New Jersey Adopts Affordable Housing Overhaul

New Jersey has a transformational overhaul for its affordable housing on tap.

Gov. Phil Murphy signed what he deemed a “historic” bill on Wednesday, NorthJersey.com reported. The move sets off the start of a process to make affordable housing requirements more concrete throughout the state.

The bill codifies a formula that will help towns determine how many units of affordable housing they need to account for a “fair share” of such homes in the state, as mandated by the longstanding Mount Laurel Doctrine.

The Department of Community Affairs will in October publish obligation numbers for towns based on a formula used in a 2018 decision, which considered the amount of developable land, growth in household numbers and change in non-residential property values.

Once those numbers are released, towns will then need to create plans and resolutions showing where such affordable housing can be zoned and what type of housing would be allowed. Towns can also propose a different number of units they think are needed.

Town plans would protect them from zoning litigation, which could allow developers to bypass a town’s zoning and approvals so long as what they want to build has at least 20 percent of units set aside for affordable housing. That process is similar to builder’s remedy, which is playing out frequently in California as that state’s municipalities work towards affordable housing goals.

New Jersey towns may be able to receive bonus credits counting for multiple housing units if towns offer certain types of units to fulfill their mandates, such as age-restricted or special needs housing.

The law also creates a dispute resolution program and bans regional contribution agreements, which permits towns to pay other municipalities to rehabilitate affordable housing units, rather than construct their own. The Council on Affordable Housing, an agency that ceased operations a decade ago after failing to create affordable housing rules for towns, will officially be abolished.

At the signing ceremony, Murphy said the bill should accelerate towns’ determination of

affordable housing requirements.

The Garden State needs an estimated 200,000 additional affordable housing units to meet its needs. Affordable housing in the state has often been caught up in litigation between towns and developers as the state’s lack of specific benchmarks tied to its laws has led to costly and long court battles.

— Holden Walter-Warner