D.C. Mun. Regs. tit. 10, r. 10-A500
The Housing Element of the Comprehensive Plan describes the importance of housing to neighborhood quality in the District of Columbia and the importance of providing housing opportunities for all segments of our population. 500.1
The critical housing issues facing the District of Columbia are addressed in this Element. These include:
* Ensuring housing affordability
* Fostering housing production
* Conserving existing housing stock
* Promoting home ownership
* Providing housing for residents with special needs. 500.2
These issues affect every facet of the Comprehensive Plan. They influence land use and density decisions, shape infrastructure and community service needs, determine transportation demand, and even drive employment strategies for District residents. At the most basic level, it is the availability of safe, decent, affordable housing that will determine whether the District's vision for an inclusive city will be realized. The type of housing constructed and the cost of that housing will influence whether we as a city can attract families with children, maintain neighborhood diversity, and provide economic opportunity for all. 500.3
The city's housing stock is varied in type and size. Table 5.1 shows the number of units by type, year built, size, and vacancy rate. Of the city's 248,000 occupied housing units in 2000, 41 percent were owner-occupied and 59 percent were renter-occupied. Forty percent of the housing units in the city are single-family units and over 35 percent of the housing stock was built before 1940. 500.4
Housing Element Table 5.1: District's Housing Stock, 2000 500.5
In the eight years since the Comprehensive Plan was last amended, there has been a tremendous increase in housing demand, driven by demographic shifts, low interest rates, regional economic growth, falling crime rates, renewed confidence in District government, and improvements in public services. The increase in demand has propelled a steep upward spiral in housing costs, impacting renters and homeowners alike. 500.6
The increase in demand has also resulted in a tremendous increase in the production of housing. There were more than 2,200 new units permitted in 2005, 75 percent above the 2001-2003 average and more than eight times the average of the 1990s. In late 2005, an astonishing 8,900 housing units were under construction or about to break ground in the city-the biggest building boom in Washington since the early 1960s. Table 5.2 shows the recent trends in housing units permitted. 500.7
Table 5.2: New Privately Owned Housing Units Authorized 500.8
Even more dramatic has been the increase in housing values. Between 2000 and 2005, the median sales price for a single-family home in the District rose 174 percent, from $178,250 to $489,000. Condominiums and cooperatives - once considered "starter" homes for first time buyers - have increased equally, from a median sales price of $138,000 in 2000 to $377,950 in 2005. Rents have also soared, jumping 12 percent between 2003 and 2004 alone. As prices have risen, the percentage of residents able to comfortably afford the median priced home or apartment has dropped. In 2001, 34 percent of the District's for-sale housing would have been affordable to a family supported by a full-time school teacher. By 2004, that figure had dropped to just 16 percent. The tightening availability of workforce housing is hindering the District's ability to retain and attract moderate income households.
Figure 5.1 shows housing value change from 1990 to 2005. 500.9
The rising costs have triggered a crisis of affordability, particularly for the District's lowest income residents. Residents must set aside a growing share of their earnings for housing, leaving less disposable income for health care, transportation, food, and other basic needs. The market has also become more segmented, with dwindling housing choices for working families and the middle class in general. "Move up" options for lower income households have become limited, and the opportunity for many residents to build individual wealth through home ownership has become more difficult. 500.11
For existing residents who are already homeowners, the price surge has been a source of wealth as their homes have appreciated in value. The strength of the housing market has also created opportunities to solve some of the very problems it is creating. The recent boom has raised real estate values, incomes, and sales, generating millions of dollars in new revenues for housing programs. The pending availability of several large sites for redevelopment creates housing construction opportunities that did not exist five or ten years ago. New inclusionary zoning legislation will soon require affordable units to be included in many market-rate projects. 500.12
The housing shortfall will continue to create a market dynamic where housing costs increase faster than incomes. Consistent multi-jurisdictional efforts are needed to increase the supply of housing to better meet demand. Intergovernmental agreements and initiatives also will be needed to ensure that all jurisdictions bear their fair share of the region's housing needs and do not leave that responsibility solely to the District of Columbia. 500.13
On a neighborhood level, the recent housing boom has challenged the District's ability to grow a city of inclusive and racially and economically diverse communities. The District has been relatively successful in developing new affordable housing, building or rehabilitating 17,700 affordable units in the last six years alone. However, most of this production has occurred in the very neighborhoods where such housing was already concentrated. 500.14
