Stifling Developer Incentives Not The Answer To Affordable Housing

By DANIEL BORNSTEIN, ESQ.

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Wading through the Examiner with our Wednesday morning coffee, we were intrigued to find an Op Ed. The editorial offered insights into recent changes in state density bonus law to increase heights and densities 35 percent about the existing zoning. These benefits – related in the piece as a gift from Santa Claus – were of “no additional public benefit”, the authors submitted. Read the editorial here.

Assemblymember Phil Ting attempted to close this loophole by introducing AB 915. While this measure was widely supported by the San Francisco pro-housing community and it passed the state Assembly, it died on the vine in the Senate. Had it pass the legislature, it would have nearly certainly faced a veto from the Governor.

The editorial surmises that AB 915 would lead to more affordable housing and at Bornstein Law, we have to respectfully disagree. To the contrary, undercutting the state’s density-bonus law would make housing in San Francisco more expensive.

The state’s density-bonus law incentivizes developers to include affordable housing in their projects. As a benefit to providing affordable units, developers get to build more market-rate units, in essence penciling out their project expenditures. Stifling these incentives would only stand to slow new housing construction to a crawl. Ironically, if the bill was enacted, it would eliminate the very incentives that density bonuses were intended to create.

Bornstein Law applauds the efforts of the California Apartment Association in taking the lead to keep lawmaker’s eyes on the bigger picture, and we are encouraged by the new construction projects underway.

 

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As the founding attorney of Bornstein Law, Broker of Record for Bay Property Group and expert witness, Daniel Bornstein is a foremost and well-respected expert in landlord-tenant disputes and other property management issues with over 23 years of experience in handling real estate and civil litigation related disputes in and throughout the Bay Area. More than a litigator, Daniel manages rental properties, assists in completing real estate transactions and is well known for his educational seminars. He is always eager to answer questions and engage with Bay Area landlords, property owners and real estate professionals. Email him today.