The term “Affordable Housing” is a concept brought by the government or nonprofit subsidies to make housing affordable to those eligible. According to the HUD, an occupant is paying no more than 30% of gross income for housing costs, including utilities.
Affordable Housing can be tricky to navigate and throughout this website we use several different affordable housing terms. Below is a breakdown of some important terms.
| Building and Housing Codes | These codes are state and local ordinances that declare minimum standards for affordable housing, in terms of construction, rehabilitation, and occupancy. It also correlates to approvals for housing designs for cost reduction. |
| Public Housing Authority | These are public corporations that are appointed by local government, in order to provide housing. |
| Inclusionary Zoning | Planning committees and developments that provide housing, in urban areas. |
| Low Income Housing Tax Credit | Washington State Housing Finance Commission provides credits to developers to build or renovate affordable housing units. Many for and non- profits take advantage of these credits. |
| Market Rate Rent | The rate at which it costs to live in a rental property, on a monthly basis. Usually set by landlords. |
| Median Income | Half of the households have income above the annual median income level and half below it. |
| Nonprofit Housing | Developed by nonprofit corporations in which most houses are below market-rate. Income from the housing is put back into the organization mission. |
| Operating Subsidy | This subsidy goes to the property owners in order to reduce management, maintenance, and utilities of the house. Necessary for extremely low-income residents. |
| Section 8 Vouchers | Eligible tenants can receive vouchers, that are able to aid in payment for apartments in a private market. |
| Subsidized Housing | A program where the federal, state, or local aid in reducing the cost of housing for low and moderate income residents |