On September 1, 2015, the second meeting of the Virginia Housing Policy Advisory Council convened at the Virginia Housing Center. Below is a list of those in attendance.
Secretary Maurice
Jones
Jay Fisette
Kathy Vesley-Massey
Earl Reynolds
Susan Dewey
Janaka Casper
Hugh Keogh
Jody Wagner (by phone)
Bill Shelton
Laura Lafayette
John Napolitano
Wanda Stevens (by phone)
Pamela Kestner
Mary Dykstra
Richard Owen
This second meeting of the Council provided an opportunity to discuss a university study of the linkages between economic development and housing. The Council heard a presentation from the research team and then participated in a facilitated discussion to help guide the direction of the study.
Additionally, the Council heard from three different stakeholder groups.
All presentations can be found at www.virginiahousingpolicy.com
.
Presented by the Virginia Coalition of Housing and Economic Development
Researchers
The study will be comprised of two components:
1. Economic Impact Analysis of the Housing Industry
2. The Linkages between Housing and Economic Development.
The second component is intended to focus on specific linkages, including:
1. Supply and Demand
2. Economic Investment
3. Community Vitality
4. Household Well-Being
A facilitated discussion followed the presentation. It is summarized below.
Are these four linkages the right study areas connecting housing to the economy?
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Housing affordability is a multi-tiered discussion and that should be reflected in the study.
There must be appropriate product at a variety of levels for a region to be competitive.
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The linkages should help expand the definition of housing in our economy. It’s more than the four walls. Yes, it includes construction, but it also includes the home appointments such as furniture. With the housing comes a much bigger economic impact. We should use the report to enlighten the conversation
The report should provide a jobs number . This number includes categories of impact. It includes revenues from taxes. How many jobs are tied to the supply of housing?
The linkages should include individual and family wealth building. This may be reflected in the household well-being linkage, but it’s not clear. Home ownership is a critical component of wealth building for people of color. This group lost in the recession and this group can gain the most. We need to study the demographic component of economic mobility.
Education is an important linkage, specifically the K-12 connection . The quality of schools can drive the housing market and when the housing-related revenues are down our schools suffers with fewer funds. This connection must be shown, and it’s not clear right now where that will appear foremost in the study.
Education is also an important component in connection to the labor force .
There is a connection between housing and commercial viability as part of community viability. This has ramifications with neighborhood revitalization and mixing of uses. The study should address that component.
We know that we look at housing as a necessary quality for attracting industry and new investment, but what about company departures? What is the linkage between housing stock quality/supply/affordability and company departures ?
What is the economic linkage of the (geospatial) accessibility of supportive services and special resources for the aging and other specific populations?
Household well-being should include mental well-being .
Fees, connections, proffers and additional costs added to the development cost of housing by local governments can affect affordability. This is all part of the equation.
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There are economic models being used by the researchers that will parse this out.
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Is there money in public coffers from this that can in turn help address housing challenges?
The 2008 downturn still affects community vitality and household well-being. This will have to come through in the study and there may be recommendations to buffer the commonwealth in the future.
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What number of people have been put back to work?
What do we want this stu dy to do when it’s done?
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Provide real policy direction that’s useable by communities.
Give enough detail in the Five Regions to draw some conclusions. This will be averages across the regions, and the regions are not exact, so if stories are masked by the data, we may have to home in on some representative communities in illustrative case studies.
Share stories of both high growth and negative growth areas.
This may have to be done by pulling out example regions that best show where housing is key to community vitality and economic success and where it limits it.
Show specifically what a new house does, the economic impact of the home and additional elements.
In addition to those around the table, what other stakeholders should be engaged?
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Economic developers. Secretary Jones can connect the researchers to that group.
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Superintendent of Public Instruction
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Commercial builders
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Richmond Poverty Study by Virginia First Cities
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Norfolk Poverty Study
Presented by Top 40 Network.
At the first meeting, young workers were a topic of interest and discussion. To provide insight on this generation, the Top 40 Network issued a survey among network members to gain insight on the challenges and perceptions of young workers about homeownership.
The Council was interested in learning more about challenges surrounding finance for young workers, as well as attracting young workers to rural areas.
Presented by Michael Wong, Harrisonburg RHA and Bob Adams, VHC and Housing
Virginia
These presentations provided a conversation around affordable housing and its impact on the state. Below are the main points of interest that surfaced throughout the presentations.
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Local Housing Authorities over see a substantial portion of Virginia’s housing inventory that is affordable to very low-income people. However, this inventory is aging and there are substantial and growing unmet capital needs that HUD is not adequately funding
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Upgrading older units to be energy efficient is an important way of addressing affordability challenges for low-income households.
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The true cost of housing should include transportation. To be truly affordable, housing must be closer to public transportation and lower wage jobs.
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Housing Virginia has developed an effective tool for easily measuring the economic impact of an affordable housing unit o www.housingvirginia.org
– under “sourcebook” one can find data and an economic calculator. One is residential new construction economic calculator. It updated quarterly.
The next Council meeting will be held in late fall or early 2016. Members were asked to consider their vision of the University Study and provide any helpful data or contacts to Chris
Thompson at DHCD.
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