Queen Annes County, MD Inclusionary Housing

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§ 18:1-108 Moderately priced dwelling units

Purpose and intent.

The purpose of this article is to implement the housing goals of the Queen Anne's County Comprehensive Plan Land Use Policy 4A such that:

(a)

The development regulations are amended to include requirements for moderately priced dwelling units;

(b)

Private developers constructing moderately priced housing under this article have reasonable prospects of realizing a profit on the development;

(c)

Opportunities are retained for people that work in the County to live in the County;

(d)

Housing options are made available to moderate-income residents, and for special needs populations, including but not limited to the elderly.

Definitions. In this article, unless another meaning is plainly intended, the following words have the meanings indicated.

APPLICANT

Any person, firm, partnership, association, joint venture, corporation, or any other entity or combination of entities, who submits to the Planning Commission for site plan, subdivision, or building permit approval under Part 7 of this Chapter 18:1, and for which compliance is required by Subsection C of this section regardless of whether any land has been transferred to another party.

AT ONE LOCATION

All adjacent land of the applicant if:

(1)

The property lines are contiguous or nearly contiguous at any point;

(2)

The property lines are separated only by a public or private street, road, highway or utility right-of-way, or other public or private right-of-way at any point; or

(3)

The property lines are separated only by other land of the applicant which is not subject to this Chapter 18:1 at the time of any permit, site plan, development, or subdivision application by the applicant.

CERTIFICATE OF ELIGIBILITY

A certificate issued by the Housing Department, and signed by the person seeking to own or rent an MPDU and the Director of the Housing Department, that certifies that the person is qualified to buy or rent an MPDU.

CONSUMER PRICE INDEX

The latest published version of the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) of the U.S. Department of Labor for the Baltimore metropolitan area.

CONTROL PERIOD

The time an MPDU is subject to either resale price controls and owner occupancy requirements or maximum rental limits. The control period is 15 years for sale units and 25 years for rental units, and begins on the date of original sale or initial rental. Except for bulk transfers as herein permitted, if a MPDU is sold to an eligible person during the control period, the unit must be treated as a new MPDU and a new control period must begin on the date of the original sale.

DATE OF INITIAL RENTAL

The date of the first lease agreement for a MPDU.

DATE OF ORIGINAL SALE

The date of settlement for purchase of a MPDU and includes the first as well as subsequent sales.

ELIGIBLE PERSON

A person or household:

(1)

Whose household median income is 80% or less than the average household median income for the Baltimore MSA, with adjustments for household size, as reported by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD);

(2)

Who holds a valid certificate of eligibility that entitles the person or household to buy or rent an MPDU; and

(3)

Who has not owned any residential property during the previous five years.

HOUSING DEPARTMENT

Queen Anne's County Department of Housing and Community Services.

MARKET RATE UNIT

A dwelling unit, the value of which is not controlled by provisions of this article.

MODERATELY PRICED DWELLING UNIT

A dwelling unit which:

(1)

Is offered for sale or rent to eligible persons or the Housing Department and sold or rented under this article;

(2)

Is offered for a maximum sales price based on number of bedrooms, to be determined by the Housing Department by:

(a)

First, calculating the amount of monthly income available for mortgage principal and interest by using the formula: (median income for three-person household) x (target income range) x (portion of household income available for housing) / (12 months) — (property taxes) — (hazard insurance);

(b)

Second, calculating a monthly payment for a thirty-year term mortgage at market interest rate, ensuring that the monthly payment is less than or equal to the calculation in Subsection (2)(a);

(3)

The sales price of which shall be recalculated each year by the Housing Department by taking the maximum base prices and adjusting them up or down according to changes in the CPI;

(4)

Is offered for a monthly rental price of:

(a)

Eighty percent of HUD's fair market rents if the landlord pays all utilities (heat, water, sewer, electric, and trash); or

(b)

Sixty-five percent of HUD's fair market rents if the landlord does not pay all utilities (heat, water, sewer, electric, and trash); and

(5)

The monthly rental price of which shall be recalculated each year by the Housing Department based on HUD's recalculation of fair market rents.

MODERATELY PRICED DWELLING UNIT AGREEMENT

A written agreement from an applicant to provide MPDUs that is provided in a form and executed in manner consistent with regulations adopted to administer this article.

