Nov82022

NAC Blog: Accessory Dwelling Units: Small but mighty force to address the housing shortage

NAC

Accessory dwelling units, or ADUs, are a hot topic in the housing space. With the competitive housing market and rising interest rates, having an added source of income can be especially appealing to homeowners. For multigenerational households, ADUs provide additional space for older relatives or young adults in the family. Perhaps more importantly, ADUs can also offer additional housing supply in competitive markets. In 2023, NAHREP intends to execute a strategic plan to advocate for cities and states to not only allow but encourage the building of ADUs as a path to addressing the housing inventory crisis.

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Nov82022

NAC Blog: Chapter Feature: NAHREP Lake County meets with U.S. Congressman Schneider on housing

NAC

The NAHREP Lake County chapter has been making some big things happen! At a recent educational event on October 10, the chapter hosted U.S. Congressman Brad Schneider to discuss housing policy and other important issues. The event was a huge success and a full house of attendees got a chance to hear about NAHREP’s policy priorities, including Congressman Schneider’s take on housing inventory, immigration, and the recently passed Inflation Reduction Act. The NAHREP policy team got a chance to interview NAHREP Lake County President Carlos Rosado and Treasurer Josh Martinez about what has made their chapter so successful and some takeaways from the event.

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Oct122022

NAC Blog: NAHREP urges Congress to act on DACA, providing a path to citizenship for Dreamers

NAC

This week, NAHREP issued a statement expressing our disappointment in the Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that affirmed the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program as unlawful. Last year, a Texas-based U.S. District Judge also ruled the program unlawful, in part because it did not follow typical administrative procedure – it had not been subjected to appropriate public notice and comment periods required under Federal law. Last week, the Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the Texas court’s ruling, sending the case back to the lower court to review the newest version of the rule issued by the Biden Administration in late August.

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Oct122022

NAC Blog: First-time homebuyers can use positive rental payment history to qualify for FHA-issued mortgages

NAC

In some good news, late last month, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) announced that it will allow first-time homebuyers to use positive rental payment history in their credit assessment to see if they are eligible for an FHA mortgage product. Positive rental payment history includes rental payments made on-time during the last twelve months. Adding this rental payment history criteria would allow first-time homebuyers who lack or have a lower credit score greater access to homeownership.

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Oct122022

NAC Blog: Zoning 101: Exclusionary zoning as a barrier to housing production

NAC

The first comprehensive city zoning ordinance was created in New York City in 1916, in response to a 42-story building built in a Manhattan neighborhood that cast a seven acre shadow, leaving many of its neighbors in the dark. At the same time, New York and other cities across the country were grappling with industrial warehouses and factories cropping up near residential neighborhoods. What started as a public health measure, to protect citizens from pollutants and toxins emitted from industrial sites, quickly turned into a tool to segregate neighborhoods.

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Oct122022

NAC Blog: Big Win: AB 2011 passes in California!

NAC

Speaking of zoning, in California, the governor recently signed a critical housing bill, AB 2011, “The Affordable Housing and High Road Jobs Act”. NAHREP, alongside other housing advocacy organizations across the state, supported this bill because of its potential to spur millions of affordable homes. AB 2011 allows for affordable housing development on commercially-zoned areas if it meets the affordability, labor, and environmental standards.

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Sep152022

NAC Blog: Sneak Peek: 2022 State of Hispanic Wealth Report

NAC

In the fall of 2018, I had the opportunity to travel to Puerto Rico for a conference addressing the aftermath of Hurricane Maria. I had just started at NAHREP and was still getting acclimated to the culture of the organization. During that trip, I had the opportunity to get to know the Puerto Rico chapter well. It was through conversations with NAHREP leaders like Eric Haddock, Francisco Fernández, Enrique Morales, and Ivelisse Lopez, that it clicked for me that there was so much more to NAHREP than meets the eye.

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Aug252022

NAC Blog: Where do your candidates stand on housing?

NAC

If there is nothing else you take away from these blogs, let it be this one thing: You have so much more power than you think. Now it’s time to use it.When it comes to your elected officials, YOU are in charge. Don’t ever forget that. Every 2 to 4 years, you get to choose whether you want to keep your elected officials or to fire them. With that power comes a great deal of responsibility. And I know, ignorance is bliss. Most of us go about our days, solving problems that arise within our immediate families and/or businesses, and we don’t have time to “supervise or manage” our elected officials. But, if you think housing supply is the biggest issue impacting your clients and business right now, let’s do something about it!

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Aug182022

NAC Blog: A look into Special Purpose Credit Programs

NAC

Last week, NAC Regional Director Imelda Manzo and I presented on the State of Hispanic Homeownership in San Diego for the San Diego Union Tribune. Following our presentation, one of the attendees asked us if there were any programs that were particularly targeted for the Latino community. This made me think about Special Purpose Credit Programs (SPCP) and the fact that we haven’t talked about them enough here on the blog.

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Aug112022

NAC Blog: Innovative Approaches to Housing

NAC

Cómo están, corazones? This past weekend, I attended one of my favorite gatherings for national housing leaders. Annually, a group of top housing executives and nonprofit leaders gather in La Jolla to discuss the housing market and to share ideas. I was inspired by many innovative approaches to housing issues and I want to share some of what I heard. The goal of the National Advocacy Committee is to empower each of you to be leaders and advocates within your community. As you speak to more city stakeholders and nonprofit leaders, it is important to share these ideas so your city can explore new options.

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