Housing Bubble

Inclusionary housing grows in California

July 16, 2003

One-hundred-seven cities and counties in California are part of an explosive trend in the adoption of a housing strategy, called inclusionary housing, that has the potential to double affordable housing production statewide, according to Inclusionary Housing in California: 30 Years of Innovation, a report released jointly by California Coalition for Rural Housing (CCRH) and Non-Profit Housing Association of Northern California (NPH), both affordable housing advocacy groups. The report summarizes findings of a survey of all 525 jurisdictions, and reports that 62 percent of the 107 cities and counties have recently adopted inclusionary housing programs, which are sets of policies that seek to ensure a portion of new residential developments are reserved for lower income households.

Inclusionary Housing in California shows that many local governments are getting serious about addressing the affordable housing shortages for all segments of their communities and providing housing choices that are close to jobs, transit, services and schools. Dianne Spaulding, Executive Director of NPH, said, “Eliminating four- to six-hour daily commutes buys people time—time to get to know their neighbors, time to spend on their children’s homework, and time to nurture stable families.”

Robert Wiener, Executive Director of CCRH, stated, “The fact that 20 percent of cities and counties, clustered around the tightest housing markets in California, are telling us these inclusionary housing policies can work, means other locales, especially growth magnets, could take control of housing affordability today and preempt a housing catastrophe tomorrow.”

Ms. Spaulding continued, “I’ve been doing this for a long time, and I can’t remember a time in the history of California when we’ve had an opportunity of this scale. If the 80 percent of jurisdictions without an inclusionary policy adopted even a moderately aggressive requirement, California could double its production of affordable housing. That means twice as many homes for young families, seniors, and even our teachers and nurses.”

Bill Higgins, Project Director with the Institute for Local Self-Government, said “Inclusionary Housing in California is a valuable tool for local government officials looking for information about how to create affordable housing through inclusionary housing.”

The report also cites the top 15 local jurisdictions producing affordable housing through inclusionary policies—the Cities of Carlsbad, Chula Vista, Davis, Emeryville, Huntington Beach, Irvine, Petaluma, Roseville, Sacramento, Salinas, San Diego, San Rafael and Santa Rosa, and the Counties of Monterey and Santa Barbara.

Several other major cities and counties are currently considering adopting inclusionary housing programs, such as Los Angeles and Oakland. New inclusionary housing programs in these localities would have the potential to dramatically increase affordable housing production in California.

The report summarizes the findings from a survey of planning and housing departments in the 58 counties and 467 cities in California during 2002 to early 2003. The report is a follow up to CCRH’s 1994 survey on inclusionary housing, and NPH’s 2002 Bay Area Housing Crisis Report Card, which cited inclusionary housing as one approach to help address the affordable housing crisis. More information about the report is available at www.nonprofithousing.org or www.calruralhousing.org.

Source: Non-Profit Housing Association of Northern California ®