Long-term Affordable Housing
The Better Communities Coalition (BCC)was formed in the months following a June, 2021 community forum, the “COVID Cliff Summit.” That forum highlighted community issues that pre-dated the pandemic as well as challenges that have emerged due to the pandemic and the federal funding responses.
Among the issues being addressed by the BCC is housing, with a focus on under-resourced persons and households.
A Short Term Housing Task Group was challenged to address emergency sheltering and housing. This report is from the second group, the Long-Term Affordable Housing Task Group.
Key long-term affordable housing findings for Morgan County:
- Growing at a larger rate, as a share of the total population, are persons over the Age of 65;
- Approximately 2000 households in the county are in cost-burdened housing;
- New housing developments have not kept pace with demand nor job growth;
- The unmet demand for affordable housing is the greatest among households with Incomes below $50,000 per year;
- Some local government planning and zoning regulations present barriers to affordable housing developments
- The creation of new units of affordable housing for low-income households will require government subsidies and plans for sustainability;
- Training persons entering the rental housing market can improve the tenant-landlord experience;
- Attention is needed to address unsafe and unhealthy housing, with a focus on:
- deteriorating homes owned and occupied by elderly citizens; and
- rental housing units.
Overview of Recommendations
- County and municipal governments should work in concert with housing developers and broad sectors of the public and business community to bring the issue of affordable housing to the forefront with plans to:
- decrease the number of households in unaffordable housing;
- promote the development of one or more Community Housing Development Organizations as a means of focusing attention on sustainable affordable housing development;c. improve existing housing conditions, targeting homes owned and occupied by
elderly citizens and unhealthy/unsafe rental housing units; and - revise and streamline zoning regulations to accommodate infill and new
- The Rent Smart program is a viable education tool for both government and non-government programs serving under-resourced persons and families. Its use should be encouraged in order to better prepare persons for a successful
housing experience.