NC REALTORS ® provided their annual State of Real Estate event this month. Below is just a snapshot of various topics regarding affordable workforce housing as well as the link to all of the presentations.
Talking points from NC Senator Chuck Evans
- Government is preventing affordable housing (regulations, building codes)
- Senate Bill 349 has been introduced – increase housing opportunities and requires municipalities on residential property to allow duplexes, triplexes, accessory dwellings etc. if no home owners association or historic district is in place
- 75% percent of property is zoned single family only
- The bill would help lower income for a mortgage from $54,000 for single family to $31,000 for a duplex etc. Giant difference and more access for the American dream. This would be paramount to repairing our society.
Q – What are the obstacles to SB 349?
A – local government and removing control, local control should be property owner
Q – How do you respond?
A – Try to convince them to relax regulations. SB349 has not received much love this year. I’m more embolden to get groups across the U.S. to support this
Q – Do you have supporters?
A – CATO, groups in DC, conservative workgroups, American Legislative Exchange Council
Q – How should REALTORS® educate them?
A – Ronald Reagan introduced similar legislation. I put together a flyer. This bill respects free market and rejects current socialist approach.
Q – How do you tackle “not in my backyard?”
A – The ultimate right is the property owner
Three larger metro area Mayors providing insight as to how they have tackled the very serious issues of lack of workforce housing and lack of housing in their cities.
City of Raleigh Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin
- We allow accessory dwelling units and give homeowners a choice
- We encourage missing middle housing, duplexes, tri-plexes in 80% of city before single family residential
- Allowed text changes July 6 on Council to allow cottage courts (tiny houses). We removed the regulations against them. We now allow them being constructed now.
- The city sold a piece of property for $1.00 to a developer to build a cottage court community.
- We are working on a text change for tiny homes. Working on that now.
- We are working on flag lots (long lots) similar to the ones in Atlanta. It is a smarter way for land use. Working on the text change.
- Reducing minimum lot sizes and parking requirements
- Working with Wake County on underutilized property
- New zoning to allow for density
- Incentivizing developers to include workforce transit into housing projects
- Land swaps and gap funding
- Expedited approvals on projects
- Reduction in impact fees
- Creation of municipal influence district
- Partnering with land trust
- Approved 80-million-dollar housing bond…72% of voters approved this
- Public/private partnerships to add more affordable housing
- Low-income housing tax credits for GAP funding to developers
- Homeowner rehabilitation program, reduces gentrification
- Downpayment assistance
City of Durham Mayor Steve Schewel
- Allowing developers to build duplexes, tri-plexes, flag lots etc.
- Single-family zoning won’t work
- 95 million housing bond was passed in 2019
- 15 million is going for housing lower income people
- Promoting new mixed income neighborhoods
- Creating 2,000 rental until and 400 low-income homes
- Promoting housing loans, low interest loans from Duke University & Suntrust
City of Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles – slideshow coming soon
