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Affordable Housing

Dock Seating

Affordable Housing Meeting
October 25, 2023

We are in the early stages of our affordable housing program planning process. As part of that process, we held a resident meeting on October 25, 2023 to present the parameters of the program and answered questions.

To receive updates, please sign up for the interest list below.

Affordable Housing FAQs

Affordable housing program overview
Do you have an affordable housing program?

Yes, as part of the renovation project for Mariners Village, 20% of the renovated apartments will be affordable.

I have sent you my contact information and requested to be added to the waitlist. Can you tell me how long is the wait?

We don’t yet have a waitlist. We have been accepting submissions to our interest list to receive updates about the affordable housing program.

Please refer to the FAQs below regarding the application process and timeframe.

What are the floor plans of the affordable units?

Mariners Village has a total of 981 apartments and 20% of the renovated apartments will be affordable. As we renovate the community over the five-year project timeline, 196 renovated units will be affordable across bedroom sizes—20% of renovated studios, one-bedrooms, two-bedrooms and three-bedrooms.

How many affordable housing apartments are available for each of the floor plans?

The affordable apartment requirement is based on bedroom size/count, and not by floorplan. As mentioned in the previous FAQ, 20% of renovated studios, one-bedrooms, two-bedrooms and three-bedrooms will be affordable.

What percentage of renovated apartments are required to be affordable? The Board of Supervisors’ affordable housing initiative for the Marina seems different.

Mariners Village has a 20% affordability requirement that was part of the land lease extension negotiation with Los Angeles County. The agreement with Mariners Village was in place well before the development of the current LA County affordable policy so it is not applicable in this case.

I thought the interior unit renovation won’t start until Spring 2024. How can the affordable units be available in Spring 2024?

The Spring 2024 timeline referenced in our Renovation Update resident meeting pertained to occupied units, which require more logistical coordination. We will start renovation on vacant units sooner and anticipate the first set of renovated units to be completed in Spring 2024. Generally, 20% of those renovated units will be available as affordable units.

How are the affordable units designated throughout the community?

As the renovation proceeds and apartments are renovated, 20% of those apartments will be affordable, so the affordable units will be intermixed throughout the community. The affordable units will be tracked in our property management system but will otherwise show no indication of any differences with other apartments throughout Mariners Village.

Within our agreement with Los Angeles County, there are 250 specific apartments that are outside the program and will not be designated affordable. However, there will be a total of 196 affordable units out of the 981 apartments at Mariners Village.

Are market rate residents subsidizing the affordable units?

No. The affordable housing program at Mariners Village is a required part of our land lease extension with LA County. There are no external subsidies (e.g. tax credits or bonds) being provided to Mariners Village.

I heard you had an open house. Are these the same floor plans that I will be getting through affordable housing. Can I see the units?

The renovation model units are a conceptual representation of a renovated apartment. Depending on the building and floor plan, there may be variations due to differences in infrastructure and budgetary constraints. We encourage you to schedule an appointment with the leasing office to take a tour for a general idea of the renovated units.

Eligibility Requirements and Application Process
What’s the headcount limit for each affordable unit?
  • Studios are only available for one- or two-person households.
  • One-bedrooms are only available for two- or three-person households.
  • Two-bedrooms are only available for three- or four-person households.
  • Three-bedrooms are only available for four- and five-person households.
What are the prices for the floor plans with affordable housing program?

Rents are subject to change based on annual changes to the Area Median Income (AMI) as determined by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The rents at the time the affordable apartments become available may differ from the current rents.

The current 2023 affordable rents are as follows:

  • Studios: $1,103
  • One-bedrooms: $1,261
  • Two-bedrooms: $1,418
  • Three-bedrooms: $1,576
What are the income requirements to qualify for the affordable housing program?

This program is limited to incomes that are no more than 50% of Area Median Income (AMI), which is based on annual figures published by HUD. The income limits at the time the affordable apartments become available may differ from the current limits published by HUD.

As of 2023, the income limits are as follows:

  • A single-person household: $44,150
  • A two-person household: $50,450
  • A three-person household: $56,750
  • A four-person household: $63,050
  • A five-person household: $68,100
What are the application requirements for affordable housing?

The following information is required for your affordable housing application as required by the LA County Development Authority:

  1. Household composition: how many persons are in your household
  2. Income information (please refer to the previous FAQ for details)
  3. Employment information

To ensure we meet the compliance requirements of the program, we may contact you for additional documentation to certify your income.

What’s the application process and timeframe?

The specific dates for the application to become available have not yet been finalized. Generally, the application process will take place in the following stages:

Initial Application Period

Notification of the availability of the affordable housing application will be announced through multiple channels including directly on our website, via email to all parties that have signed up for the interest list, and through direct advertising (both print and digital). There will be a two-week period to submit an application to be considered for the initial lottery that will establish the waitlist order. There will be an approximately two-week period when we will accept applications. We will announce the application period opening through advertising, updates on our renovation website, and email communications to those who signed up for our interest list, available at our renovation website as well.

