Workforce housing

Workforce housing is commonly targeted at "essential workers" in a community i.e. police officers, firemen, teachers, nurses, medical personnel.

Mortgage lenders typically impose a limit of 28% to 36% of household income allowable for principal, interest, taxes and insurance (PITI).

This is cited as a contributor to urban sprawl, typified by traffic congestion, lengthy commutes, convenience stores and strip retail centers, and the rapid consumption of open space due to the building of new homes taking place at the outer edges of metropolitan areas where land is typically cheaper.

Whether seeking to rent or to buy, in areas facing an identified shortage of workforce housing, such units as can be found in close proximity to workplaces are often of poor quality.

Later provisions added over the years of "trial and error" include income restrictions to qualify, and capped rates on the amount of profit an owner is allowed to make in order to guarantees that the home will remain affordable forever.

In the early 2000s record low mortgage interest rates spurred a nationwide surge in housing demand.

Bill which included provisions for favorable mortgage terms and fueled suburban development, creating affordable home ownership opportunities for a generation of Americans.

However, the issue of workforce housing continues to affect non-metropolitan communities, particularly resort communities where one finds the acute effects of the triple impact of high land values, land limited by geographic features (i.e. coastline or mountains) and a prevalence of lower paying service-sector employment.

Currently, the majority of advocacy and policy activity is centered on metropolitan areas with housing costs higher than the national average.

While typically defined by local terms - area median income, fair market rent, and the employment base of the particular region - without the ability fund initiatives or to create sufficient incentives or mandates, it is difficult to have any impact on affordable housing.

As with all affordable housing initiatives, local governments may use existing tools like inclusionary zoning, upzonings, density bonuses to create desired outcomes.

A 2010 report from the Washington, D.C.–based non-profit Urban Land Institute entitled "Priced Out" is one example of in-depth study for a specific area.

While this example is drawn from one of the most acutely affected areas of the country, it illustrates the usefulness of defining the scope and scale of the problem as a necessary precursor to solving it.

[10] This mixed use development complex includes charter schools, ground-floor retail, and rental units for 200 Newark teachers.