Housing and Schools

Report Cites Importance of Encouraging Housing for Families in City

The housing boom that has reinvigorated the District and pumped millions into city coffers has been lopsided, attracting waves of singles, empty nesters and childless couples but not families needed for stability, according to a new study produced by the Urban Institute and the Fannie Mae Foundation.

Stacey D. Stewart , president and CEO of the Fannie Mae Foundation, was online Tuesday, Oct. 24, at 12:30 p.m. ET to discuss key findings and recommendations in this year's report.

A transcript follows

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Bowie, Md.: Will D.C. ever offer affordable housing? I would love to live in the city again but the prices have run out all middle class individuals who are from the District. Also, are there any programs out there offered for single parent house holds, etc.?

Stacey D. Stewart: Hello, thanks for joining me in this chat.

Good question. Yes, you are right and our report points out that between 2004 and 2005, single-family home prices increased 22 percent in the District. There are many families who are currently unable to live in the city and also many families who have been forced out.

Currently the city does offer a variety of affordable housing programs and has a priority of serving the needs of low- and moderate-income families. The city's Housing Trust Fund and HPAP are just two examples of programs that the city utilizes in order to subsidize housing for low- and moderate-income families. It is true, however, that the demand for these programs often exceeds the availability. Also, a significant amount of housing development is accomplished through the work of many well-established nonprofit organizations that operate throughout the city. If you would like more information on affordable housing programs, I recommend you call the D.C. Department of Housing and Community Development or the D.C. Housing Finance Agency.

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Silver Spring, Md.: Thanks for taking my question. A somewhat touchy issue in the District, but hopefully you'll give us your take on it. How do you think the height restriction in the District contributes to the housing problems? It has created such a bizarre "inverted-city" sorta situation, where Maryland and Virginia have compensated with little mini-cities around the Beltway (Silver Spring, Bethesda, Clarendon, etc. ...) by creating these "overlay" zones in the areas surrounding Metro stations, in which the zoning is more urban than suburban. It seems that the District is somewhat nearing "capacity" and yet the census number decreases, because, as you say, it is singles and couples with no children rather than families. It seems that good schools, better public safety and all that things that lure in families are a result of a better tax base and hence a result of population density, which is difficult to create with such a low ceiling. What is your opinion? Is this a contributing factor to the problems? Or is more high-rises, to bring in more singles, to bring in more tax dollars, with the hope that those tax dollars will fund the services that will then bring in the families too far fetched?

Stacey D. Stewart: The height restriction in the city is unlike any existing in any other major metropolitan area in the country. However, density and zoning regulations impact the development of affordable housing everywhere. We brought out the issue of housing density in last year's report as a significant opportunity to address affordability challenges. One of the ways in which we consider addressing density, while also increasing the availability of housing for families is to focus more on townhouse development, as opposed to single-family detached housing.

The city has tremendous capacity to accommodate a significant addition to our population, including families with children. Our report stresses that as the city plans future development, it consider that the type of housing that becomes available influences the type of people that are attracted to the community and are able to live in the city.

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Telethon, Washington, D.C.: I would think by now it's obvious that the District can't encourage families to move in without better schools. The new housing is mostly located in neighborhoods with poor performing schools. When you spend the kind of money it takes to buy in the city, you don't want your kids to go to bad schools. There is no more room in the private schools and the charter schools, with few exceptions, are no better than the public schools.

Have any cities been able to improve schools to attract families downtown?

Stacey D. Stewart: You're absolutely right. It is hard to attract families to areas that don't have great schools. It is also hard to have great schools, when you don't have community support.

There are many, many examples from around the country of cities that have targeted neighborhood revitalization, as well as improved public schools. In Atlanta, for example, every public housing redevelopment plan incorporates a plan for improving the schools that serve that newly revitalized neighborhood. And, if you visit, Atlanta, you will find many examples of mixed-income housing that support families and great schools in those communities. We need to do the same thing here.

Eventually, we want every school to be high-quality, surrounded by livable, vibrant neighborhoods. This will not happen overnight. However, we can build toward this by focusing on a combined strategy of housing and school investment, and rebuilding the city -- neighborhood by neighborhood.

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Washington, D.C.: Can it be assumed that the singles will eventually migrate to the suburbs once they marry and have children? How can the city better prepare to meet the challenge of another great migration to the suburbs of Virginia and Maryland?

