Housing Development

Current Projects

Affordable Housing Program - The County's Affordable Housing Program planner administers the affordable housing stock created by state and county policies that promote housing that is affordable to all economic segments of the population through a variety of mechanisms that encourage a diversity of housing types, sizes and tenure. Affordable housing stock was and is produced through the implementation of the State Density Bonus Program (SDBP) or the Inclusionary Housing Programs (IHP) during the planning process.

The Affordable Housing Program is administered in the unincorporated areas of the County. The program allocates affordable housing through public outreach, marketing, income certifications, sales and tenant placement. The program also monitors and enforces the Affordable Housing Program. The County has approximately 450 units in the current Inclusionary/Incentive programs. The County has approximately 245 affordable units planned in upcoming Affordable Housing projects, which are planned for construction in the next two year.

Housing Income and Price Guidelines - The current Affordable Housing Income and Price Guidelines are based on the median family income of Santa Barbara County as determined by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Affordability Categories -

Affordability categories are based on percentages of Area Median Income (AMI) of the County of Santa Barbara. The AMI is determined by Housing and Urban Development and is updated annually in March. The following categories are defined in the 2003-2008 Santa Barbara County Housing Element:

• Very Low 0 to 50% of median family income
• Low above 50 to 80% of median family income
• Moderate above 80 to 120% of median family income
• Workforce above 120 to 200% of median family income

The county sets maximum allowable sale and rental prices for affordable units based on a number of factors including Area Median Income (AMI), unit size and target income. Sale and rental prices are based on the percent of AMI that a hypothetical household in each income category can afford. To account for differences in unit size the County uses a unit size adjustment factor that considers the number of bedrooms in a unit. A target income is an established percent of the AMI that is within the range of each income category.

The maximum allowable sale price in each category must be affordable to a hypothetical buyer tin that income category. The price is set such that afiter a five percent down payment the buyers monthly payments for mortgage, taxes and insurance do not exceed 30 percent of the buyer’s target income. The formula includes assumptions for interest rate, property taxes and insurance, which can be updated annually based on market changes. It also varies with changes in the AMI, which is updated annually. The county will use and interest rate equal to the average 10-year treasury constant maturity rate over the most recent 24 months, plus 200 basis points (2.0 percent). Price is also adjusted for Homeowners Association (HOA) fees, which vary widely from project to project. See Income-Sale-Rent Guidelines 2005 in the documents tab.

Affordable Housing - The Affordable Housing Program is responsible for:

• Negotiating and implementing an Agreement to Provide Affordable Housing agreement with the developer customized to a specific project
• Marketing For-sale and rental affordable housing projects in conjunction with the developer's agent
• Income Certifying applicants to ensure their eligibility under the Counties Affordable Housing guidelines
• Responding to public inquiries regarding the Affordable Housing Program
• Maintaining files and databases on housing projects and households
• Administering the existing Inclusionary housing projects
• Executing the legal documents (Resale Restrictive Covenants or Shared Equity Restrictive Covenants) with purchasers of affordable housing
• Development of a mailing list to inform the public of active housing projects
• Development of Public Information materials on active housing projects
• Enforcement of the conditions of the Covenants signed by affordable housing purchasers to minimize violations.

Affordable Housing Program Enforcement - The County Board of Supervisors approved procedures to monitor owner occupancy of homes sold under the County Affordable Housing Program on March 9, 2004. The Housing and Community Development Department will utilize the approved procedures to determine whether owners of affordable housing units are in compliance with the County's owner occupancy requirements and allow the director of Housing and Community Development Department to amend the procedures to ensure compliance with the affordable housing Restrictive Covenants.

Housing and Community Development will mail an Annual Certification form to owners of affordable units. The certification forms will be sent Certified and Restricted Delivery so only the owner on the title will receive the letter. Owners who do not respond or letters that are returned undeliverable to the County will be considered in violation and will be subject to further investigation. Owners' who can not satisfy the County of their occupancy status will be subject to financial penalties for rents collected in excess of those maximum allowable, and required to sell the home if the owner is not in compliance.

Danielle Tolman, Coordinator
Phone: (805) 568-3520 Fax: (805) 568-2889
dtolman@co.santa-barbara.ca.us

Complaint Hotline: (805) 560-1095
Email your complaints to: James Moraga, Compliance Officer