Meeting The Affordable Housing Challenge

Neal Peirce writes in his latest column about the challenge of developing affordable housing in the nation's booming urban areas.

"The new challenge: to keep affordable housing for low- to middle-income people, ranging from single mothers just off welfare to aspiring teachers, police officers, firefighters and clerks. All are being squeezed by building conversions, escalating rents and property tax hikes in the suddenly chic, newly targeted neighborhoods."

"So what's to be done? One answer is inclusionary zoning — a requirement that a certain percent of units in new residential properties be made available at reduced rates to people with limited incomes — especially if government had any hand in the land transfer. Washington's new mayor, Adrian Fenty, has declared inclusionary zoning a mainstay of his housing approach. And it's gaining popularity in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Madison, Wis., and other cities."

"But there's a serious problem. If a low-income person gets reduced-price property in a hot neighborhood, officials fear he (or she) may "flip" it, walking away with a sudden windfall. The unit's price would then rise to a much higher price, "unaffordable" to other buyers."