Local cities fall short when it comes to affordable housing

Disturbing news came to light recently from the Cabrillo Economic Development Corp., a nonprofit affordable housing developer based in Ventura County. Cabrillo produced a study showing that construction for lowto moderate-income homes in the area has been lagging—and that too much attention has been focused on the construction of new dwellings for the wealthy.

The Cabrillo study showed that only about one-third of the units needed for low-income buyers over the past decade were actually built. By comparison, the homes that were built for upper-income families exceeded projected needs by 28 per centThe study covered a period from 1990 to 2000, but judging from the plethora of new expensive homes in the area—from Calabasas west to Thousand Oaks—it’s hard to imagine that the last five years have shown much improvement. The housing needs for low to moderate income families simply are not being met.

The housing imbalance comes as no surprise. The market forces governing all home prices since 1999 have shown little mercyand many would-be home buyers have been left out in the coldRising prices make new home construction highly profitable for the builders. And who can begrudge them? For years, they’ve faced stiff constraints and regulations, and a depressed market in the early ’90s that drove many out of business. It’s their day in the sun and they should be congratulated for their role in the real estate boom.

The construction of affordable homes, however, has nothing to do with the forces of the market. Affordable housing is a social policy decision and only works when it’s imposed upon the developer.

True, there are some local affordable housing ordinances on the books, but the laws focus on areas such as mortgage buydown programs and in-lieu developer fees that can be used, for example, to help an existing homeowner repair his leaky roofThis approach is like using a pop-gun to shoot an elephant. When is the last time an upscale city such as Agoura HillsCalabasas or Westlake Village actually used its developer kitty to build an affordable housing project?

We can’t keep sending our average income earners to live elsewhere. This is their community, too.

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