For Immediate Release
July 24, 2006
Contact: Douglas Robinson, 202-220-2360; drobinson@nw.org
NeighborWorks® America Releases New Study on the Creation and
Stabilization of Mixed-Income Properties
(Washington, D.C.) – NeighborWorks America recently published a study that outlines seven strategies for successfully developing and marketing sustainable mixed-income properties that provide housing for families with incomes as low as thirty percent of the area median up to 100 percent of median area incomes. Funded with support from the Ford Foundation, the report explains that success is as much about putting in place strong property and financial professionals as creating an appealing and attractive place where people of all incomes want to live.
The report’s results are derived from case studies of successful mixed-income housing efforts in communities around the country, including apartments in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Poway, California, in San Diego county.
“The report is an important guidepost for affordable housing developers and managers,” explained Ken Wade, CEO of NeighborWorks America. “Mixed-income rental properties that include extremely low-income households (below 30 percent of the area median) are a valuable strategy for community health. They simultaneously address two critical challenges: housing for those most in need and desegregating poverty.”
Successful mixed-income apartment housing initiatives have most of the seven key ingredients:
- A realistic operating budget and adequate financing.
- Neighborhoods aligned with target markets (properties should be built in neighborhoods that are accustomed to racial diversity and have amenities such as grocery stores, convenient transportation, and schools within walking distance)
- Curb appeal higher than that of the market niche. Properties should be well-maintained and indistinguishable from those that rent at 100 percent market rate.
- Property managers who are attentive and proactive.
- Leasing practices that attract market rate renters.
- Marketing strategies that are continually adjusted as the market evolves.
- Amenities and services that match those desired by the community’s target markets
“A straightforward business mindset has to be in place for mixed-income properties to be a success,” said Frances Ferguson, director of the NeighborWorks Multifamily Initiative. “Taking care of your budget, identifying your target market, aggressively marketing your product to potential customers and making course corrections when needed, are all that any business has to do to succeed. The research shows that it can’t be any different in the affordable housing sector.”
The full study can be found on the NeighborWorks America Web site at http://nw.org/multifamily.
About the NeighborWorks Multifamily Initiative
The NeighborWorks Multifamily Initiative is a national member-driven collaborative of 88 nonprofit housing developers who together provide more than 50,000 lower income families with high quality rental homes. Through the Multifamily Initiative, NeighborWorks America supports its affiliates in achieving sustained excellence in their housing portfolios.
About NeighborWorks America
NeighborWorks America provides financial support, technical assistance and training for communities across the nation, including the NeighborWorks network – a nationwide network of more than 240 community development organizations working in more than 4,400 urban, suburban and rural communities across America. These organizations engage in revitalization strategies that strengthen communities and transform lives. In the last five years alone, NeighborWorks organizations have generated more than $10 billion in reinvestment and helped more than 780,000 families of modest means purchase or improve their homes or secure safe, decent rental or mutual housing.
