HomeMy WebLinkAbout7/19/2022 Item 7b, Brennan
Delgado, Adriana
From:Jocelyn Brennan <jocelyn@thehrmcorp.com>
Sent:Thursday, July 7,
To:E-mail Council Website
Cc:Codron, Michael
Subject:SLOC Association of Realtors re: IHO
Attachments:SLOC Assoc of Realtors SLO City IHO .pdf
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Mayor Stewart and Council Members,
Please see the letter attached from the San Luis Obispo Coastal Association of Realtors regarding the
upcoming consideration of the city's Inclusionary Housing Ordinance.
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Let me know if there are any questions or if you would like to set up a meeting prior to the July 18 council
meeting.
Thank you.
Sincerely,
Jocelyn Brennan
Governmental Affairs Director
cell/text (805) 748-7630
Jocelyn@thehrmcorp.com
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San Luis Obispo Coastal Association of REALTORS
830 Morro Bay Blvd, Morro Bay, 93442 CA
City Council of San Luis Obispo
990 Palm Street
San Luis Obispo, CA 93401
July 7, 2022
Honorable Mayor Stewart and Council Members,
We are the San Luis Obispo Coastal Association of REALTORS, a committed group of over seven hundred
real estate professionals fighting to keep the dream of homeownership alive in the City of San Luis Obispo
and the San Luis Obispo Coastal area. We value homeownership, private property rights, free enterprise,
and a responsive government. We applaud the city for approving the recent residential development projects
that added to the local housing stock and provided priority for the local workforce .
However, there is more work to do. We are concerned about the current and future affordability of the Central
Coast for those who live, work, and travel to our beautiful region. For the first quarter of 2022, the median
home price in SLO County was $852,250 and for May 2022 the median was $931,000. Housing affordability
remains near its lowest level since 2007. San Luis Obispo County has one of the lowest percentages in the
state, of residents who can afford to purchase a home, according to the California Association of Realtors
Housing Affordability Index.
Page 2 of 2
Inclusionary Housing Ordinance (IHO):
While the increased production of deed-restricted housing for our neediest residents is an admirable goal
that we support, it should not come at the expense of building more moderate workforce homes. The lack of
housing capacity will only increase the price of housing and counteract the goal of producing more deed -
restricted units.
Research has shown that a healthy vacancy rate should hover somewhere between 5% and 7%, to balance
the interests of housing owners and housing seekers. Historically, vacancy rates for the city of San Luis
Obispo have consistently been below 4%. In recent years, it has oftentimes been as low as 2%, indicating
that our region needs to produce more housing overall, not just deed-restricted housing.
We are concerned that this proposed ordinance will have a deleterious impact on the overall production of
housing in our region. As the primary job center for SLO and northern Santa Barbara counties, the city has
a responsibility to facilitate housing that is accessible to all income levels, especially those who are working
in San Luis Obispo and are currently commuting from all over the region every morning and afternoon.
Recently, the local municipalities have approached their IHO updates in vastly diverse ways. SLO County
repealed theirs altogether. In June of this year, the City of Atascadero received a report from Economic and
Planning Systems on their own potential update of their inclusionary ordinance. Their report supported a
much more reasonable fee of $5 to $6 per square foot, with the potential for a tiered rate up to abo ut $15.
We feel this lower fee schedule, as opposed to the $20-$25 proposed for SLO, is more in line with the city’s
need to help kickstart deed-restricted projects without overly burdening market-rate home production.
We believe there can be a solution that allows for the development of homes while increasing inclusionary
funds, and down payment assistance funds. The previous IHO was in place for the city for many years as
the next version will be. We suggest that city staff continue to work with industry and the regional partners on
modifying the existing ordinance. We would like to offer further feedback and assistance in updating the IHO
and the purchase guidelines.
Sincerely,
San Luis Obispo Coastal Association of Realtors