The units will be part of a market-rate 220-unit complex named Riverside Court (Garden Homes) located at 11 Mallard Place at the north end of the Meadowland Parkway.
According to Affordable Housing Board Administrator Bill Snyder, this is the board's first affordable housing project for home ownership. The board's only previous project involved 20 rental units. That project, Patriot Commons, is situated directly across from City Hall on Patterson Plank Road.
The Affordable Housing Board is a locally run agency that was created in 1995. When developers build in Secaucus, they sometimes agree to subsidize a percentage of their units for families with lower incomes. The board, a seven-member council, oversees the process.
"This project is run in accordance with the Town Housing Element under Secaucus' Master Plan, which dictates guidelines set forth by the New Jersey Council on Affordable Housing [COAH]," said Snyder.
Under those guidelines, the township plans to construct one affordable housing unit for every 10 market-rate units built. In this regard, a 220-unit development such as Riverside Court would necessitate 22 affordable housing units that the developer, Baker Residential, would be responsible for making affordable. Additional help with down-payments and mortgage financing is made available by Hudson County's "First-Time Homebuyer Program."
However, because only 12 affordable units are being constructed on site, Baker Residential will make a "payment in lieu of construction" in the amount of $25,000 for each of the 10 units not being built. That $250,000 will be used for future affordable housing projects, said Snyder.
Who qualifies
Half of the 12 affordable housing units will have two bedrooms and the other half will have three.
Two brackets of income will be used to determine the pricing of the units. Low-income applicants can purchase a two-bedroom unit for $83,033 or a three-bedroom unit for $97,790. Moderate-income families can purchase two-bedroom units for $113,933 and three-bedroom units for $133,806.
Depending on the number of people in each family, applicants must be below a certain income limit to qualify as either a low- or moderate-income family.
For example, in order for a three-person family to qualify as a "low-income," that family must have an income of below $33,509 a year. For that same family to qualify as "moderate-income," the yearly income must be below $53,614.
Applications, currently being accepted for qualifying families, must be filed by Feb. 23 at 5 p.m. The units are available to all residents within COAH's region, which includes Hudson, Bergen, Passaic and Sussex counties. According to Snyder, applications will be reviewed to identify qualifying candidates. Preferences for the two-bedroom units will be given to three-person families, while larger families (four to six persons) will receive preference for three-bedroom units.
Once a pool of candidates has been determined, a lottery system will be used to randomly select the families.
County aid
"There's a new push these days to help provide housing for ownership as opposed to simple rental units," said Snyder, "and that's where the county comes in, aiding low-income families in putting together a down payment and mortgage financing."
When purchasing a home for ownership, most mortgage firms require a percentage of the cost of the home be laid down upfront as a down payment. In this case, there will be a minimum of a 5 percent down payment required as well as a $500 deposit at the time of contract execution.
The Affordable Housing Board is partnering with Hudson County in order to assist homebuyers by utilizing the county's "First-Time Homebuyer Program." This program is designed to give financial aid to families who may have trouble meeting the requirements for a down payment on a mortgage. By determining the "purchasing power" of a family based on yearly income, the county can determine how much the purchaser can afford to put down and help them meet the requirement through a government subsidy or zero-interest loan.
The current development housing the 12 units in Secaucus boosts views of the Hackensack River, a club house, and a swimming pool.
The initial market rate of the 220 units started in the low $300,000 range a little over a year ago, when construction began. But according to Snyder, those same units are going for over $500,000 in 2005. Half of the units are already sold.
The Affordable Housing Board estimates that the sale of the 12 affordable housing units will close by April.
The Housing Authority
Besides working with the Affordable Housing Board, Snyder also serves as director of the Housing Authority in Secaucus. The Housing Authority, also controlled by a seven-member board, has helped implement other affordable housing projects around town using federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) subsidy programs.
According to Snyder, most of the Housing Authority's affordable housing projects are for Secaucus' senior citizens. In fact, all three of the Authority's housing buildings - the Rocco Impreveduto Towers, Kroll Heights and the Elms - house seniors who are income-eligible.
Qualifying seniors with low- and moderate-incomes receive assistance through the federal government's Public Housing Program. That program subsidizes the cost of the units to seniors whose income cannot exceed 80 percent of the area's median income.
In addition to senior housing, the Housing Authority also has 250 families and individuals who are renting units in Secaucus via federally-subsidized Housing Choice Rental Vouchers. Income-eligible candidates must file for the voucher program and then find a landlord who is willing to participate in the program. The landlord receives two checks for the rent - one from the renter and another from the Housing Authority who uses the government-issued vouchers to cover the cost.
The rate of pay for the renter varies slightly depending on their adjusted yearly income.
Lowest percent in poverty
Data recorded in the 2000 Census showed that in 1999, 15.3 percent of Hudson County households lived below the poverty line (as determined by the Department of Health and Human Services). This is almost twice the state average of 8.2 percent.
Secaucus has the lowest percentage of family households living in poverty of any of Hudson County's municipalities, with 7.2 percent. Next is Kearny Township at 8.6 percent, followed by Hoboken and Weehawken, with just over 10 percent of households under the poverty line.
In terms of household income, Hudson County ranks 18th out of New Jersey's 21 counties. But still, Secaucus ranks high in both the county and state in terms of median income levels for families. Secaucus ranks second in the county with a median household income of $59,800, trailing only Hoboken at $62,550.
Out of 592 municipalities statewide, Secaucus ranks 179th in household income.
Secaucus also ranks among the top third of Hudson County municipalities in housing units per population, with 6,385 units for a population of 15,931. But Secaucus has the least amount of housing units per square mile, being that most of the other towns have more rental units.
Hoboken leads the county in number of units per resident, followed closely by Bayonne. In terms of square miles, tiny Guttenberg has the most housing units per square mile, at 24,100 per square mile.
Post a Comment