Best Practices
| Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) | |
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ADUs are independent housing units created within single-family homes or on their lots.
An ADU can provide supplementary housing that can be integrated into existing single-family
neighborhoods to provide a typically lower priced housing alternative with little or no
negative impact on the character of the neighborhood. Furthermore, ADUs can provide
homeowners with a means of obtaining, through tenants, in either the ADU or the principal
unit, rental income, companionship, security and services. There are different types of ADUs. An ADU can be apartments created within an existing house, added onto a house or above a garage, built as a freestanding cottage, or even designed and constructed as part of a new housing development (National Neighborhood Coalition) (NNC). Because the units are usually small, they are more affordable than full-size rentals. View Full PDF |
Santa Cruz, California Santa Cruz, California is one of the least affordable housing markets in the nation. The City of Santa Cruz has implemented a series of permitting and zoning changes meant to encourage the construction of accessory dwelling units, also known as "granny" or "in-law flats." These housing units are small, self-contained secondary apartments on the same lot as residential buildings, built either within the building envelope or as an addition or conversion of a detached garage or carriage house (15 Community Investments). The City has also published a manual for ADU production. Santa Cruz’s ADU program won the American Planning Association's 2005 National Outstanding Planning Award for a Program. |
| Affordable Housing Good Design | |
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The following tool includes strategies that both town governments as well as developers can
use to build affordable housing that is well designed, durable, and adaptable over time.
Towns can choose to actively control housing design using zoning and building design
standards that mandate how housing units should be built and placed within communities.
Towns can also choose to encourage good design through negotiation with developers and also
through bonuses and or tax incentives. Developers may also choose to create more livable
and sustainable housing, catering to new demographic groups like young professionals, aging
baby boomers or others that desire more compact, walkable neighborhoods with close access
to stores and dining. View Full PDF |
Cornerstone West Properties, Wilmington, DE Speakman Place is one project of Cornerstone West that consists of 71 brand new homes. Targeted for families with a combined household income starting at $25,250 and forgivable loans for qualified buyers. Some homes are reserved for first time homebuyers. These homes are situated overlooking the Speakman Park and have 3 spacious bedrooms with a minimum of 1.5 baths, private garages and attractive landscaping. |
| Community Land Trust (CLT) | |
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As the costs to make homeownership affordable for households with low and moderate incomes have
increased exponentially in recent years, many communities have turned to the Community Land
Trust (CLT) model to preserve these public and private investments. Offering "development
without displacement", the CLT model expands homeownership opportunities while ensuring that
homes remain affordable to future generations of low- and moderate-income households. View Full PDF |
West Rehoboth CLT: Delaware’s First CLT The West Rehoboth CLT was formed in 2005, out of the Housing Committee of the local community-based organization, which provides a variety of social services, particularly to children. Its vision and mission is to revitalize the West Rehoboth community through the creation of well-designed, permanently affordable homes as a catalyst for broader community development. The extremely high costs of development in Rehoboth and subsequently very high subsidies necessary to make homes affordable to community residents made a shared-equity component of the work a necessity. Continually high real estate prices and the high percentage of vacant land owned by investors has made this work challenging, but WRCLT has rallied a strong network of partners and supporters who share its vision for a renewed West Rehoboth. |
| Inclusionary Zoning | |
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Inclusionary Zoning (IZ), AKA, inclusionary housing ordinances
require or provide incentives for the creation of affordable and moderately-
priced homes in new developments. Communities can use IZ and their local
zoning powers to counter declining public-sector investment in affordable
housing, create housing for their workforce, and enable low- and moderate-
income families to benefit from urban reinvestment and new development. Inclusionary Zoning (IZ) ordinances can be either mandatory or voluntary. If mandatory, a density bonus, which allows a developer to build more units (at a higher density), is typically provided to offset the costs to the developers associated with building the affordable units. Voluntary programs provide density bonuses in addition to other development incentives, such as relaxed regulatory standards (such as parking reductions), fee waivers, expedited review, and other incentives (Municipal Research and Services Center, mrsc). View Full PDF |
Sussex County, Delaware Sussex County recently adopted a voluntary Moderately Price Housing Unit program that is being implemented as a two-year pilot. In exchange for setting aside 15% of a subdivision’s units to be moderately priced, the developer receives the following incentives; density bonus, expedited review, waiver of some or all County fees associated with the county approval process, and full utilization of the zoning designated for the land or parcel. All units are to be owner-occupied and have affordability restrictions, enforced by a recorded covenant of twenty years. An initial round for proposals has resulted in over 500 units being targeted for moderate-priced housing. |
| Local Solutions |
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The purpose of this section is to highlight other solutions available to communities that do
not easily fit into other tools. The following tools can be found in this section: Developer Incentives Developer incentives can provide relief from regulations to encourage the production of affordable housing voluntarily. Ensure Availability of Sites for Affordable Housing A community can take steps to ensure sufficient land is available to meet their affordable housing needs. Generate Capital for Affordable Homes While changes to land use regulations can expand the supply of affordable housing, sometimes communities may still need additional resources to bring housing prices within reach of working households. Reduce Regulatory Barriers The local regulatory framework can be reviewed and revised to remove barriers to the development of both affordable and market-rate housing. View Full PDF |
| Shared-Equity Homeownership | |
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Committed to expanding homeownership opportunities, but constrained by the high price of making
homeownership a reality for low- and moderate-income households, many communities have
instituted shared-equity provisions accompanying their initiatives to help households achieve
homeownership. Instituted by a variety of means, shared-equity homeownership ensures that
homes made affordable to low- and moderate-income households by public and private subsidies
or policies like inclusionary housing remain affordable long-term by restricting future
appreciation. View Full PDF |
Boulder, Colorado - HomeWorks Boulder, Colorado implemented strong controls on growth to protect rural land uses and sensitive environmental areas in its county in the early 1970s. Concerns about the possible impact of these controls on the availability and affordability of housing led the city to include a housing component requiring set-asides of units affordable to moderate- and low-income households in all new residential development on land annexed to the city. This program initially had short resale restrictions of ten years for homes affordable to moderate-income households and five years for homes affordable to low-income households. In 2000, this program was supplemented with the adoption of an inclusionary zoning ordinance requiring 20% of the units, whether homeownership or rental, in any newly constructed development to be initially and permanently affordable to households with incomes below 80% of the area median income. Every home in the HomeWorks program is encumbered with a "Permanently Affordable Housing Covenant" requiring owner-occupancy and restricting the future resale price of the home. |
