Every UVA student has their own goals, interests, and desires. But if there’s one thing that remains consistent among students, it’s the need to call a place “home” for the school year. The issue was highlighted in a previous article by Kyra Graham, which examined the rising cost of off-Grounds housing around the University. Though the problem has caused many students to feel hopeless, there are still solutions that the local government of Charlottesville can employ to mitigate the issue. This article will look at three of the best potential solutions for the lack of housing affordability provided in an interview with Mike Pruitt, a member of the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors.
Increase housing supply by relaxing zoning regulations
Charlottesville’s local government should consider increasing the housing supply. Considering the amount of demand, it is simply not feasible to operate with the current amount of residential areas available. Though increasing the supply may be costly, financial constraints are only one part of the issue. The change that could seamlessly increase housing supply would be to reduce zoning regulations.
Housing developers may have the money to create more units but if there are restrictions on where the units can be built, then the resources can not be fully utilized. Zoning regulations serve an important purpose and they should be honored, but it is not unreasonable to consider loosening regulations if the benefits will outweigh the negatives. Increasing supply will help demand return to a manageable equilibrium, and thus prices will go down. According to Pruitt: “If they can just have more units, then basically the numerator’s going to stay the same on that figure, but the denominator’s going to get bigger, which means that it significantly starts to cut the cost per unit.”
Government funding
Another potential solution to the problem is providing more government funding to housing projects. It is essential to keep in mind that housing developers are trying to make profit. Asking them to simply lower their prices will not be sufficient in resolving the issue. The cost of land, materials, and labor can already become expensive even without factoring in the profit aspect. Pruitt provides further insight: “They’re doing all the math on the front end before they even decide if they’re gonna build it.” Without the right financial incentives for developers, rent is unlikely to reduce.
Charlottesville would benefit from having more inclusionary zoning. This essentially means increasing the required percentage of units that must be “affordable” by the law. Currently, under the Affordable Dwelling Unit program, only 10% of developments with 10+ units are required by law to be affordable. Increasing this percentage and providing financial support to developers through tax credits, subsidies, or grants would be a step toward affordable housing in Charlottesville.
Preserving current affordable housing
While increasing the supply and decreasing prices are important, an often overlooked solution is preserving the current affordable units. According to Pruitt: “If you can make it easier for them to continue operating an old house … maybe an apartment has access to repair costs from the government … or tax incentives if you agree not to redevelop and raise rents … those are all incentives.” In other words, instead of redeveloping old units, there should be greater efforts to fix issues within the units. This would improve the livability for residents while also ensuring that rent prices do not skyrocket.
This is especially relevant to housing near UVA where there currently appears to be more priority placed on the development of higher-end projects. This ultimately reduces the availability of lower cost options that are more realistic for students. As Pruitt says, “‘Affordable and new’ does not happen naturally … especially in high cost areas.”
Charlottesville’s local government can and should work to improve housing affordability by relaxing zoning regulations, providing funding for affordable projects, and by incentivizing the preservation of existing affordable units. Housing affordability is a complex issue. It deserves nuanced solutions, and there is surely no “one size fits all” fix to this problem. But what’s important to keep in mind is that solving this issue is not a fruitless ambition; it is vital to ensure that as many people as possible have a place to call home.
The opinions expressed within this piece represent the views of the author alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Jefferson Independent.
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