Affordable Housing Plan Surpasses Target

(Read more on the multifamily market.)

NEW YORK CITY-New York City has surpassed its annual target for affordable housing, financing 18,472 units of affordable housing in the 2007 fiscal that ended June 30th according to Mayor Bloomberg, Department Preservation and Development Commissioner Shaun Donovan and Housing Development Corp. President Emily Youssouf.

This represents the highest production number of any year under the Mayor’s New Housing Marketplace Plan and is the greatest number of affordable units financed by the City since Mayor Koch’s housing plan, according to a government release. New York City has funded nearly 83,000 affordable homes since Mayor Bloomberg took office in 2002, including 64,408 units funded under the New Housing Marketing Plan.

At a cost of $7.5 billion, the 10-year plan is the largest municipal affordable housing plan in the nation’s history according to the release. “These numbers show that we are on track to reach our goal of creating enough affordable housing for 500,000 New Yorkers,” Bloomberg says. “New York City is in the midst of an incredible residential construction boom that is building much-needed housing for our growing population.”

When the New Housing Marketing Plan began in July 2003, the Mayor set a goal of 65,000 units of affordable housing over five years. In February 2006, the Mayor more than doubled the plan’s goal to 165,000 units over ten years. Within the next few weeks, the City will meet the original 65,000-unit goal, a year earlier than planned, according to the release.

“This year’s strong numbers show that the Mayor’s ambitious 165,000-unit target is attainable and we are making strong progress towards that goal,” says HPD Commissioner Shaun Donovan. “As we prepare for a million more New Yorkers by 2030, we must ensure that we have the housing capacity for our growing city and that we create thousands of affordable and sustainable new homes.”