Newton City Zoning Code
§ 320-29
Affordable housing.
A.
Applicability.
(1)
The inclusionary housing provisions of this chapter apply to all development proposed to be undertaken on inclusionary sites zoned to provide for an affordable housing component.
(2)
In addition to the criteria outlined herein for affordable units, at least 50% of all affordable units in each development shall be affordable to low-income households.
B.
Administration. Newton has contracted with the State of New Jersey's Affordable Housing Management Service for administration of affordability controls and other matters related to the marketing, tenancy, sale and monitoring of compliance with various requirements associated with low- and moderate-income housing provisions of this chapter. The Affordable Housing Management Service shall be operational within 90 days for issuance of any certificate of occupancy for a development containing low- and moderate-income housing. Depending on the needs found in Newton, the following services are provided:
(1)
Assisting with marketing of Newton's affordable housing units.
(2)
Establishing a screening process for potential home buyers or tenants based on income eligibility.
(3)
Maintaining eligibility lists.
(4)
Referring eligible home buyers and renters to available units.
(5)
Determining maximum resale prices or rents.
(6)
Establishing procedures to ensure that affordable housing units continue to be occupied by and affordable to low- and moderate-income households for the restricted time frame.
(7)
Providing housing counseling services to potential home buyers.
(8)
Assisting households through settlement procedures.
C.
Program fee requirements.
(1)
The Affordable Housing Management Service shall require of applicants seeking final approval for development projects with low- and moderate-income dwelling units an initial registration fee at the time of issuance of a certificate of occupancy.
(2)
Upon resale or rerental of such units, a renewal fee shall be assessed, payable at the time of issuance of the certificate of occupancy in the case of a resale, or at the time of execution of a rental agreement in the case of a rental unit.
(4)
Projects receiving funding from the NJDCA Neighborhood Preservation Balanced Housing Program will be charged internally for initial occupancy. All subsequent resales and rentals will be charged as noted above.
(5)
Initial contract fees for sales and rentals will be billed and collected on signing of the agreement with Newton. Newton shall have an option of paying for its entire unit inventory at the prevailing fee at the time of initial contract or of negotiating an installment plan. If payment is delayed, Newton or the developer will be charged the initial contract fee in effect at the time of payment. Subsequent reoccupancy fees will be billed and collected at the time of sale or lease agreement (rental).
D.
Affordability criteria.
(1)
In order to ensure that both low- and moderate-income units are affordable by a range of households within each household size, the average price of low- and moderate-income units within an inclusionary development shall be, as best as is practicable, affordable to households at 57.5% of the median income.
(2)
The following range of affordability for purchased housing shall be required for every 20 low- and moderate-income units:
(3)
For-sale dwellings. Monthly cost of shelter, to include mortgage (principal and interest), taxes, insurance and homeowner's or condo association fees, shall not exceed 28% of gross household Section 8 income limits as defined and adjusted from time to time for varied low- or moderate-income household sizes by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development. Homeowner's or condo association fees for low- and moderate-income units can be increased by an annual percentage not to exceed the CPI housing component only for the region in which the Town of Newton is located.
(4)
For-rental dwellings. Monthly cost of shelter, to include contract rent and utilities (gas, electric, oil, water and sewer), shall not exceed 30% of gross household Section 8 income limits as defined and adjusted from time to time for varied low- or moderate-income household sizes by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development.
(5)
For purposes of relating affordability to household size, households of the following size shall be assumed to occupy units of the following size, and sale or rental price shall not be affected regardless of the size of the household actually occupying the unit:
Number of Bedrooms | Number of Occupants | |
|---|---|---|
0 | 1 | |
1 | 2 | |
2 | 3 | |
3 | 5 | |
4 | 7 |
E.
Residency preference: affirmative marketing area.
(1)
For rehabilitated housing units, eligible persons who reside in the municipality shall have preference over those who do not reside in the municipality.
(2)
For newly constructed units, there shall be an occupancy preference to low- and moderate-income households that reside or work in the Counties of Sussex, Bergen, Hudson and Passaic.
(3)
For housing unit resales and rental/rerentals, affirmative marketing area and occupancy preference shall be expanded to include eligible persons who live or work in Essex, Morris, Union and Warren Counties.
F.
Distribution and location criteria.
(1)
To the extent reasonably attainable, the low- and moderate-income units shall be situated generally so as not to be in less desirable locations than other units in the development and shall be no less accessible to the common open space and public facilities, if provided, than the other units.
(2)
At a minimum, 35% of the low- and moderate-income units shall be two-bedroom units, 15% shall be three-bedroom units, and no more than 20% may be efficiency units.
(3)
No more than 25% of the Town's total fair share obligation after credits and adjustments may be age-restricted for the elderly. The Planning Board shall monitor applicant requests for any age-restricted low- or moderate-income units to ensure any preliminary approval granted does not cause the Town to exceed the total twenty-five-percent cap on such units.
G.
Building schedule.
(1)
The low- and moderate-income units shall obtain certificates of occupancy in tandem with the market rate units according to the following schedule:
Percentage of Market Housing Unit Completed | Minimum Percentage of Low- and Moderate-Income Units Completed | |
|---|---|---|
Up to 25% | 0% (none required) | |
25% + 1 unit | 10% | |
50% | 50% | |
75% | 75% | |
90% | 100% | |
100% | — |
(2)
If the number of low- and moderate-income units to be provided includes a fraction, the number shall be rounded up. If the number of market-rate-income units permitted includes a fraction, the number shall be rounded down.
H.
Affordability requirement for residential conversions.
(1)
In those development applications involving the conversion of a nonresidential structure into a residential use containing more than 25% dwelling units, an inclusionary set-aside requirement of 10% of the total dwelling units to be created from such conversion shall be affordable to low- and moderate-income families according to the guidelines contained herein.
(2)
Development applications seeking a market-rate residential use variance for other than single-family detached dwellings and containing either a gross density of four or more units per gross acre or more than 25 units shall be granted only with a minimum ten-percent set-aside for low- and moderate-income housing. If, however, the use variance grant results in a gross density of six or more units per acre, then the low- and moderate-income housing set-aside requirement shall be increased to 20% of the total units approved.