Chasing away affordable housing
Gotta love those subsidies: SJ and other CA cities say they want to increase affordable housing. So why do they implement policies that actually deter naturally occurring affordable housing?
City policies make it increasingly impossible for “mom and pop” affordable housing providers to survive
Picture folks voluntarily blindfolding themselves, seated around a conference table discussing how the heck rents have gotten so high. If they took their blinders off, this is what they’d see:
They’d know about the multiple Eviction Moratoriums since 2020 and how housing providers in San Jose still haven’t been paid over $millions in back rent. And they’d know that an eviction can cost upwards of $20K, and no one wants that.
Evictions and unpaid rent moratoriums are on top of more visible costs (taxes, mortgage, repairs), but these and other hidden costs materially shape what it takes to operate and finance housing, and they help explain why “policy changes” can quickly show up as higher rents or fewer units getting built.
Repairs are expected. But on top of formal code‑enforcement fees, owners must navigate permitting rules so strict that even a simple in‑kind plumbing repair — like replacing a leaking toilet seal — can trigger permit requirements, inspections, and delays, all of which add cost and risk that never show up in the public conversation about ‘affordable’ housing.
--Irene Smith, United Housing Alliance
Read Smith's full analysis of the multiple factors that comprise The Hidden Costs of Housing and how it minimizes the creation and preservation of affordable housing.
Case study LA: affordable housing units disappear as city regs favor corporate owners
De facto affordable housing in Los Angeles is shrinking as mom-and-pop landlords exit the market due rising operating costs and strict post-pandemic rental regulations.
These small-scale owners are increasingly selling their properties, which are losing value amid operational challenges.
This trend marks a shift toward corporate ownership, as smaller operators struggle to remain profitable in the current regulatory environment.
Following the outbreak of Covid-19, the City of Los Angeles enacted rent freezes and increased eviction protections for tenants — and while many other metros also passed similar policies, L.A.’s stayed in place far longer than comparable cities.
AAGLA’s typical member used to own less than 10 units, AAGLA CEO Daniel Yukelson said. But “today that’s drastically expanded, Our average member owns close to 50 units because we’re getting the larger corporate owners as members and we’re losing a lot of the smaller mom-and-pops.”
--Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles
(AAGLA)
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