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Byram Township City Zoning Code

ARTICLE XIV

Affordable Housing

[Added 1-20-2004 by Ord. No. 1-2004; amended 9-7-2004 by Ord. No. 14-2004; 2-2-2009 by Ord. No. 2-2009; 12-6-2016 by Ord. No. 30-2016]

§ 240-81 Affordable housing.

This article of the Byram Township Code sets forth regulations regarding very-low-, low-, and moderate-income housing units in Byram Township that are consistent with the provisions of N.J.A.C. 5:93-1 et seq., as effective on June 6, 1994. These rules are pursuant to the Fair Housing Act of 1985 and Byram Township's constitutional obligation to provide for its fair share of very-low-, low-, and moderate-income housing.

§ 240-81.1 Municipal Housing Liaison.

A. 
Purpose. The purpose of this section is to create the administrative mechanisms needed for the execution of Byram Township's responsibility to assist in the provision of affordable housing pursuant to the Fair Housing Act of 1985.
B. 
Definitions. As used in this section, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
ADMINISTRATIVE AGENT
The entity responsible for administering the affordability controls of some or all units in the affordable housing program for Byram Township to ensure that the restricted units under administration are affirmatively marketed and sold or rented, as applicable, only to very low-, low-, and moderate-income households.
MUNICIPAL HOUSING LIAISON
The employee charged by the governing body with the responsibility for oversight and administration of the affordable housing program for Byram Township.
C. 
Establishment of position; compensation; powers and duties.
(1) 
Establishment of position of Municipal Housing Liaison. There is hereby established the position of Municipal Housing Liaison for Byram Township.
(2) 
Subject to the approval of the Council on Affordable Housing (COAH), the Municipal Housing Liaison shall be appointed by the governing body and may be a full- or part-time municipal employee.
(3) 
The Municipal Housing Liaison shall be responsible for oversight and administration of the affordable housing program for Byram Township, including the following responsibilities which may not be contracted out, exclusive of Subsection C(3)(f), which may be contracted out:
(a) 
Serving as Byram Township's primary point of contact for all inquiries from the state, affordable housing providers, administrative agents, and interested households.
(b) 
Monitoring the status of all restricted units in Byram Township's Fair Share Plan.
(c) 
Compiling, verifying, and submitting annual reports as required by COAH.
(d) 
Coordinating meetings with affordable housing providers and administrative agents, as applicable.
(e) 
Attending continuing education opportunities on affordability controls, compliance monitoring, and affirmative marketing as offered or approved by COAH.
(f) 
If applicable, serving as the administrative agent for some or all of the restricted units in Byram Township as described in Subsection C(6) below.
(4) 
Subject to approval by COAH, Byram Township may contract with or authorize a consultant, authority, government or any agency charged by the governing body, which entity shall have the responsibility of administering the affordable housing program of Byram Township, except for those responsibilities which may not be contracted out pursuant to Subsection C(3) above. If Byram Township contracts with another entity to administer all or any part of the affordable housing program, including the affordability controls and Affirmative Marketing Plan, the Municipal Housing Liaison shall supervise the contracting administrative agent.
(5) 
Compensation. Compensation shall be fixed by the governing body at the time of the appointment of the Municipal Housing Liaison.
(6) 
Administrative powers and duties assigned to the Municipal Housing Liaison. The following tasks are delegated specifically to an approved administrative agent as part of a contract and will therefore be the responsibility of the administrative agent:
(a) 
Affirmative marketing.
[1] 
Conducting an outreach process to ensure affirmative marketing of affordable housing units in accordance with the Affirmative Marketing Plan of Byram Township and the provisions of N.J.A.C. 5:80-26.15; and
[2] 
Providing counseling or contracting to provide counseling services to very low-, low-, and moderate-income applicants on subjects such as budgeting, credit issues, mortgage qualification, rental lease requirements, and landlord/tenant law.
(b) 
Household certification.
[1] 
Soliciting, scheduling, conducting and following up on interviews with interested households;
[2] 
Conducting interviews and obtaining sufficient documentation of gross income and assets upon which to base a determination of income eligibility for a very low-, low-, or moderate-income unit;
[3] 
Providing written notification to each applicant as to the determination of eligibility or noneligibility;
[4] 
Requiring that all certified applicants for restricted units execute a certificate substantially in the form, as applicable, of either the ownership or rental certificates set forth in Appendices J and K of N.J.A.C. 5:80-26.1 et seq.;
[5] 
Creating and maintaining a referral list of eligible applicant households living in the housing region and eligible applicant households with members working in the housing region where the units are located; and
[6] 
Employing the random selection process as provided in the Affirmative Marketing Plan of Byram Township when referring households for certification to affordable units.
(c) 
Affordability controls.
[1] 
Furnishing to attorneys or closing agents forms of deed restrictions and mortgages for recording at the time of conveyance of title of each restricted unit;
[2] 
Creating and maintaining a file on each restricted unit for its control period, including the recorded deed with restrictions, recorded mortgage and note, as appropriate;
[3] 
Ensuring that the removal of the deed restrictions and cancellation of the mortgage note are effectuated and properly filed with the appropriate county's register of deeds or county clerk's office after the termination of the affordability controls for each restricted unit;
[4] 
Communicating with lenders regarding foreclosures; and
[5] 
Ensuring the issuance of continuing certificates of occupancy or certifications pursuant to N.J.A.C. 5:80-26.10.
(d) 
Resale and rental.
[1] 
Instituting and maintaining an effective means of communicating information between owners and the administrative agent regarding the availability of restricted units for resale or rental; and
[2] 
Instituting and maintaining an effective means of communicating information to very low-, low-, and moderate-income households regarding the availability of restricted units for resale or rerental.
(e) 
Processing request from unit owners.
[1] 
Reviewing and approving requests from owners of restricted units who wish to take out home equity loans or refinance during the term of their ownership;
[2] 
Reviewing and approving requests to increase sales prices from owners of restricted units who wish to make capital improvements to the units that would affect the selling price, such authorizations to be limited to those improvements resulting in additional bedrooms or bathrooms and the cost of central air-conditioning systems; and
[3] 
Processing requests and making determinations on requests by owners of restricted units for hardship waivers.
(f) 
Enforcement.
[1] 
Securing annually lists of all affordable housing units for which tax bills are mailed to absentee owners and notifying all such owners that they must either move back to their unit or sell it;
[2] 
Securing from all developers and sponsors of restricted units, at the earliest point of contact in the processing of the project or development, written acknowledgement of the requirement that no restricted unit can be offered, or in any other way committed, to any person, other than a household duly certified to the unit by the administrative agent;
[3] 
The posting annually in all rental properties, including two-family homes, of a notice as to the maximum permitted rent together with the telephone number of the administrative agent where complaints of excess rent can be made;
[4] 
Sending annual mailings to all owners of affordable dwelling units, reminding them of the notices and requirements outlined in N.J.A.C. 5:80-26.18(d)4;
[5] 
Establishing a program for diverting unlawful rent payments to the municipality's Affordable Housing Trust Fund or another appropriate municipal fund approved by the DCA;
[6] 
Creating and publishing a written operating manual, as approved by COAH, setting forth procedures for administering such affordability controls; and
[7] 
Providing annual reports to COAH as required.
(g) 
The administrative agent shall have authority to take all actions necessary and appropriate to carry out its responsibilities hereunder.

