Numerous elected leaders will tout their commitment to making housing affordability a priority. However, they often back policies and ballot measures that directly contribute to escalating housing costs.
An example of this contradiction is their support for a parcel tax dedicated to flood control which, while serving an important environmental and safety purpose, inadvertently raises the financial burden on homeowners, making housing less accessible and affordable.
Recent heavy rains caused flooding in San Diego and drove hundreds of people from their homes and caused millions of dollars in damage. Instead of taking responsibility for failing to maintain flood-control channels, elected leaders saw this as an opportunity to propose a parcel tax for stormwater projects. The proposal was unanimously supported by the City Council’s Rules Committee and will be put on the November ballot by the council.
In addition to the parcel tax, a countywide half-cent sales tax for regional transportation projects collected enough signatures to qualify for the November ballot and under existing law can pass with a simple majority of votes. A 1 cent sales tax increase is also being proposed to help fund municipal operations in the city of San Diego. This would be a general tax increase rather than a specifically targeted one and would also require a simple majority for approval.
If elected leaders really want to make homes affordable, they need to oppose ballot measures that will increase taxes because these increases will ultimately affect a person’s ability to purchase or rent a home and will drive up building costs.
To dramatically increase the number of homes in the region, government also needs to streamline the building process. One sure way to do that is by privatizing permitting to cut red tape and drive economic development. Currently, the permitting process in San Diego and other cities is time consuming and expensive.
San Diego should consider replicating what officials did in Phoenix and shift a significant portion of the planning and inspection functions to the private sector. Phoenix has instituted what’s known as a “self-certification” model, which means architects and engineers who have been through city training are able to submit plans and walk out with a permit on the same day. This includes all new construction up to 75 feet in height.
One of the most damaging factors leading to San Diego’s housing shortage are costly permit fees representing between 34% and 51% of the average cost of building housing. Local government needs to take bold steps and waive or substantially reduce building permit fees on housing projects. While permitting fees can serve an important purpose, they can also add up. Local government can encourage the development of new affordable housing by waiving these fees for qualifying affordable housing projects.
To address our region’s housing shortage, San Diego and other cities in the county may consider adopting Assembly Bill 1033, a new state law that went into effect this year that allows the separate sale of auxiliary dwelling units built on residential properties. At the core of AB 1033 lies the concept of “condoization,” a term commonly used to describe the process of splitting a traditional single-family residential-zoned lot into a multiple-family lot.
In other words, it will allow a property owner to turn a portion of the lot into a condominium. Individual cities in the county will have the freedom to decide whether they want to opt into AB 1033, giving property owners the option to sell their ADUs. However, the number of ADUs sold would be merely a drop in the bucket when it comes to increasing San Diego’s housing inventory.
Instead of hasty responses or ineffective legislation what’s truly required are practical solutions such as opening relatively small portions of San Diego County’s vast unincorporated lands for master-planned communities. Land near freeway corridors or near employment centers are prime candidates for building.
Government also needs to incentivize building by offering tax credits for developers along with government grants so building homes in these areas can be accelerated. San Diego is among America’s most expensive cities so rather than increasing costs to build through government regulations, tax increases and permit fees, elected leaders must look for ways to reduce them.
Mark Powell is a licensed real estate broker and a former San Diego County Board of Education member. He was reserve officer with the San Diego Police Department and holds a degree in criminal justice administration along with masters degrees in counseling and educational administration.