Applicability. Compliance with the provisions of this article shall be required as a condition of approval for all residential development, including commercial apartments that:

[Amended 8-25-2005 by Ord. No. 05-07; 8-24-2010 by Ord. No. 10-05; 10-24-2017 by Ord. No. 17-12]

(1)

Are located within any districts except SI, SIBE, and LIHS.

(2)

In growth areas, consists of 20 or more lots or dwelling units; and outside of growth areas, consists of 60 or more lots; or dwelling units; and

[Amended 8-24-2010 by Ord. No. 10-05]

(3)

An applicant may not avoid this article by submitting or phasing new development in increments below the thresholds above, the first being after the effective date of this article. An applicant may submit a request for residential development below the thresholds set forth above, but the applicant must agree in writing that when unit thresholds are reached, the applicant will meet the requirements of this article.

Compliance.

(1)

At least 10% of the units in a residential development subject to this article shall be designated as MPDUs and meet all requirements of this article.

(2)

Compliance with this section may be achieved through either of or a combination of the following options as prioritized below:

(a)

Constructing MPDUs. Compliance may be achieved by constructing MPDUs on the site where the residential development is to occur or off the site where the residential development is to occur if the Planning Commission has approved the off-site location based on the location's access to public amenities and compatibility of surrounding uses and densities.

(b)

Paying fees in lieu of constructing MPDUs.

[1]

Compliance with this section may be achieved by contributing to the Moderately Priced Housing Fund where the Planning Commission finds that:

[a]

In the project or subdivision originally proposed by the applicant, an indivisible package of residents and facilities to be provided to all households would cost the occupants of the MPDUs so much that it is likely to make the MPDUs effectively unaffordable by eligible persons; or

[b]

The dedication required by Subsection D(2)(b)[1][a] above is unsuitable or impracticable due to size, topography, drainage, site configuration, or other physical site characteristic; and

[c]

The public benefits of paying a fee outweigh the benefits of constructing MPDUs in each subdivision throughout the County, and acceptance of applicant's fee in lieu will achieve the objective of providing a broad range of housing opportunities throughout the County.

[2]

The amount of fees due under this section shall be calculated yearly by subtracting the maximum allowable price of an MPDU from the median price of the same size unit, with comparable number of rooms, sold in the County in the preceding year.

[3]

Payment of fees in lieu shall be made to the County according to the time schedule below.

	Percentage of Market Rate Units	Percentage of Payment in Lieu
	Up to 30%	None required
	30% plus 1 unit	At least 10%
	Up to 50%	At least 30%
	Up to 75%	At least 50%
	75% plus 1 unit	At least 70%
	Up to 90%	100%

(c)

Donation of land to the County.

[1]

The County may accept donations of land in fee simple, on- or off-site, that the Housing Department determines are suitable for the construction of MPDUs. The value of donated land shall be equal to or be greater than the value of the fee-in-lieu payment required by this section. The Housing Department may require, prior to accepting land as satisfaction of the requirements of this article, that the applicant submit appraisals of the land in question, as well as other data relevant to the determination of equivalent value. The land shall be donated into the Moderately Priced Housing Fund.

(d)

The procedures for considering and implementing alternatives other than constructing MPDUs on the site shall be established by the Planning Commission. To implement an alternative, the applicant must sign an agreement with the County not later than a time provided by the Planning Commission in its approval of the alternative.

(3)

Compliance with this article also shall require that:

(a)

The applicant provides covenants, recorded among the land records of the County, that states that the unit will continue to be a MPDU for the control period, in compliance with this article; and

(b)

The applicant sign a moderately priced dwelling unit (MPDU) agreement, which includes a calculation of MPDUs required to comply with this article in which the applicant agrees to meet the requirements of this article. This form shall be kept on file at the Planning Department.

Adjustments for MPDU qualification.

(1)

If the Planning Commission finds that conditions of the design, construction, pricing, or amenity package of an MPDU project will lessen the ability of eligible persons to afford the MPDUs, the Planning Commission may eliminate or modify those conditions or other costs that reduce the affordability of the MPDUs.

(2)

If the County Commissioners find that impact fees required to be paid pursuant to Chapter 18:3 will substantially lessen the ability of eligible persons to afford the MPDUs, the County Commissioners, upon written petition, may subsidize, exempt or adjust such impact fees upon such terms and conditions as the County Commissioners, in their discretion, shall find necessary in order to implement the housing goals of the Queen Anne's County Comprehensive Plan Land Use Policy.

Construction of MPDUs.

