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Mayor's Five-Year Plan Brings Optimism

LOS ANGELES-With market-rate housing at a stand-still, work force housing advocates and developers prepare for a plan that will keep their industry afloat.

By Nellie Day | Updated on October 17, 2007

(Read more on the multifamily market.)

LOS ANGELES-Two questions dominated the Los Angeles Business Council’s Mayoral Housing Summit that was held on Oct. 17 at UCLA’s Anderson School of Management: “How can we afford to build work force housing?” and “How can we afford not to?” The first question was easy to answer. Further housing development has virtually halted as homebuilders scramble to unload their excess supply to a population who can no longer qualify for a mortgage.

The second question was not as straightforward, however, as Kevin Ratner, president of Forest City, pointed out during the Reasons for Optimism: Preparing for the Economic Upswing panel. “It’s the Fed rate. Deals require a lot more effort now,” he said. “And construction costs, though they have come down, are still really high, so at the end of the day it’s all about finding the gap to deliver affordable housing. Right now that involves innovative practices.”

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