Road Map to Affordability

City of Alexandria

“It’s been years in the making, but City Hall finally has a plan for tackling one of Alexandria’s most daunting challenges: the dramatic loss of affordable housing in recent years.

The city saw more than 12,500 homes deemed affordable for those making 60 percent of the area’s median income disappear in a 12-year span. And hardest hit was Alexandria’s stock of housing for its most vulnerable: Homes attainable by those making just 30 percent of the region’s median wage dropped from 10,374 to just 454.

At the same time, the average rent for a two-bedroom apartment shot up 71 percent, while the average assessed value for residential property more than doubled, from $191,341 to $449,411. The area median income jumped as well, up to $106,100 in 2011.

The sudden crunch has put city leaders on edge. During the run-up to the 2012 election, affordable housing — and how to save it from near-extinction in Alexandria — came up time and again.”
~Writes Derrick Perkins of the Alexandria Times

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