§ 240-82 Mandatory set-aside of units.

A. 
All residential inclusionary developments in the VC Village Center District shall be required to set aside a mandatory 20% of the dwelling units for the construction of very low-, low-, and moderate-income housing in accordance with the provisions of this article.
B. 
The developer shall provide that half of the very low-, low-, and moderate-income units constructed be affordable by very-low- and low-income households and that the remaining half be affordable by moderate-income households.
C. 
Subdivision and site plan approval shall be denied by the Board unless the developer complies with the requirements to provide very low-, low-, and moderate-income housing pursuant to the provisions of this article. The Board may impose any reasonable conditions to ensure such compliance.

§ 240-83 Allocation of units.

A. 
Byram Township's new construction or inclusionary component will be divided equally between very-low-, low-, and moderate-income households as per N.J.A.C. 5:93-2.20 and this article. At least 13% of the total affordable units shall be affordable to very-low-income households
B. 
Except for inclusionary developments constructed pursuant to low-income tax credit regulations:
(1) 
At least 1/2 of all units within each inclusionary development will be affordable to very-low- and low-income households.
(2) 
At least 1/2 of all rental units will be affordable to very-low- and low-income households; and
(3) 
At least 1/3 of all units in each bedroom distribution pursuant to N.J.A.C. 5:93-7.3 will be affordable to very-low- and low-income households.

§ 240-84 Inclusionary developments.

Inclusionary developments that are not restricted to senior citizens will be structured in conjunction with realistic market demands so that:
A. 
The combination of efficiency and one-bedroom units is at least 10% and no greater than 20% of the total very low-, low-, and moderate-income units;
B. 
At least 30% of all very low-, low-, and moderate-income units are two-bedroom units;
C. 
At least 20% of all very low-, low-, and moderate-income units are three-bedroom units; and
D. 
Very low-, low-, and moderate-income units restricted to senior citizens may utilize a modified bedroom distribution. At a minimum, the number of bedrooms will equal the number of senior citizen very low-, low-, and moderate-income units within the inclusionary development.

