The recent South Florida Hospital and Healthcare Associations meeting focused on a growing concern about the lack of affordable housing and its impact on this markets economy and neighborhoods. The meeting highlighted reports for all three counties by the Metropolitan Center at Florida International University culled from three years of research. In addition, experts were brought in from other markets to discuss opportunities and viable solutions.
Nationally, housing affordability has been an emergent issue since the late 1970s. Analysis shows that homeownership for working families has declined six percent; while overall homeownership has increased almost three percent. Housing affordability is defined by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development as “the capacity of households or families to afford housing without spending more than 30 percent of household income on housing.” This definition has been adopted by the State of Floridas Housing Finance Corporation and the Department of Community Affairs. The Metropolitan Center research found that the lack of affordable housing is a factor in the retention and recruitment of employees. Specifically in Palm Beach County, 58 percent of employers thought it was a problem for recruitment and 44 percent thought it added to employee retention rates. The South Florida real estate market is not comparable to other markets in the country; making it less affordable and thereby less attractive as a place to reside. In fact, Baptist Health South Florida has found that the cost of living has caused some current employees to seek living and employment elsewhere and has seen applicants rescind job offer acceptances once they have researched the local housing market. Although each of the counties have their own specific communities, statistics and concerns, each of the noted issues can be seen throughout the tri-county area in South Florida. South Florida underwent a boom from 2002 to 2005 where the median house price-to-income ratio more than tripled. This rapid appreciation created an inflated market that resulted in significant affordability gaps for the average worker. Specifically in Miami-Dade County (2004) the median home value is approximately five times the median yearly household income. In addition to the high costs of home ownership, this issue extends to the affordability of rental properties, which impacts the lower-income employees. Broward Countys rental marketplace has an average monthly rental of $1,122; which is almost a fifty percent increase from 2000. Rent levels in Fort Lauderdale, Coral Springs and Hollywood are above these average prices. Comparatively, the per capita income during the past three years has only grown 6 percent. The Florida Agency for Workforce Innovation (AWI) reports that the industries poised for the largest employment growth are Healthcare, Administrative Support, Waste Management, Remediation Services and Social Assistance. The majority of employees associated with this economic growth in these industries will earn less than $30,000 annually. Employer-Assisted Housing Programs Employer-Assisted Housing (EAH) programs allow employers to become an invested partner in finding housing solutions for their employees. EAH programs are a proven vehicle to reduce recruitment and retention costs by supporting employees ability to live near their jobs. “This type of public-private partnership is necessary to maintain a competitive workforce. Employer-Assisted Housing benefits employees looking for quality affordable housing near their jobs. Its also a tremendous benefit to employers struggling to attract and retain quality employees,” said Robin Snyderman, Housing Director, The Metropolitan Planning Council, Chicago, IL who presented at the meeting. One such program is the “Forgivable Loan Program” designed by Baptist Health South Florida to provide first-time homebuyer loans to current and new employees. The loan amount varies based on the employees position and location. The loan is amortized by the hospital and only the depreciated value needs to be repaid if employment ends. The hospital system is also developing housing units near some of its locations for employee residences. EAH programs can be customized to fit the needs of different employers and the opportunities that they provide for different employee levels. Some provide direct down payment assistance; while others create a bonus system structured for higher-income level employees. EAH programs can extend to providing a real estate broker within the benefits department to research local housing options, while meeting the individual community and financial needs of different employees or creating partnerships with local developers to subsidize units and ensure first rights for employees. EAH programs can outsourced thereby providing additional support for the employee, such as confidential credit counseling and extended partnerships with financial institutions, while also relieving employers from day-to-day program management. Communities are created based on the workplace and housing options that they can offer to their residents. It is necessary to work in partnership with government agencies, advocacy organizations and employers to recognize the impact housing affordability is having on our communities and the quality of life of our employees in order to better be able to serve their needs and continue to have thriving areas in which to live.
