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Hernando Today

Affordable Housing Incentives Unveiled

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By MICHAEL D. BATES

Hernando Today

Published: December 16, 2008

BROOKSVILLE - To spur affordable housing in Hernando County, a committee has recommended about a dozen options, including the creation of a separate governmental housing division to help homeowners.

The eight-member committee is also recommending the building department develop standardized timelines for affordable housing permit application processing, designed to speed up development orders and permits.

County commissioners will get a complete briefing on the recommendations of the Affordable Housing Advisory Committee (AHAC) at their business meeting today.

However, 100 percent consensus on the committee's findings is not expected.

Commission Chairwoman Rose Rocco said she already has reservations about adding another bureaucratic layer by forming another division dedicated to affordable housing.

Rocco said the county already has the Housing Authority and doesn't need to spend more money on establishing yet another division.

Some of the committee's ideas do have merit, she said.

For example, the AHAC is recommending the board draft a policy that would waive the $100 expedited inspection fee for affordable housing projects.

That option is probably doable, she said.

Other proposals, such as increasing the densities for single-family and multi-family affordable housing projects, would need more research and data, she said. Density is the number of units on a particular piece of property and includes the amount of space between homes or apartment dwellings.

AHAC Chairman Glenn Claytor said the idea is to make it easier for developers and builders to build affordable housing.

Claytor, who runs a consulting firm out of his Spring Hill home, said the majority of the committee's findings are already in the county ordinance but they just need codifying.

He believes the sheer number of foreclosed homes may be used to help others.

"If you include homes that are foreclosed and vacant, along with those in the process of getting foreclosed, you have several thousand homes," Claytor said. "And, that's not good. The average person has to feel for those displaced people.

"But it could present an opportunity for those houses to be used by first-time homebuyers for affordable purchases," he said.

The AHAC is also recommending county commissioners consider:

• Implementing a certification program for developers and builders of affordable housing.

• Exploring options to reduce impact fees for affordable housing.

• Allowing builders to use different materials for driveways and parking at affordable housing developments to keep costs down.

•Revising building department procedures that would more readily identify permit applications for affordable housing.

Commissioner Jim Adkins agreed there is no way he will vote for another housing department.

"That won't happen," Adkins said.

Adkins said he has no problem waiving the inspection fee or possibly reducing impact fees to help spur the creation of affordable homes.

"I'll do anything to try and get this economy going," he said.

Adkins said valuations on existing homes are down so much that many of them could possibly be labeled affordable housing already, Adkins said.

The average singe-family home value in Hernando County from Oct. 1, 2007, through Sept. 30, 2008, was $182,821, according to the Hernando County Building Division.

Affordable housing is generally defined as a household that does not pay more than 30 percent of their annual income on housing expenses. For example, a household making $50,000 should not pay more than $130,000 for a home.

As of Oct.1, 2008, there were an estimated 81,977 housing units in Hernando County. Of those, 60,035 are single-family detached homes; 15,110 are mobile homes; 4,273 are multi-family (apartments); and 2,559 are single-family and villas.

Reporter Michael D. Bates can be reached at 352-544-5290 or mbates@hernandotoday.com.

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