Editorial: Lift Cap On Florida Housing Fund
The following is a Tallahassee Democrat editorial regarding the state’s affordable housing spending cap, and what the publication believes is necessary to lift the increasingly large burden of exorbitant Florida mortgage costs on Sunshine State residents …
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When Great American Realtor Day is celebrated in the Florida Capitol on April 11, one of the messages that lawmakers will receive, loud and clear, is the continuing need for affordable housing for our state’s work force.
One of the existing, tried-and-true incentive programs for that particular part of the housing market is the 15-year old Sadowski Act Trust Fund.
It helps working families become homeowners (through affordable Florida home loans) thanks to a variety of public-private partnerships.
It’s funded by 20 cents per dollar of revenue collected via real estate documentary stamps and, because it is set up to rise as Florida home prices rise, it provides trust funds that reasonably follow market demands.
The trouble is, Florida lawmakers started raiding a variety of state trust funds several years ago, and in so doing they effectively capped the Sadowski Fund, freezing it at $243 million a year.
- Without the cap, implemented in 2005 to go into effect this July, proceeds from the doc stamps this coming year would provide $414 million.
- That’s nearly twice the funds available to help ease the housing crisis, stimulate economic competitiveness, and improve Florida’s hand in attracting and retaining a strong workforce.
Support last week from Gov. Charlie Crist for lifting that cap ought not be lost on lawmakers who may still be tempted to raid trust funds for unrelated causes.
It is certainly important to periodically re-examine all trust funds for relevance, efficiency and effectiveness. In fact, the Sadowski Act and all others are up for reauthorization on a regular basis.
In the meantime, though, we applaud the governor’s comments last week to the Florida Times-Union, that legislators should “lift the arbitrary cap” and allow the Sadowski Fund “to do what it was intended to do.”
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No question about it, affordable housing is one of the biggest struggles facing the state’s real estate market in the coming years and beyond. The best means of ensuring Florida mortgage payments residents can afford is the subject of heated debate. Only time will tell where it may lead.
SOURCE: Tallahassee Democrat
