“Affordable housing to me is the opportunity for home buyers with limited means [savings for closing costs and down payments]and good steady incomes [jobs], to obtain assistance allowing them to participate in home ownership. This program should not be used to give anybody anything, only to enable them to get it”
— Dan Daniel,
Prudential Network Realty
“When I think of affordable housing, I think of a market and economy where those who make an average income can qualify to buy an average price house — that is, with all other things being equal, decent credit, not too many long term debts such as charge cards, car payments, student loans, and some money saved for such a purchase. In addition, I will add that if saving has not been an option because of student loans, etc., than good credit. I think what I mean is that the majority of people working can buy into the market.”
— Toy Scott, Norville Realty, Inc.
“It is really defined in so many different ways by so many different groups. Affordable housing to me would be a house that is affordable to the majority of the people in the community based on the medium income.”
—Kea Blalock,
New World Realty
“Affordable housing means leveraging 100 percent of your purchase price at a fixed 4.25 percent interest rate over 40 years and still have enough left over at the end of the month for diapers and beer.”
—Justin Clark,
Skinner Land Company
“I associate affordable housing needs with those people who earn the minimum wage and virtually have to work two or three jobs just to make ends meet, and elderly folks who live on fixed incomes and see the buying power of their dollars shrinking more and more each day. Unfortunately for them and for all of us, affordable housing is virtually non-existent in our market. It saddens me to think that people who have lived in the community all their lives are now at a point where they cannot afford to own a home here.”
—Elke McMenemy,
Florida Home Realty
“Affordable housing to me is anything a person or persons can live in and be an owner and not a renter. It should mean if you work and can afford to pay rent then the opportunity should be available to invest and use your income to build a future for you and your family.”
—Sandra Brown,
Prudential Network Realty
“I have learned a bit about this issue as regards new developments in my role as a board member of the Northeast Florida Regional Planning Council. Take the idea that a DRI [Development of Regional Impact] proposes a mixed-use development with, say, a luxury hotel, offices and restaurants, and homes and condos of all price ranges. Those businesses will need some service personnel who will be making a low to medium income. These amounts are determined by the county by coordinating data and coming up with guidelines. Putting aside space for housing to meet the needs of these workers is a must-do in today’s world. In the new developments, the number of 1, 2 and 3-bedroom units needed can be projected by county data.”
—Clare Berry,
Berry & Co. Real Estate
“I spent a number of years working with ’affordable housing,’ so I can definitely respond to your question from my perspective. To me, affordable housing, in terms of rentals, means housing which is affordable to very low and low to moderate income households. Generally, this housing is most commonly found in inner city, smaller town and semi-rural communities. There are typically government subsidies, investor/owner tax incentives or government bonds involved in order to make decent, safe and sanitary housing [both single family homes and apartments] available to families and individuals who could not otherwise afford such housing.
“Government programs which were common, particularly in the 1970s and ‘80s, included Section 8, BMIR, and Section 236, to name just a few. Generally, these programs required a qualified person or family to live within a specific housing ‘project’ (the subsidy was attached to the unit itself). In other cases, the qualified party was given a certificate that they would take to a prospective landlord (the subsidy was attached to the individual).
“The tenant’s rent is based on his income and the balance of the actual rent is paid to the owner by the government. In both cases, the ‘market rent,’ or maximum allowable rent collected by the owner, is established by the appropriate government agency in the region.
“Over the years, there have also been programs to help lower to median income families purchase homes. Once again, government programs and tax dollars would, in most cases, be involved.
“Obviously, it takes a lot of time and hard work to create programs like the ones mentioned above and to carry them out. It also requires enormous cooperation between the private sector and the government. It has been a while since any new programs were introduced. It would be great to see more of those types of programs enacted again.”
—Sue Ann Ogden,
Suncastle Properties
“I believe affordable housing should offer the possibility for anyone who wants to own a home the opportunity to achieve that goal. That means not only having property for those in low to middle income price ranges, but also financing programs that are designed to help those achieve their goal of home ownership.”
— Phyllis Staines,
Re/Max Coastal Real Estate
“Affordable housing to me is housing that the majority of families can afford. In my opinion, that would be under $150,000 for an average size home. It’s scary for me to see all the new constuction coming online with housing starting in the mid-$200s and up. Fortunately, the interest rates have been at record lows and more people can qualify, but if the rates go up even a little, I think it will throw the average family out of the market. I back Cathy Whatley’s efforts 100 percent and hope she can make progress in easing our situation quickly.”
—Karen Palmer,
Prudential Network Realty