www.MnChallenge.

com

CREATING HOUSING FOR

A STRONGER COMMUNITY:
FIVE KEYS.


The MN Challenge to Lower the Cost of Affordable Housing is an ideas competition. Its goal is to be a catalyst for innovative problem-solving, bringing together
teams of the most knowledgeable housing professionals to propose ideas that could reduce the cost of creating or preserving affordable housing.
This report is one of several products sharing ideas that can advance the mix of housing choices available in communities throughout MN.

THE FIVE KEYS

OUR COMMUNITY IS
STRONGER WITH
DIVERSE HOUSING
CHOICES

MOST CURRENT
RESIDENTS FIND
VALUE IN A MIX OF
HOUSING CHOICES

GOOD
GOVERNMENT =
GOOD HOUSING
POLICY

THE DEMAND IS
URGENT
AND GROWING

AFFORDABLE
HOUSING IS A
COMMUNITY ASSET

AN IDEAS COMPETITION
Sponsored by Minnesota Housing, the McKnight Foundation,
Urban Land Institute Minnesota/Regional Council of Mayors
and Enterprise Community Partners.

THE GOAL
Identify best practices to reduce the cost of affordable housing.

THE WINNER
A research team from the University of Minnesota Center for Urban and
Regional Affairs, the Housing Justice Center and Becker Consulting.

TODAYS DISCUSSION
The MN Challenge research focuses on the strategies available to municipal
policy makers and staff. This discussion focuses on YOU five things you
should know about affordable housing and why its important to you and
to your community.

Affordable Housing = Quality Housing

The pictures in this PowerPoint are of existing
affordable housing complexes in Minnesota.

CREATING
COMMON GROUND

- Concerns of current
resident may be based
on misinformation, but
they cant be ignored.
Acknowledge their
validity and address
the substance.

- Economic success of
the community.
- Key workers can live in
the community.

IDENTIFY
COMMON
CHALLENGES

- My kids can start

their families here.
CREATE
SHARED
BENEFITS

ACKNOWLEDGE

VALIDITY OF
CONCERNS

- New residents
eventually will be the
buyers of my home.
- We expand the citys
tax base.

COMMON
GROUND
ENGAGE
DIVERSE
STAKEHOLDERS

ACTIONS,
NOT JUST
WORDS
STORY
TELLING
ABOUT
PEOPLE

- Tap the networks

of community
organizations.

- Citys policies support a

range of housing.
- Residents show their
support publicly
contact public officials,
letters to the editor, etc.

- Housing is about the people

who live there; tell their stories.
- Use endorsements from those
your community knows, trusts
- The mayor, pastor, employer,
others

OUR COMMUNITY IS STRONGER

WITH DIVERSE HOUSING CHOICES
n Many of those working in some of our
communitys most essential jobs cant
afford to live where they work.

n In fact, housing throughout the

Twin Cities metro is unaffordable
for many key workers.

Housing Affordability by Common and Essential Service Occupations, Twin Cities Metro

Chart: Minnesota Housing Partnership

ECONOMIC BENEFITS OF HOUSING

JOBS

Construction, On-going

TAX REVENUE

New sales, income, property taxes

INDIRECT

More disposable income to

spend locally

Compass Pointe, New Hope

5

HEALTH BENEFITS OF HOUSING

Regions Hospital in St. Paul connects
patients with housing programs:

Over six years, the program has reduced

ER visits among participants by

68 percent after enrollment, and helped
most maintain stable homes.

- Vince Rivard

Spokesman - Regions Hospital

StarTribune, Oct. 6, 2015; http://tinyurl.com/zdmgx2u

ACADEMIC BENEFITS OF HOUSING

Students who experienced homelessness

or high mobility had chronically low

levels of reading and math achievement

according to research conducted by the

University of Minnesota. The gaps either stayed
the same or worsened as students approached
high school.

University of Minnesota, http://tinyurl.com/oddm8vm

THE DEMAND IS URGENT

AND GROWING
n In 2013, about one

in eight households paid one half or more of their income

in housing costs. The Metropolitan Council estimates that 266,000 households
are paying at least one-third of their incomes for housing.

16%
14%

13%

13%

13%

2005

2006

2007

14%

14%

15%

13%

12%

12%

12%

2012

2013

10%
8%
6%
4%
2%
0%

2008

2009

2010

2011

% of households paying at least half of income for housing, Twin Cities Metro

American Community Survey, 1-year estimates

WAGES FOR MANY OF TODAYS JOBS

DONT SUPPORT AVAILABLE HOUSING
The ranks of the working poor are
growing rapidly. Among Minnesota
households in poverty, 69 percent
have one or more members in
the workforce.
Minnesota House of Representatives
Select Committee on Living Wage Jobs

Half of the jobs in the Twin Cities metro area

pay less than what is needed to afford
the average 2-bedroom apartment.
MN Challenge Best Practices report

Courtesy of Aeon, www.aeonmn.org

10

WAGES FOR MANY OF TODAYS JOBS

DONT SUPPORT AVAILABLE HOUSING
The ranks of the working poor are
growing rapidly. Among Minnesota
households in poverty, 69 percent
have one or more members in
the workforce.
Minnesota House of Representatives
Select Committee on Living Wage Jobs

MEET JENNY

Half of the jobs in the Twin Cities metro area

pay less than what is needed to afford
the average 2-bedroom apartment.
MN Challenge Best Practices report

10

Single mom with two kids

working full-time.
She found affordable, safe housing
at Clover Field Marketplace
in Chaska.
Its a place we call home
we have developed relationships
in the community.

