Next week, the McKinney City Council will take up two initiatives that could have a big impact on solutions to help with affordable housing in the area. One is the creation of a public facility corporation and the second is the development of a land trust process that would help first-time homebuyers get into affordable homes.
The city council meeting is on June 21 and starts at 6 p.m. in the council chambers.
Here is what to know about both initiatives:
1. Public facility corporation
A public facility corporation would allow the city and a developer to co-develop an affordable apartment units, explained Janay Tieken, director of housing and community development for the city of McKinney.
The city council will be asked to approve the corporation next week.
Fifty percent of the apartments would be at market rate and the other 50 percent would be for people who earn less than 80 percent of the average median income or also known as the AMI.
“There’s a tax exemption on property taxes, that’s how developers can make a quality product and also make some of the apartments affordable,” Tieken said.
The apartment complex would be a Class A, which are the highest-quality of buildings in an area.
The average rate for a 2-bedroom apartment in McKinney in the 75070 zip code is about $1,700 a month, where a 3-bedrooms costs $2,200 and a 4-bedroom runs $2,800. The public facility corporation would allow a family who earns less than 80 percent of AMI to pay about $1,800 for the 3-bedroom apartment.
2. Community Land Trust
At next week’s council meeting, the council will be asked to create a community land trust process, which would allow the city to partner with a local nonprofit developer to create affordable housing.
The program is set up for people who want to enter the housing market but don’t have the equity to put into a home, Tieken said.
The homes would range from $325,000-$375,000 and would be for first-time homebuyers and those who earn 80 – 120 percent of AMI.
The community land trust would actually own the land where the homes are built. The homeowner is not charged the full value of the property, just the value of the home.
“When they sell the home they get part of the equity that is accrued in the home with the residual value remaining in the home so that the home remains affordable to the next homebuyer,” Tieken said.
A study for historic east McKinney neighborhoods
The city is conducting a Neighborhood Preservation study for Historic East McKinney neighborhoods. Click here to find out how to take part in it.
