S.B. making strides in affordable housing

As another year wraps up, South Brunswick once again has made strides in affordable housing.

“South Brunswick has always been somewhat in the forefront in providing affordable housing for citizens, not just residents of South Brunswick,” Township Attorney Donald Sears said.

According to the state Council on AffordableHousingwebsite, every municipality has the constitutional responsibility to provide affordable housing. This mandate is a result of a N.J. Supreme Court ruling, commonly known as the Mount Laurel decision, which said that each of New Jersey’s 566 municipalities must set up realistic opportunities to provide a fair share of low- and moderate-income housing. COAH was created after the Fair Housing Act passed in 1985.

“Affordable housing is available to anyonewith an income considered very low, low, or moderate compared to the median income,” Sears said.

To determine median incomes, the state is divided into six regions, each with three or four economically similar counties.

For Region 3 in 2010, which encompasses Hunterdon, Middlesex and Somerset counties, the median income for one person is $71,400.

Moderate income would be considered between 80 and 50 percent of the median, which is around $57,000. Low income is considered 50 percent or less of the median, which would be around $36,000.

Very low income would be 30 percent or less, or around $21,000, according to the COAH website.

According to COAH, Region 3 has the highest median income. Region 6, which has Atlantic, Cape May, Cumberland and Salem counties, is the lowest median income at $47,518 for one person.

Sears said that since 1985, the township has provided for affordable housing through a number of different mechanisms.

First, developers who construct large residential developments set aside a portion of the residences for affordable housing, the price of which is governed by the state.

South Brunswick also creates affordable housing through its Reach program, which buys market rate units, lowers the prices and puts in deed restrictions stating that the price cannot be raised. That unit is then sold to a qualified family.

Over the past two years, Sears said, the town has worked to purchase around 16 units through the Reach program.

The township also has apartments where the rent is kept low on certain units in order to make them available for affordable housing families.

Each year around April, Sears said, the state reviews the prices of salable and rental units and adjusts the affordable housing prices accordingly.

In South Brunswick, there are currently around 640 units of affordable housing, Sears said. These units are a mixture of owned and rented units, most of which are town homes and condominiums.

Those interested in affordable housing can apply to the town, which then reviews the applications and certifies the qualified families. South Brunswick then refers the family to a unit to buy or rent, Sears said.

Contact Sam Slaughter at sslaughter@gmnews.com.