(1)

Integration.

(a)

MPDUs within market rate developments shall be integrated with the overall development plan and shall be generally consistent in exterior design and appearance with other units in the proposed development. The following criteria may be considered in determining whether the requirements of this subsection have been met.

[1]

Whether there are existing or proposed physical barriers between market rate units and MPDUs.

[2]

Whether the MPDUs are located within reasonable proximity of proposed market-rate units.

[3]

Whether the MPDUs of a particular housing type (e.g., multifamily or single-family) are reasonably blended with market rate units of the same type.

(b)

Consistent with the purpose and intent of this article, the Planning Commission may authorize an applicant to increase the sale price of a MPDU by no more than 10%. However, no increase shall be allowed unless the Planning Commission finds, in exceptional cases, that a price increase is necessary to achieve compliance with Subsection F(1) above.

(2)

Phasing. Where feasible, MPDUs shall be provided coincident to the development of market-rate units, but in no event shall the development of MPDUs be delayed beyond the schedule below.

	Percentage of Market Rate Units	Percentage of MPDUs
	Up to 30%	None required
	30% plus 1 unit	At least 10%
	Up to 50%	At least 30%
	Up to 75%	At least 50%
	75% plus 1 unit	At least 70%
	Up to 90%	100%

Certificate of eligibility.

(1)

The Housing Department shall grant a certificate of eligibility to any person who meets the definition of "eligible person."

(2)

The Housing Department shall monitor annually occupants of rental MPDUs created pursuant to this article. Where the Housing Department determines that an occupant no longer qualifies as an eligible person, the Housing Department shall notify the person that the rental MPDU shall be vacated within one year of notification in order to make the unit available to an eligible person.

Payment of homeowners' association fees. Residents of an MPDU shall pay an equal share of homeowners' association fees or similar costs as non-MPDU units.

Procedures for sale or rental of MPDUs.

(1)

Every MPDU required under this article must be rented or sold to eligible persons to be used for his or her own residence.

(2)

Before offering any MPDUs for first sale or initial rent, the applicant must notify the Housing Department of the proposed offering and the date on which the applicant will be ready to begin marketing to eligible persons. The notice must include:

(a)

Whether the units will be sold or rented in accordance with the MPDU agreement;

(b)

The number of units offered;

(c)

The number of bedrooms;

(d)

The floor area for each unit type;

(e)

A description of the amenities offered in each unit and a statement of the availability of each unit for sale or rent;

(f)

A vicinity map of the offering; and

(g)

Other information or documents as the Housing Director finds necessary to determine compliance with this section.

(3)

The Housing Department will maintain a list of eligible persons and must notify eligible persons in accordance with procedures established by the Department.

(4)

An applicant must not sell or lease any unit without first obtaining a certificate of eligibility issued by the Housing Department from the buyer or lessee, unless the buyer is the Housing Department. A copy of each certificate must be maintained on file by the Housing Department.

(5)

Ninety days after the start of the marketing period, the Housing Department may purchase an MPDU if no eligible person has entered into a purchase agreement or contracted to buy that MPDU. The Housing Department shall only rent or sell the MPDU to an eligible person.

(6)

Every eligible person buying or renting an MPDU must occupy the unit as his or her primary residence during the control period. Buyers of MPDUs, except for a housing agency, may not lease MPDUs to other parties unless the Housing Director finds sufficient cause to allow temporary rentals of such units under regulations, which may include maximum rental levels, adopted by the County Commissioners. If the Housing Director finds that an owner of an MPDU is not occupying the dwelling unit as his or her primary residence, except as herein provide, the Housing Director may assess a monthly fee equal to the HUD fair market rent for the MPDU.

(7)

Any rent obtained for a MPDU that is rented in violation of this section must be paid into the Moderately Priced Housing Fund by the owner within 90 days after the Housing Director notifies the owner of the rental violation. If rent remains unpaid 90 days after notification, the owner of the MPDU shall be liable for an additional assessment equal to the HUD fair market rent for the MPDU for each month, or part thereof, that the rent collected in violation of this section remains unpaid. The additional assessment shall be paid into the Moderately Priced Housing Fund.

Restrictions on resale.

