Three housing projects in Flagstaff added more than 100 affordable rentals to the notoriously expensive housing market this year.
But as federal tax credits for landlords expired on other units, the total number of affordable rentals in the city actually decreased.
Federal low-income housing tax credits have been used to create affordable rental units in Flagstaff for years.
They offset the cost of renting apartments far below market rate and last between 15 and 50 years if owners keep renewing them. But 144 affordable units expired this year at one Flagstaff apartment complex, leading to an overall loss of 34 affordable apartments.
Devonna McLaughlin is CEO of the non-profit Northern Arizona Housing Solutions.
“I think we still need to continue as a community to focus on increasing that inventory of subsidized units, but also recognize that some of these programs have a compliance period for a number of years, and when that compliance period ends, we lose that of those affordable units," McLaughlin says.
McLaughlin says an apartment is considered affordable if it costs a family no more than 30% of their annual income to rent it, including utilities.
There are currently 1,800 apartments in Flagstaff that serve only low-income renters. The city’s housing plan calls for nearly 800 more affordable rental units by 2032.