Map 5.1 illustrates the location of affordable housing projects developed since 2000, overlaid on a map that characterizes neighborhoods as "stable", "emerging", "transitioning", or "distressed" based on demographic and market factors. With the exception of a few projects, there has been very little new affordable housing built in Stable and Transitioning neighborhoods. The map also shows that recent market rate housing has been built almost entirely in Stable and Transitioning neighborhoods. If left unchecked, these patterns will continue to concentrate lower income residents in some neighborhoods and find them scarce in others. 500.15
Map 5.1: 2000-2005 Housing Development by Neighborhood Typology 500.16
While the market for housing has been robust during the last five years, there is no guarantee this will continue indefinitely. The first six months of 2006 suggest softer demand due to high prices and rising interest rates. Measures to increase affordable housing must be mindful of market dynamics and the burden placed on the private sector so that forward momentum can be sustained. This may require additional bold steps by District government, such as the recent increase in the deed recordation and transfer taxes. 500.17
One of the critical issues facing the city is how to retain and create more housing units that are large enough for families with children. As a percent of total households in the District, 21 percent are comprised of families with children. This percentage has been stable over several decades and is substantially lower than the 33 percent rate for both the region and the nation. Other cities such as San Francisco and Boston have similar rates to the District. New York's rate is 30 percent, which is closer to the national average. 500.18 The Washington Metropolitan area is projected to add 1.4 million jobs between 2005 and 2030. Using the existing regional ratio of 1.63 jobs per household, the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments has estimated that these jobs will translate into a need for 860,000 housing units in the next 25 years.
Family households with children need larger housing units with more bedrooms. Of the city's existing housing stock, only one-third of the units have three bedrooms or more. Eighty percent of recent new construction has been apartments, with fewer bedrooms. 500.19
Between 2000 and 2004, the city's vital records show an increase in population in the 0-4, 20-34, 55-69, and the 80 or more years age groupings. The increase in the youngest grouping is a positive sign that families in the city are having children. Retaining these new families and the city's existing families is important to the health of the city. 500.20
The availability of single-family housing and housing with more rooms are two factors that are positively correlated with retaining family households. Of course, there are many other factors that are important including affordability, crime, and school quality. 500.21
Who is moving in and out of the District? According to Fannie Mae's Housing in the National's Capital, one in five (113,000) of the District's 2000 population had moved into the city since 1995. Out-movers during this same period numbered 158,000. In-movers were less likely to be families with children than out-movers (25% versus 45%), less likely to be black, more likely to be poor, and also more likely to be homeowners than out-movers during the same period. Table 5.3 shows migration in and out of the District from 1995 to 2000. 500.22
Table 5.3: Migration In and Out of the District, 1995-2000 500.23
The increase in the youngest grouping (0-4) is a positive sign that families in the city are having children. Retaining these new families and the city's existing families is important to the vibrancy and health of the city.
This Housing Element seeks to address these challenges through its policies and actions. It is organized into four major sections. The first addresses housing production, including both market-rate and affordable housing. The second addresses housing conservation, focusing particularly on anti-displacement strategies and housing maintenance. The third section addresses home ownership and fair housing laws. The final section covers the special needs of the homeless, persons with disabilities, seniors, and others who are not adequately served by the private market. 500.24
The provisions of Title 10, Part A of the DCMR accessible through this web interface are codification of the District Elements of the Comprehensive Plan for the National Capital. As such, they do not represent the organic provisions adopted by the Council of the District of Columbia. The official version of the District Elements only appears as a hard copy volume of Title 10, Part A published pursuant to section 9 a of the District of Columbia Comprehensive Plan Act of 1994, effective April 10, 1984 (D.C. Law 5-76; D.C. Official Code § 1 -301.66)) . In the event of any inconsistency between the provisions accessible through this site and the provisions contained in the published version of Title 10, Part A, the provisions contained in the published version govern. A copy of the published District Elements is available www.planning.dc.gov.
D.C. Mun. Regs. tit. 10, r. 10-A500