NEW HOUSING THAT MEETS COMMUNITY NEED:
Let’s build a truly affordable Boston for all residents.

Drastic Mismatch Between New Housing and Residents Needs and Incomes.png

We need the IDP to require developers to make 1/3 of new housing truly affordable, because the current rule is fueling a drastic mismatch between new housing and community need.

Only 9% of new housing is Boston is being built for low and moderate income residents who make up almost half of the City. And only 3% is affordable to the lowest-income households facing the most need.

These numbers would increase dramatically if we start requiring 1/3 of housing in private developments to be truly affordable. 13% is not enough! And the 13% is not even truly affordable because the IDP focuses on higher income levels, meaning that almost no units built by private developers are affordable to 44% of Boston.

Here are more details:

  • From January 1, 2011 to Auguts 21, 2019, there have been 31,931 units built or permitted in Boston.

  • The City measures the affordability of a unit based on household income, which is measured using a statistic called “area median income” or AMI. (This statistic is not a real measure of the incomes of Boston, people of color, or renters — read more details here.)

  • 44% of Boston’s households are what we call low and moderate income, making 0-60% AMI (0-60% of the area median income). This includes individuals making up to $47,600, and families of 4 making up to $68,000. But only 9% of new housing in Boston is affordable for these households. And the IDP requires 0% of new housing at these income levels, because it requires housing for households making up to 70% AMI.

  • The households with the most need — facing the highest risk of displacment and paying most of their income on housing — make even less. 27% of Boston’s households make 0-30% AMI. This includes individuals making up to $23,800, and families of 4 making up to $34,000. But only 3% of new housing in Boston is affordable at these income levels!

  • 82% of new housing is market-rate, many with rents of more than $3000-4000 a month. The City’s analysis of new housing built between January 1, 2011 to June 30, 2017 estimated that about 61% of new housing is only affordable to households making over 135% of area median income ($107,100 for an individual or $152,950 for a household of 4).

We need to stop allowing massive amounts of unaffordable development that leaves out Boston residents, furthers inequality and racism, and destabilizes our communities. Instead, we need to keep our city diverse and welcoming to all.

And to do that, we must strengthen the IDP! That is why we are fighting for an IDP that requires developers to make 1/3 of new housing truly affordable.