MOST CURRENT RESIDENTS FIND VALUE

IN A MIX OF HOUSING CHOICES

Choices for young people

starting out to live here

89%

Homes that will let people like

me live here after retirement

89%

Homes for working class,

young families

86%

Range of low-cost housing

63%
0%

10%

20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

11

NEW
FAMILIES

EMPTY
NESTERS

GROWING ROOTS
Creating affordable housing for
young people and new families
is a smart investment for soon-to-be
empty nesters.
A survey of Minneapolis renters
found that 66% plan to purchase a
home, significantly higher than
the national average.

AFFORDABLE HOUSING IMPORTANT

TO EVERY AGE GROUP
Income Paid for Housing by Households Headed
by Senior Citizens 65+, Twin Cities Metro

SENIOR POVERTY
An elderly Minnesotan
relying on Social Security
benefits would spend
almost 60 percent of his or her
income to afford a one-bedroom
market rate apartment in the
Twin Cities. While poverty is
less prevalent among the
elderly, it is more persistent.
When seniors fall into poverty,
they are more likely to remain
poor than other age groups.
Chart: Minnesota Housing Partnership

12

Minnesota Budget Project

AFFORDABLE HOUSING
IS A COMMUNITY ASSET

RESIDENTS PAY THEIR

HOUSING COSTS

A FULL RANGE OF HOUSING CHOICES

SUSTAINS A PROSPEROUS COMMUNITY

SMART PLANNING CREATES

SAFE COMMUNITIES

Clockwise from top: Workforce Housing, Forest Lake; A-Mill Artist Lofts, Minneapolis; Hoffman Place, White Bear Lake
13

SUPPORT FOR HOUSING CHOICES

IS BROAD, BUT OFTEN QUIET
ADVOCATES
Social justice issue

VOCAL OPPONENTS
Firmly and actively against

Nearly three-quarters
of Minnesotans are
potential supporters
IF they are engaged.

QUIET
OPPONENTS
No public protests,
but firmly against

UNCERTAIN
Believe in the idea of
affordable housing, worried
about their community

QUIET SUPPORTERS
Support is soft, vulnerable
to attacks from opponents

ADVOCATES - 10%

QUIET OPPONENTS - 10%

QUIET SUPPORTERS - 43%

VOCAL OPPONENTS - 16%

UNCERTAIN - 21%

2009 statewide survey, McKnight Foundation, Decisions Resources

14

BEST PRACTICES

GOOD GOVERNMENT =
GOOD HOUSING POLICY
BUILD THE RIGHT
DEVELOPMENT IN
THE RIGHT LOCATION

Thoughtful long-term planning can identify the right sites for affordable housing
and the right number of units for the site. This gives the community predictability. It allows the developer to build the best housing and to assure that it is
well-managed and maintained after construction.

PREDICTABLE
GOVERNMENT

Developers need leadership from those in government. Communities that have a

comprehensive policy supporting a full range of housing choices and a predictable process for review and oversight can make the difference between housing
that is attractive and meets the needs of all residents or housing proposals that
never get off the ground.

CONSIDER COSTS
AND BENEFITS

It may make sense for a community to create incentives (for example, zoning
changes or fee waivers) in return for developers to include affordable units in
market-rate developments. These incentives are subsidies provided by communities and should be evaluated on a case-by-case basis to make sure everyone in
the community is getting a good return on the investment being made.

FLEXIBILITY

Sometimes a little flexibility goes a long way. Considering different materials or

design requirements, being open to manufactured housing or reducing parking
requirements for developments near transit can lower costs while still producing
high-quality, aesthetically-pleasing housing.

15

DEFINE THE FUTURE:

CREATING A HOUSING POLICY
ENGAGE
DIVERSE
STAKEHOLDERS

Create shared vision for

the community.
Assess current, potential
marketplace needs: What
kind of housing will be
needed to support a
strong community?

IDENTIFY
OPPORTUNITIES

Identify the right sites for

housing, with the goal of
a full range of housing
choices and leveraging
jobs, transit, etc.
Align housing objectives
with current, future
populations.

16

ALIGN POLICIES
WITH GOALS

Define specific housing

policies, from density
to incentives.
Align government
processes e.g. review
and planning with
housing goals and
long-term vision

CREATING
COMMON GROUND

- Concerns of current
resident may be based
on misinformation, but
they cant be ignored.
Acknowledge their
validity and address
the substance.

- Economic success of
the community.
- Key workers can live in
the community.

IDENTIFY
COMMON
CHALLENGES

- My kids can start

their families here.
CREATE
SHARED
BENEFITS

ACKNOWLEDGE

VALIDITY OF
CONCERNS

- New residents
eventually will be the
buyers of my home.
- We expand the citys
tax base.

COMMON
GROUND
ENGAGE
DIVERSE
STAKEHOLDERS

ACTIONS,
NOT JUST
WORDS
STORY
TELLING
ABOUT
PEOPLE

- Tap the networks

of community
organizations.

- Citys policies support a

range of housing.
- Residents show their
support publicly
contact public officials,
letters to the editor, etc.

- Housing is about the people

who live there; tell their stories.
- Use endorsements from those
your community knows, trusts
- The mayor, pastor, employer,
others

17

THE KEY DIFFERENCE:

YOUR VOICE
CAN YOUR COMMUNITY SUCCEED
WITHOUT A MIX OF HOUSING?
What is the future of your community if young families,
essential workers and empty-nesters cant find
affordable housing?

EVALUATE, THEN ACTIVATE

Look at affordable housing in communities throughout
the metro. Its high-quality, well-run and an asset that
makes a community more attractive.

DONT BE THE SILENT MAJORITY

Opponents are loud and persistent. Let your mayor
and council know that you and others support
affordable housing.

18

www.MnChallenge.com

FOR MORE INFORMATION, VISIT

WWW.HOUSINGPOLICY.ORG/TOOLBOX/INDEX_MN.HTML



19