Stacey D. Stewart: There have been a couple of questions about why we should focus on families, with an implication that single individuals do not promote stability in the city. It is very important to note that most thriving, vibrant cities are diverse in every way. Single professionals and empty-nesters have contributed greatly to the revitalization of the District of Columbia. Our point is simply that, in order to maintain the city's diversity, we need to ensure that our growth is balanced to reflect this diversity.

As is currently the case, one can assume that a large percentage of singles will continue to move out of the city once they marry and have children if improvements to schools are not made. If we want to retain the attractiveness of the city to families with children, then we must do something different in order to ensure that there is sufficient affordable housing for these families, and quality schools that their children can attend.

As mentioned in the Housing in the Nation's Capital report, 30,000 units are planned for development between now and 2010 -- 62 percent of those units are condominiums -- typically not the housing type chosen by families with children. So, even if the schools improve substantially between now and then, if we don't produce the housing to accommodate families, they will still leave.

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Washington, D.C.: The mayor's draft of the Comprehensive Plan currently before the Council doesn't even mention housing for ordinary families in its housing element and focuses on attracting more condos for singles. For those of us who have stayed in the city during its status as a joke during much of the last 30 years, it seems that the Office of Planning is more than willing to risk killing the goose that has laid the golden egg in D.C. -- the desire of couples and families to live in a habitable urban environment -- to curry favor with high developers. Won't turning D.C. into corridors of high rises kill its residential neighborhoods that have attracted so many residents?

Stacey D. Stewart: Best practices in urban redevelopment at this time encourage the development of transit oriented housing in order to increase affordability and minimize transportation costs to jobs for individuals and families. The increase in density along major corridors, particularly near metro stations potentially provides for increased availability of housing, while addressing the transportation issue. A thoughtful development plan that increases density and incorporates good design principles can enhance a residential neighborhood.

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Washington: Families Absent From Flourishing D.C., Study Says (Post, Oct. 24)

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Dartmouth, Mass.: The latest information published by the Washington Post on crime, highlighted by a map showing robberies at gunpoint, was very discouraging. I have two young college grads now living in the District and I know both would love to raise families there. However, it is questionable whether it makes sense given the level of danger. Do you think the next mayor will take seriously the need to deal with crime?

Stacey D. Stewart: The report makes the point that different elements need to come together at the neighborhood level to build healthy communities. These include not only affordable housing and good schools, but also safe streets and access to transportation. This is not just the responsibility of elected officials, but will take engaged citizens to address important community issues.

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Laurel, MD.: Washington is physically smaller than most cities that anchor a metro area of similar size (half the size of Philadelphia, for instance).

Part of the reason is that other cities expanded beyond their original borders to pick up former suburban areas; which Washington can't do. So single-family detached homes on child-friendly yards are never going to be a large part of its housing stock.

Considering that the metro area's home-owning population mostly has college degrees and expects a suburban-type living situation for their children, shouldn't we just accept that the District is never going to compete for that population?

Stacey D. Stewart: You're correct, single-family homes are a popular option for families with children. But, data assembled for the report show that 46 percent of the District's school children live in multi-family rental housing. The point here is that we need to have a diversity of housing options, both in terms of type, and affordability for the District to attract and retain more families with children.

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Washington: Robberies Leave Their Mark on the District (Post, pf)

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Washington, D.C.: What is the official definition of "affordable housing"? I've gone through the Web site and books, but never find "affordable housing" associated with a number. Developers seem to think a $250 1-bedroom condo with a $400/month condo fee is "affordable," which is absurd for even a middle-class family making $100 per year.

It seems that D.C. has no problem inviting in the lawyers and nouveau riche into the city, but is quick to complain when a report comes out criticizing the lack of families living in the city. I think the schools and crime are second to affordability, especially in the crazy real estate market we live in.

What is D.C. prepared to do to make "affordable housing" affordable to middle class families?

Stacey D. Stewart: The definition of affordability typically takes into account both the cost of housing and the income of the household occupying it. Housing in the Nation's Capital's affordability calculations use the common guideline that a household should not spend more than 30 percent of its income on housing.

The Comprehensive Housing Task Force report in 2005 contains thoughtful recommendations on how to expand and preserve affordable housing for varying income levels. Last year's Housing in the Nation's Capital also provided a number of suggestions for accomplishing this. You can access the report at Housing in the Nation's Capital (Fannie Mae Foundation).

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Stacey D. Stewart: There were so many great questions and I'm sorry we didn't have enough time to get to all of them. Thank you for participating.

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