Fairfax County’s definition of “moderate” income was broadened Thursday night in a decision that could enable more families to qualify for affordable housing programs.
The Redevelopment and Housing Authority expanded the threshold -— with a major stipulation — to 100 percent of the area median income, or AMI. The previous cutoff point for a moderate income household, the point at which a family became ineligible for the county’s affordable housing programs, was 80 percent of the AMI.
Expanding the definition of moderate income, which will be applied to construction projects on a case-by-case basis, “makes it possible to address the needs of that income level,” said Lee Rau, a Housing Authority commissioner.
“It’s not going to affect our programs across the board,” he said. “What it does is give us some flexibility to deal with needs as they arise.”
The new definition will be applied to the Crescent Apartments, an 180-unit multifamily apartment complex in Reston, where 80 percent of the units must be rented to moderate income tenants.
The decision was a response to a county-commissioned study by George Mason University that analyzed income and cost of living after the recent building boom, which has been blamed for pushing less affluent families to outlying counties.
For a household of four, the average median income in Fairfax County is $93,300, according to Housing and Community Development Department spokeswoman Kristina Norvell. She said the expanded income definition could make new sections of the work force — like teachers and nurses — eligible for the county’s affordable housing.
