two projects in Rock Hill: Johnston Farms
Apartment Homes and Dunbar Place Apartment Homes. Rezoning requests for both
projects were approved by Rock Hill City Council on Monday evening.
The larger of the two projects is Johnston Farms, which will
be developed on a 24-acre site at the corner of South Anderson and Princeton
roads. It will include five three-story buildings with 120 two- and
three-bedroom units, according to city documents.
Dunbar Place will be developed on a 6.7-acre site on the
corner of South Cherry Road and Constitution Boulevard. It will have commercial
uses as well. On the housing side, the project will include one four-story
building with 100 two-bedroom apartments, documents say.
The Dunbar Place site also includes an existing
16,000-square-foot building that was formerly used by American Legion. That
building will be redeveloped, with about half of it being occupied by J.M. Cope
Construction for its headquarters. The remainder of the building will be taken
by a restaurant or retail use.
Tartan’s Jeff Carroll told the Charlotte Business Journal
that he hopes to close on acquisition of the properties and begin construction
on the projects in early 2021.
There are two possibilities for financing the projects,
documents say. The projects will be funded by either tax-exempt bonds or
opportunity zone financing.
If tax-exempt bonds are used, Tartan proposes rent and
income restrictions between 30% and 80% of area median income, with a
property-wide average of 60%. If opportunity zone financing is used, there will
be rent and income restrictions between 50% and 100% of AMI, with an average of
80%.
Both housing projects will also include a workforce-training
incentive program to help residents earn down payment assistance on future
homes. Residents who complete fields of study at a local community college,
technical school or university will qualify for assistance on a newly
constructed home.
Documents say the program will provide a maximum of $10,000 per unit in assistance for up to 18 residents per year at Johnston Farms and a maximum of $10,000 per unit in assistance for up to 15 residents per year at Dunbar Place.”
Davidson’s Landing is a workforce housing development designed to serve middle-income renters in Kansas City. The community will consist of 115 units, together with a wide range of unit and site amenities.
The project also includes an employer exchange and workforce training incentives, providing first-time homeowner down payment assistance to residents obtaining a degree or trade certification while working full-time.
“Developers who build affordable housing face a lot of hurdles: complex subsidy programs, expensive labor and materials, onerous local land use regulations, and, of course, community opposition. Neighboring residents often worry that low-cost housing will be ugly and comprised of hulking, boxy structures with cheap-looking facades. But while affordable housing developers do have tight budget constraints, there are strategies that allow them to build apartments that are visually appealing and offer comfort and convenience to their residents while meeting all the essential requirements of safe, healthy housing.
In this article, we examine strategies to save costs on three building components: the exterior shell, interiors, and services.”
Multifamily Building Systems was established to improve the energy efficiency of affordable and workforce housing. In this episode we hear from industry professionals about MBS’s strategy to optimize the performance of multifamily housing.
“Founded in 2017, All Within My Hands Foundation is dedicated to creating sustainable communities by supporting workforce education, the fight against hunger, and other critical local services…. AWMH supports workforce education through the Metallica Scholars initiative, which is currently in its first year…. Our intended result is that approximately 1,000 students receive instruction enabling them to get higher paying jobs. In most cases this isn’t the accomplished by attending school for two years to receive an associate’s degree, but rather the result of a three- or six-month certificate program.”
Introducing Dunbar Place & Johnston Farms Apartment Homes, two proposed workforce housing developments in Rock Hill, SC. The projects will be financed with either tax-exempt bonds or opportunity zone equity.
These projects were unanimously approved by the Rock Hill Planning Commission this evening.
“Picture all of the stores, offices, houses and apartment buildings in our cities. Then consider the appliances and electronics used in them along with the heating and air conditioning. Add up all the electricity they use and the fuels burned inside them, and buildings are responsible for nearly one-third of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States.”
