Subsidizing Upper Middle Class Housing

With median housing prices of more than $1 million, the city of Santa Barbara, California, is looking for ways to retain its diminishing middle-class. The plan is to subsidize middle-income housing for residents making up to $177,000.

1 minute read

March 19, 2007, 2:00 PM PDT

By Nate Berg

"In Santa Barbara, about 90 miles northwest of Los Angeles, a public-private partnership is planning to build a subsidized-housing development for some families earning as much as $177,000."

"'It does sound unusual,' admitted Rob Pearson, the executive director of the city's Housing Authority, which helped broker the deal for the development, to be called Los Portales. 'But Santa Barbara is getting Gucci-fied. If we don't do something, we'll lose our middle class.'"

"City officials say they've worked to provide affordable homes for lower-income residents; about 12 percent of local housing stock falls into this category, much of it subsidized with public money. But with the average median home price in the Santa Barbara area hovering around $1.2 million, many well-employed citizens are finding it tough to buy a home."

Thanks to Peter Gordon

Read the full story: Subsidized Houses for Rich People

Sunday, March 18, 2007 in The New York Times

Housing California

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