§ 240-85 Determination of maximum rents and sale prices.

A. 
In conjunction with realistic market information, the following criteria will be used in determining maximum rents and sale prices:
(1) 
Efficiency units will be affordable to one-person households;
(2) 
One-bedroom units will be affordable to 1.5-person households;
(3) 
Two-bedroom units will be affordable to three-person households;
(4) 
Three-bedroom units will be affordable to 4.5-person households;
(5) 
Median income by household size will be established by a regional weighted average of the uncapped Section 8 income limits published by HUD as per N.J.A.C. 5:93-7.4(b);
(6) 
The maximum sales price of very low-, low-, and moderate-income units within each inclusionary development will be affordable to households earning no more than 70% of median income. In averaging an affordability range of 55% for sales units, moderate-income sales units must be available for at least two different prices, and very-low-, low-income sales units must be available for at least two different prices;
(7) 
For both owner-occupied and rental units, the very low-, low-, and moderate-income units will utilize the same heating source as market units within an inclusionary development;
(8) 
Very-low-income units will be reserved for households with a gross household income less than or equal to 30% of the median income approved by COAH; low-income units will be reserved for households with a gross household income less than or equal to 50% of the median income approved by COAH; moderate-income units will be reserved for households with a gross household income less than 80% of the median income approved by COAH as per N.J.A.C. 5:93-7.4(g) and this article;
(9) 
The regulations outlined in N.J.A.C. 5:93-9.15 and 5:93-9.16, NJMFA, U.H.A.C., and this article will be applicable for purchased and rental units.
B. 
For rental units, developers and/or municipal sponsors may:
(1) 
Establish one rent for a very-low-, low-income unit and one for a moderate-income unit for each bedroom distribution;
(2) 
Gross rents, including an allowance for tenant-paid utilities, will be established so as not to exceed 30% of the gross monthly income of the appropriate household sale as per N.J.A.C. 5:93-7.4(f). The tenant-paid utility allowance will be consistent with the utility allowance approved by HUD for use in New Jersey; and
(3) 
The maximum rents of very low-, low-, and moderate-income units within each inclusionary development will be affordable to households earning no more than 60% of median income. In averaging an affordability range of 52% for rental units, developers and/or municipal sponsors of rental units may establish one rent for a very-low-, low-income unit and one rent for a moderate-income unit for each bedroom distribution.
C. 
For-sale units:
(1) 
The initial price of a very low-, low-, or moderate-income owner-occupied single-family housing unit will be established so that after a downpayment of 5%, the monthly principal, interest, homeowner and private mortgage insurances, property taxes (based on the restricted value of the very low-, low-, and moderate-income unit) and condominium or homeowner fee do not exceed 28% of the eligible gross monthly income.
(2) 
Master deeds of inclusionary developments will regulate condominium or homeowners' association fees or special assessments of very low-, low-, and moderate-income purchasers at 100% of those paid by market purchasers. This percentage is consistent with the requirement of N.J.A.C. 5:93-7.4(e). Once established within the master deed, this percentage will not be amended without prior approval from COAH.
(3) 
Byram Township will follow the general provisions concerning uniform deed restriction liens and enforcement through certificates of occupancy or reoccupancy on sale units as per N.J.A.C. 5:93-9.3 and applicable COAH rules, UHAC rules, and this article.
(4) 
Byram Township will require a certificate of reoccupancy for any occupancy of a very low-, low-, or moderate-income sales unit resulting from a resale as per N.J.A.C. 5:93-9.3(c).
(5) 
Municipal, state, nonprofit and seller options regarding sale units will be consistent with N.J.A.C. 5:93-9.5 through 5:93-9.8, UHAC rules, and this article. Municipal rejection of repayment options for sale units will be consistent with N.J.A.C. 5:93-9.9.
(6) 
The continued application of options to create, rehabilitate or maintain very low-, low-, and moderate-income sale units will be consistent with N.J.A.C. 5:93-9.10.
(7) 
Eligible capital improvements prior to the expiration of controls on sale units will be consistent with N.J.A.C. 5:93-9.11, UHAC rules, and this article.
(8) 
The regulations detailed in N.J.A.C. 5:93-9.12 through 5:93-9.14 will be applicable to very low-, low-, and moderate-income units that are for-sale units.
(9) 
The regulations detailed in N.J.A.C. 5:93-9.12 through 5:93-9.14 will be applicable to very low-, low-, and moderate income units that are for-sale units as revised to require 13% of all affordable units to be affordable to very-low- and low-income households.

§ 240-86 Zoning for inclusionary developments.

