Seattle voters to decide on $970M affordable housing levy this fall

Seattle voters will weigh in this fall on whether to raise property taxes to fund affordable housing, higher wages for human services workers and assistance for middle-income homebuyers.

The Seattle City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to send the seven-year, $970 million housing levy renewal to the Nov. 7 ballot, when Seattleites will also vote on seven council seats. 

The proposal would replace the city’s expiring housing levy and charge 45 cents per $1,000 of assessed home value. That would cost the owner of the median $866,000 Seattle home about $390 per year, an increase of about $260 from the current levy rate. 

Without the levy renewal, “more Seattle residents will be pushed out of the city or just outside, onto the streets,” said Councilmember Lisa Herbold before the vote Tuesday. Boosting the size of the levy was necessary “to meet the pent–up demand for affordable homes,” Herbold said.

Other council members expressed hesitation about raising costs for property owners and renters whose landlords may pass on the cost, but still voted to send the measure to the ballot. 

“Many of my constituents continue to raise their concerns about sticker shock … I hear their concerns,” said Councilmember Alex Pedersen. “City Hall is getting a reputation as a one-trick pony that repeatedly decides to double or triple a property tax as if that were the only source of funding.” 

“I realize this will be a big decision for people to make in November, but it is their decision,” Pedersen said.

Seattle voters have historically warmed to the housing levy, even as taxes increased. Voters supported a $145 million housing levy in 2009 with 66% of the vote and then a doubled levy of $290 million in 2016 with 71% of the vote.

Even as some voters denounce Seattle politicians, taxes and efforts to address the region’s homelessness crisis, local political analyst Ben Anderstone predicts the housing levy is still likely to pass this year unless a robust opposition campaign emerges.

Seattle voters this year passed an initiative creating a new social housing developer to build mixed-income housing, and city voters strongly supported a countywide property tax levy to fund 24/7 centers for people experiencing mental or behavioral health crises, Anderstone noted.

“The ‘enough is enough’ argument [about raising taxes] is just not working on Seattle,” Anderstone said. “The folks who are concerned about spending … need to focus on more specific arguments.”

“By and large, voters have been pretty willing to spend more on housing in Seattle,” Anderstone said.

The bulk of money raised from the new levy, $707 million, would go toward the construction of new subsidized rental homes and improvements to aging affordable apartments. Those programs are focused on housing for people making 60% of area median income or less, about $74,000 a year for a family of three. Nearly two-thirds of the funding would fund housing for those making even less, 30% of area median income or $37,000 for a family of three. 

About $122 million would fund operations, maintenance and services in affordable housing, including increasing wages for people who work in subsidized housing. An additional $51 million would fund affordable homeownership programs and $30 million would fund rent assistance.

Nonprofit housing developers typically pair city funds with other money to build new subsidized rental housing. But developers all over the region are facing rising construction and borrowing costs. As a result, even a tripled levy will not build far more units than the current levy. 

So far, the current seven-year levy has helped fund 2,735 new units and improvements for 530 existing units, 31% more than the city’s original goal, according to a levy oversight committee. 

“We are exceeding … yet we know we need to do more,” said Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda.

The city estimates the new levy would fund 2,881 new rental apartments and improvements for 635 existing apartments.