The recent eviction moratorium by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is problematic for both apartment owners and residents, said Doug Bibby, president of the National Multifamily Housing Council (NMHC).
“The eviction moratorium makes it harder for owners to invest in their communities and to sustain those communities,” said Bibby, one of the featured speakers during the virtual Multifamily Executive Conference. “It’s already more costly right now to run an apartment community and keep them safe for the residents.”
NMHC and other housing organizations have criticized the moratorium, which halts resident evictions until Dec. 31 to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 but did not come with additional rental assistance for residents nor did it address the financial obligations of property owners.
Speaking with MFE editor Christine Serlin about today’s regulatory issues, Bibby said more balance is needed when looking for solutions.
Looking ahead, the pandemic is only going to exacerbate the affordable housing crisis, according to Bibby.
“It’s an absolute certainty that we’re going to come out of this pandemic and out of this horrible downturn with the affordability crisis even worse than it was going into it,” he said. “People have exhausted their financial resources. The biggest single problem that we see hasn’t changed, and that is at the state and local level zoning and land-use policies are still restrictive. “
In addition, costly entitlement processes, fees, and other barriers are driving up the cost to develop housing.
The first order of business is for states and localities to be part of the solution instead of standing in the way, according to Bibby.
“We’re also going to need more and more creative financing tools for affordable housing to help address the cost issue,” he said, adding that more federal dollars are also needed for affordable housing, especially the Section 8 rental assistance and the low-income housing tax credit programs.
“Make no mistake we’re going to come out with a deeper hole to dig out of on the affordability side,” he said.
Bibby also strongly opposes California’s Proposition 21, a rent control initiative on the November ballot. “If Prop 21 is voted in, it will be the most stringent and punitive regime for rent control in our nation’s history,” he said. “It will make what happened in New York pale by comparison.”
If passed, the initiative will increase capital flight out of the state, said Bibby, adding that the state has existing rent control laws.
