The 3 Ps of Affordable Housing

MEHC has adopted the prominent 3 Ps framework – production, preservation and tenant protections. All these must be adddressed to ensure that everyone has access to safe, appropriate housing. Our current policies and programs are insufficient to address our housing crises.

Our high housing costs are ultimately due to a lack of supply. It’s been decades since Marin County has built sufficient housing to serve its population. We cannot meet our housing needs solely through the production of affordable housing.

First, affordable housing requires significant public subsidies to build, and there is not enough available funding. America is a rich country, and we can afford to spend far more on housing, but the political will is not there.

Second, over 90% of low income people and virtually all moderate income people live in market rate housing, and there is a huge shortage of market rate housing. Marin County has very little land zoned for multi-family housing. We have built almost no multi-family housing in the last 40 years. As a result, moderate income families who cannot afford single family homes have bid up the cost of older apartments.  There is nothing available for households that make less than $65,000/year. (Lower income households are either in housing they’ve owned for many years, have housing choice vouchers, live in overcrowded units or have lucked out to live in units being offered below current market rates.)

We need to preserve the affordable housing that we have. Several types of housing serve lower income families:

Public housing is owned by the government. The Marin Housing Authority manages and maintains our public housing developments. Golden Gate Village is the largest public housing development in Marin. Marin needs funding to renovate this 60 year old project. (The State no longer builds public housing).

Most affordable housing built today is created via deed-restricted, privately owned developments. Developers are given development subsidies so that the finished housing can be rented or sold at below market rates. These deed restrictions expire after a set number of years (typically 55 years). To keep these homes affordable, additional funding is needed to extend the deed restrictions. 

Unsubsidized affordable housing (9,500 homes in Marin)

Almost 10,000 lower income Marin households live in unsubsidized, non-deed restricted housing. These homes are affordable either because the landlords have not raised rents as quickly as the market or because the amenities and condition of the homes place these at the low end of the rental market. The California Housing Partnership estimates that half of these almost 10,000 units are at risk of becoming unaffordable in the next 5 years. There are programs to preserve these units as affordable housing units through the conversion of market-rate units to deed-restricted units. These programs require funding as owners typically require compensation for agreeing to forgo future income. These deals are complicated and nuanced as many times these properties have significant deferred maintenance that must be funded. 

Privately owned homes/units

Many low income people own their homes. Typically, these are older residents who purchased their homes many years ago when prices were more affordable. Many are on a fixed income and need assistance maintaining their properties. 

Most low income residents live in market rate rental housing. Tenant protections are programs that increase housing stability and reduce forced relocations. Forced relocations harm both the impacted families and they community, due to mid-year school changes, stress, and loss of workforce. Rent stabilization is the most well-known tenant protection program, but there are many other programs that can help prevent displacement and help tenants stay in the community. These include eviction protections, right to return rules, relocation assistance and rental registries. Rents have been rising faster than inflation for many years, so many Marin renters are vulnerable to displacement.