Abstract
Lack of affordable housing opportunities has categorized California as one of the most expensive places to call home in the nation. Approximately 70 percent of the people that call the Golden State their home spend more than 30 percent of their annual income on housing related costs. High housing costs has compelled many Californians’ to live in overcrowded and unhealthy homes, and a low quality of life status. The primary reason Californians’ have to spend a significant portion of income on housing yet live a low quality of life status is stagnant housing supply. In the last decade, the State’s housing production had been below the targeted goal of 180,000 units per year. One of the factors often cited for inadequate housing supply is NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard) - an acronym used to describe people who oppose the siting of development projects such as affordable housing in their locality. Neighborhood (NIMBY) residents or NIMBYies oppose affordable housing within proximity of their homes because of the notion that affordable housing deteriorates neighborhood quality and cause property values to decline. Although NIMBYism is often cited as a major contributing factor to the State’s inadequate housing supply, limited research data exists on the validity of local NIMBY group’s core argument and the extent to which NIMBYism contributes to the State’s housing crisis. Using a mixed method approach, which includes a quantitative regression analysis and a qualitative (field interview) analysis, this thesis conducted a comprehensive study on NIMBYism and affordable housing. For the quantitative regression analysis, this thesis adopted a hedonic regression approach to examine whether the greater intensity of affordable housing in a neighborhood reduces the selling price of homes experiencing it. Using home sales data from 2013 Multiple Listing Services (MLS) and demographic data from the United States Census Tract, this thesis observed 4,101 properties sold in Sacramento County to examine the effects of affordable housing household characteristics (low-income households and larger household size) on the final selling price of neighboring properties. For the qualitative research, this thesis interviewed housing experts in the greater Sacramento area. The purpose of this qualitative research was to gather first-hand information on the implications of NIMBYism on the housing development process, and to identify best practical approaches to address NIMBYism. Despite research limitations, this study offers important findings relevant to the policy debate occurring in California, and other parts of the United States, regarding affordable housing. The quantitative regression results demonstrate that an increase in intended residents of affordable housing in a Census Tract caused the final selling price of properties to decline. The regression results also demonstrate that the neighborhood residents’ argument against affordable housing has validity, and that when proposing affordable housing projects in a locality, local officials and housing developers must consider the arguments put forth by local residents. The qualitative research results demonstrate that NIMBYism is a major contributing factor to the State’s housing crisis. The qualitative research results also show that the extent to which NIMBYism stalls affordable housing projects varies from one neighborhood community to another. This thesis found three best practical approaches to mitigate NIMBYism from the housing development process: collaborative governance, community outreach and compensation. This thesis concludes that applying the three methods mentioned above during the housing development process increases opportunities to bridge the gap between proponents and opponents of affordable housing.