(1)

Subsequent sales price. During the control period, except for foreclosure proceedings, no MPDU shall be resold except as an MPDU as herein defined. An MPDU shall not be resold for a price greater than the original selling price plus:

(a)

A percentage of the unit's original selling price equal to the increase in the cost of living, as determined by the Consumer Price Index; and

(b)

The value of improvements made to the unit between the date of original sale and date of resale, as appropriately documented according to procedures adopted by the Housing Department; and

(c)

An allowance for closing costs which were not paid by the original seller, but which will be paid by the original buyer for the benefit of the later buyer; and

(d)

A reasonable sales commission if the unit is not sold within 90 days to an eligible person from the Housing Department's eligibility list.

(2)

Subsequent sale requirements. Any MPDU offered for resale during the control period must be first offered exclusively for 90 days through the Housing Department to eligible persons on the eligibility list and to the Housing Department which can also purchase the MPDU. After this ninety-day period expires, that unit may be offered for sale to the general public, though that unit will still remain as a MPDU until the expiration of the control period.

(3)

A person who rents a MPDU and lawfully occupies it when the unit is offered for sale will have first preference to purchase the dwelling unit, provided that such person is an eligible person.

Restriction on resale after control period ends.

(1)

Payment to Moderately Priced Housing Fund.

(a)

If an MPDU is sold or resold after the expiration of the control period, the restrictions on resale in Subsection J no longer apply. However, for the first sale of an MPDU after the expiration of the control period, the seller shall pay to the Moderately Priced Housing Fund 1/2 of the excess of the total market rate resale price over the sum of the following:

[1]

The original selling price; and

[2]

A percentage of the unit's original selling price equal to the increase in the cost of living as determined by the Consumer Price Index; and

[3]

The value of improvements made to the unit between the date of original sale and date of resale, as appropriately documented according to procedures adopted by the Housing Department; and

[4]

A reasonable sales commission.

(b)

The Housing Department shall adjust the amount paid into the Fund in each case so that the seller retains at least $10,000 of the excess of the resale price over the sum of the items in Subsection K(1)(a)[1] through [4]. If there is no excess or the excess is not greater than $10,000, then the seller owes nothing to the Fund.

(2)

The Housing Department shall find that the price and terms of a sale covered by Subsection K(1) of this section are bona fide and accurately reflect the entire transaction between the parties so that the full amount required under Subsection K(1) of this section is paid to the Fund. The County shall terminate the MPDU controls and execute a release of the restrictive covenants upon receipt of the full amount required under Subsection K(1) of this section.

Foreclosure regulations. The County may adopt written regulations dealing with foreclosure proceedings. If a foreclosure sale of an MPDU occurs during the control period, any price paid at the foreclosure sale that exceeds the price established under Subsection J(1), plus any reasonable costs and fees of foreclosure, shall be paid into the Moderately Priced Housing Fund. If an MPDU is foreclosed after the expiration of the control period, Subsection K applies. If the unit sold by foreclosure was originally constructed by the applicant as a rental unit and continued as a rental unit until the foreclosure, the Housing Department shall calculate the sale price that would have been permitted at the time of original rental as if the unit had been originally offered for sale. For any MPDU sold by foreclosure, the County shall terminate the MPDU controls and execute a release of the restrictive covenants if proceeds of the sale, if any, that shall be paid to the Moderately Priced Housing Fund in accordance with this section have been paid.

Restriction on rent. During the control period, no MPDU shall be rented except as an MPDU herein defined.

Density bonus.

(1)

An applicant who complies with this article may be granted a density bonus of 10% above the maximum amount permitted in a zone, provided that the development complies with the provisions of Chapter 18.

Waiver of requirements. The Housing Department may waive the restriction on the resale and re-rental prices for MPDUs if the Housing Department finds that the restrictions conflict with regulations of federal or state housing programs and thus prevent eligible persons from buying or renting units under the MPDU program.

Bulk transfers. This section does not prohibit the bulk transfer or sale of all or some of the rental MPDUs in a development during the control period if the buyer is bound by all covenants and controls on the MPDUs.

Regulations and enforcement.

(1)

The County may adopt regulations necessary to administer this article, to promote compliance with this article, and prevent practices that evade controls on rents and sales of MPDUs.

(2)

This section applies to all agents, successors and assigns of an applicant. A building permit shall not be issued, and a site plan, or subdivision plan shall not be approved unless it meets the requirements of this article. The Planning Director may deny, suspend or revoke any building or occupancy permit upon finding a violation of this article. Any prior approval of a preliminary plan, site plan, or subdivision plat may be suspended or revoked upon the failure to meet any requirement of this article.