Even “affluent” towns need affordable housing: a beautiful collaboration between HANDS and Maplewood, NJ

Founded in 1986, Housing and Neighborhood Development Services, Inc. (HANDS) has historically focused its efforts in urban areas, mainly East Orange and Orange, NJ. However, the natural advantages that Orange holds are increasingly realized and the desire to remain a landing ground for affordable housing developed by a local non-profit has dimmed. This has left HANDS with a wealth of skills and expertise to target projects in new neighborhoods.??

With a median household income of $150,000, Maplewood, NJ, located in Essex County, is not a municipality typically associated with affordable housing. However, with an average housing price of almost $800,000, Maplewood is out of reach for most of the population. As a result, there is a need for affordable housing to ensure the town attracts and retains the diversity that makes it such a special place to live.??

In 2018, Maplewood identified the need to build 362 and preserve 6 affordable housing units in their Housing Element & Fair Share Plan. The Plan included new assisted living units, new inclusionary zoning over the Maplewood Country Club site, a Township-wide affordable housing requirement for any new multi-family construction, and programs to create affordable homeownership opportunities.??

However, Maplewood lacked the expertise needed to oversee and implement its stated objectives and reached out to HANDS to help move their plan forward. The potential collaboration was the perfect opportunity for HANDS to both broaden its impact and expand its mission by bringing affordable development to affluent towns.??

In late 2020, HANDS identified its first project: a 3-bedroom home with a lot of potential. Upon acquiring the property, repairs were completed by a local contractor to ensure a future homeowner would have a minimal amount of maintenance. This was especially important because the properties were targeted to households that were Asset Limited, Income Constrained, and Employed (ALICE) model. Under this model, the property needs to be affordable to the average middle-class worker who is gainfully employed yet extremely vulnerable to unexpected expenses and price fluctuations.??

Once rehabilitated, the property was placed on the market and received nearly 2,700 applicants and was sold to a first-time homeowner with an immigrant background and a new family.??

This successful collaboration comes at an important juncture in the affordable housing movement. In 2018, after recognizing that local governments faced no legal requirement to provide affordable housing from 1999 to 2015, the state Supreme Court directed municipalities to meet their affordable housing requirements, with housing advocates recommending the state add 200,000 affordable housing units. Since then, municipalities across the state, many with no previous affordable housing experience, have been working to meet this need. We believe this is a perfect time to continue expanding our model to other affluent municipalities with unmet affordable housing obligations.?