Research Shows Communities Oppose Apartments at Their Own Peril; New Brochure by NMHC/NAA Debunks Apartment Myths

1/18/2002

From: Kimberly Duty of the National Multi Housing Council, 202-974-2333, e-mail: kduty@nmhc.org

WASHINGTON, Jan. 18 -- The National Multi Housing Council (NMHC) and the National Apartment Association (NAA) have joined forces to publish a new brochure debunking the myths associated with apartments and explaining how apartments can be a valuable, but often overlooked community development tool.

"Creating Successful Communities: A New Housing Paradigm," details how apartments:

-- are more compact, less sprawling and conserve green space -- create pedestrian-friendly and vibrant 24-hour neighborhoods -- use municipal infrastructure more efficiently -- revitalize deteriorating neighborhoods -- reduce auto traffic and provide the critical mass of users required to make mass transit feasible -- improve economic prosperity by providing much-needed housing for the employees and customers local businesses need.

"For decades now, policy makers have overwhelmingly emphasized homeownership and have implicitly, or explicitly, attached a stigma to rental housing," explained Douglas M. Bibby, NMHC's president in releasing the new brochure. "This is unfortunate, because apartments are uniquely qualified to solve a long list of housing-related problems facing our country -- problems like the growing affordable housing crisis, urban decay and suburban sprawl. But their role in solving these problems has been hampered because government, responding to outdated stereotypes, has bogged them down with so many regulations and zoning roadblocks. Even where government is supportive, misinformed neighborhood activists routinely block new apartment construction."

"If we are serious about wanting to create more successful communities," elaborated Bibby, "we need to get people to understand that if they erect barriers to apartments, they will lose because their housing and economic development problems will remain unsolved. We hope this brochure will help develop a new thinking about apartments and community development."

The new NMHC/NAA brochure fosters a new thinking about apartments by telling the "real story" about apartments, including:

-- why housing preferences are changing and leading a growing number of upscale and moderate income households to choose renting even though they could afford to own; -- how apartments actually place less burden on local school systems than single-family houses; -- how apartments can help reduce traffic congestion; -- why the perceived connection between apartments and higher crime rates is faulty; -- how homes located near apartments maintain their property values; -- how apartment residents do "pay their way" through property taxes, and often at a higher rate than house owners; -- how apartment residents are comparable to homeowners for many desirable citizenship characteristics; and -- how Americans are more accepting of higher density housing than traditional surveys would have us believe.

The 16-page, four color publication is a valuable resource for apartment owners and developers seeking to overcome "not in my backyard" opposition to their properties. NMHC/NAA will be using it as a key element in their ongoing efforts to pursue a more balanced housing policy and a more market-friendly regulatory environment for the apartment industry.

The brochure is being released in time for NMHC/NAA staff to distribute it at the U.S. Conference of Mayors' 70th Annual Meeting, which is being held January 22-26, 2002 in Washington, DC and New York City. On January 23, in Washington, the organization's Vice President, Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino, will lead a plenary discussion on "Housing: The Key to America's Economic Security."

In addition, NMHC/NAA will mail the brochure to all Members of Congress and to more than 15,000 mayors and local planning officials in the coming months. It will also be shared with leading community development and smart growth stakeholders at a February 7, 2002 summit on housing density being co-sponsored by NMHC, the Urban Land Institute and the American Institute of Architects.

A PDF format of the brochure is available at NMHC's web site at http://www.nmhc.org/Content/BrowseContent.cfm?IssueID=215, and hard copies can be ordered from NAA at a nominal fee by calling 703-518-6141.

NMHC and NAA represent the nation's leading firms participating in the multifamily rental housing industry. NMHC/NAA's combined memberships are engaged in all aspects of the development and operation of apartment communities, including ownership, construction, finance and management. Together, the organizations jointly operate a federal legislative program and provide a unified voice for the private apartment industry. One-third of Americans rent their housing, and more than one in seven Americans lives in an apartment. For more information, contact NMHC at 202-974-2300, e-mail the Council at info@nmhc.org, or visit NMHC's web site at http://www.nmhc.org.