A. 
In zoning for inclusionary developments the following is required: Very low-, low-, and moderate-income units will be built in accordance with N.J.A.C. 5:93-5.6(d).
Minimum Percentage of Very Low-, Low-, and Moderate-Income Units Completed
Percentage of Market Housing Units Completed
25
0
25 + 1
10
50
50
75
75
90
100
B. 
A design of inclusionary developments that integrates very low-, low-, and moderate-income units with market units is encouraged as per N.J.A.C. 5:93-5.6(f).

§ 240-87 Development fees.

A Development Fee Ordinance was adopted by Byram Township on March 4, 2002, and approved by COAH. See Article XIII, Development Fees, in Chapter 215 of the Byram Township Code.

§ 240-88 Management of very low-, low-, and moderate-income units.

A. 
To provide assurances that very low-, low-, and moderate-income units are created with controls on affordability over time and that very low-, low-, and moderate-income households occupy these units, Byram Township has designated the New Jersey Housing Affordability Service (HAS), formally known as the "Affordable Housing Management Service (AHMS)," with the responsibility of ensuring the affordability of sales and rental units over time. The Housing Affordability Service will be responsible for those activities detailed in N.J.A.C. 5:93-9.1(a). The developers of inclusionary sites shall be responsible for the HAS fee.
B. 
In addition, the Housing Affordability Service will be responsible for utilizing the verification and certification procedures outlined in N.J.A.C. 5:93-9.1(b) in placing households in very low-, low-, and moderate-income units.
C. 
Newly constructed very low-, low-, and moderate-income sales units will remain affordable to very low-, low-, and moderate-income households for at least 30 years.
D. 
The Housing Affordability Service will require all conveyances of newly constructed units to contain the deed restriction and mortgage lien adopted by COAH and referred to as Technical Appendix E, as found in N.J.A.C. 5:93.
E. 
Housing units created through the conversion of a nonresidential structure will be considered a new housing unit and will be subject to thirty-year controls on affordability. The Housing Affordability Service will require COAH's appropriate deed restriction and mortgage lien.

§ 240-89 Rehabilitated units.

A. 
Rehabilitated owner-occupied single-family housing units that are improved to code standard will be subject to affordability controls for at least six years; and
B. 
Rehabilitated renter-occupied housing units that are improved to code standard will be subject to affordability controls for at least 10 years.

§ 240-90 Rental units.

A. 
Newly constructed very low-, low-, and moderate-income rental units will remain affordable to very low-, low-, and moderate-income households for at least 30 years. The Housing Affordability Service will require the deed restriction and lien and deed of easement referred to as Technical Appendix H, as found in N.J.A.C. 5:93.
B. 
Affordability controls in accessory apartments will be for a period of at least 10 years; except if the apartment is to receive a rental bonus credit pursuant to N.J.A.C. 5:93-5.15, then the controls on affordability will extend for 30 years (N.J.A.C. 5:93-5.9).
C. 
Alternative living arrangements will be controlled in a manner suitable to COAH that provides assurances that such a facility will house very low-, low-, and moderate-income households for at least 10 years; except if the alternative living arrangement is to receive a rental bonus credit pursuant to N.J.A.C. 5:93-5.15, then the controls on affordability will extend for 30 years (N.J.A.C. 5:93-5.9). Group homes for the developmentally disabled that have received capital funding from the New Jersey Division of Developmental Disabilities, and where the terms of such grant are for 20 years and renewable at the end of the initial term, shall be determined to have acceptable affordability controls in accordance with COAH's requirements and are eligible for rental bonus credits pursuant to COAH's regulations.

§ 240-91 Elimination of unnecessary costs for inclusionary developments.

Section 14(b) of the Fair Housing Act, N.J.S.A. 52:27D-301 et seq., incorporates the need to eliminate unnecessary cost-generating features from Byram Township's land use ordinances. Accordingly, Byram Township will eliminate development standards that are not essential to protect the public welfare and to expedite or fast track municipal approvals/denials on inclusionary development applications. Byram Township will adhere to the components of N.J.A.C. 5:93-10.1 through 5:93-10.3.

§ 240-92 Byram Township's fair share obligation.

As adjusted pursuant to Settlement Agreement with the Fair Share Housing Center dated September 7, 2016, Byram's rehabilitation share is 13 units and Prior Round obligation is 33 units. Per the Kinsey Report as revised July 2016 and as adjusted pursuant to the Settlement Agreement dated September 7, 2016, Byram Township has a Third Round Prospective Need of 182 units. Byram Township has a realistic development potential ("RDP") in the Highlands Council Planning Area ("the Planning Area") of one affordable housing unit. This article will apply to all developments constructed in Byram Township that contain very low-, low-, and moderate-income units and any future inclusionary developments that may occur in the Township's Village Center District.