After spending a year working to improve Howard?s affordable-housing program, officials are turning their attention to marketing the program.
At a workshop today, county officials are planning to offer potential participants information on the moderate-income housing unit program to enlighten the public on affordable housing in the county.
“This is about educating people about the inclusionary zoning program and the application process and debunking some of the myths,” Housing Director Stacy Spann said.
Among the most common myths about the moderate-income housing unit program, Spann said, is that the town houses and apartments are public housing ? a term that often carries a stigma of being run-down or high-crime subsidized housing.
The houses recently made available for rent and sale are far from that, Spann said, describing the offerings as having “very high quality and moderate prices.”
Sale prices for MIHUs range from about $110,000 for a condominium to $225,000 for a single-family house, according to county officials.
“The piece we are working hard on is marketing it and connecting it with [residents],” he said.
To qualify to buy a house through Howard?s moderate-income housing program, an individual can make up to 80 percent of the median income, or $51,063.
Recent changes to the MIHU program aimed to make it easier for people to qualify for affordable housing.
This is the first time county officials have hosted a workshop for the program, and the properties for rent or sale are being highlighted, including town homes and apartments at Elkridge Crossing and Belmont Station in Elkridge.
Andre de Verneil, of the Interfaith Coalition for Affordable Housing, called the recent changes at the housing department “quite a turnaround.”
“I do think they are being proactive and much more open in engaging the community,” he said.
Although the workshop may be more geared toward MIHU applicants, community outreach is still a necessary element for the department, he said.
The department should consider visiting community association meetings to reach more residents, he said.
Sherman Howell, affordable-housing advocate and member of the African American Coalition of Howard County, said outreach is a positive move, but the county really needs to increase the overall number of affordable houses.
“It?s nice to do it, but that?s not getting at the core of the need,” he said.
If you go
» What: Workshop on
Howard?s moderate income housing program
» When: 7 p.m. today
» Where: George Howard Building, 3430 Court House Drive, Ellicott City