When the application period opens, there are three ways to obtain an application:

  1. By visiting our website: www.parcell113mdr.com/affordable-housing
  2. Pick up physical copy at the Mariners Village management office
  3. Pick up physical copy at designated community locations. The final list of locations will be provided at the time the applications are made available.

To submit your application:

  1. Complete your application online.
  2. Mail your printed application to the address provided on the application.

During the Initial Application Period, it’s not first come, first served. You simply need to submit your application electronically or mail the document and have it post marked by the deadline that will be provided in future communications.

Application Period Ends/Waitlist Order Established

Once the Initial Application Period ends, a database will be created from applications submitted within the two-week initial submission period. A lottery will then be conducted to establish the initial wait list order. The lottery will be determined using random number generation to determine the order of the wait list. The lottery will be witnessed by external parties and the order will be printed and signed as the official results of the initial lottery and will be retained in our records.

Based on the waitlist order from the lottery, we will process the applications from the very top and work our way down as renovated units become available.

Submission of applications after the Initial Application Period

If you are unable to submit an application with the parameters of the Initial Application Period, your application will still be accepted, but it will go to the bottom of the wait list based on the date and time received. All applications submitted after the Initial Application Period will be date/time stamped to verify order on the wait list.

Application Processing

Applicant income must be certified within 120 days of move-in. This is a requirement of the affordable program to ensure that the certified income at the time of move-in meets program requirements. As the forecast of available affordable apartments is better known, we will begin to reach out to applicants on the wait list to gather all necessary and required documentation to verify household composition and income.

Application Approval

Once your household composition and income are certified as within the affordable housing program limits, you will be approved for the affordable housing program. As renovated units for your household size become available, we will contact you regarding your specific move-in date.

The projected timeframe for the first affordable unit becoming available is second quarter, 2024, as the interior renovation for unoccupied units take place. We have yet to finalize the construction schedule so the exact dates may change, but we will communicate any changes to the unit availability dates as we get closer.

If you are a resident at Mariners Village, please note the affordable unit you are approved for may not be your current apartment. As mentioned in previous FAQs, there are headcount limits for the bedroom count and only renovated units can be designated affordable. Therefore, you may have to transfer from your current apartment to an affordable unit.

Annual Recertification

To comply with the LA County Development Authority, we must re-certify your income every year based on the anniversary date of your initial certification . This process will require submission of current documents to validate income sources, employment, and household composition.

Can you define what is income and what is not income?

There are many variables that go into how income is calculated and what are deemed appropriate sources of income for the purposes of this affordable housing program.

Please see the link below for an excerpt of Chapter 5: Determining Income & Calculating Rent from the HUD Occupancy Handbook 4350.3 that provides an overview of the income calculation process: https://www.hud.gov/sites/documents/DOC_35649.PDF

Can you send me a notification whenever there is an update on this program?

The best way to stay informed regarding the affordable housing program is signing up for the interest list by visiting www.parcel1113mdr.com/affordable-housing.

As we get closer to opening the Initial Application Period, we will email all individuals who signed up for the interest list with details and updates.

Since I am your current resident, can I get priority for an affordable housing unit?

Mariners Village will have 20% of its renovated units designated as affordable housing, and 20% of the affordable units will be given priority to existing Mariners Village residents who have legally occupied a dwelling unit in Mariners Village as their actual and primary residence on and continually after November 1, 2018 (Qualified Resident). This translates to 39 affordable units across studios, one-, two- and three-bedrooms given priority to Qualified Residents of Mariners Village.

The property management team will begin reaching out to Qualified Residents to solicit statements of interest (“Affordable Unit Statements of Interest”) to self-identify for the preference for the affordable housing program at Mariners Village.

I’m a resident of Mariners Village. What happens if I miss the application window?

All applications received after the Initial Application Period will still be accepted. All applications received after the Initial Application Period will be placed at the bottom of the wait list based on the date and time it is received.

For example, if we receive 100 applications during the initial period and your application is the first one submitted after the initial period, you will be 101 on the waitlist.

I’m a resident of Mariners Village but I moved in after November 1, 2018. Will I still be given priority in the lottery?

Unfortunately, residents who moved in after November 1, 2018 will not be given priority for the first 39 affordable housing units.

Is there one or two lotteries for the affordable housing units? Do residents and non-residents each enter into a separate lottery?

There is only one lottery and one main wait list. The wait list will contain distinctions for bedroom size requirements and the Qualified Resident preference. This will allow us to process applicants in the right order based on the apartments that are available to become part of the affordable housing program.

The preference for Qualified Residents of Mariners Village will simply give priority to residents until the 39 units that are part of the preference are occupied. At that point, the preference will be fulfilled and remaining Qualified Residents will be processed based on wait list order only. The preference is household size agnostic, so there is no requirement that it be evenly distributed by bedroom size.

Will we be told what our order is in the lottery?

Once the lottery is drawn, we will be able to communicate with individual applicants their order in the wait list.

If I don’t qualify for affordable housing because my own income is too low, can a family member help?

No, income guarantees cannot be accepted. The household on its own must meet the income limit (50% of AMI) and also have sufficient income to pay the rent each month. The minimum income requirement is a rent-to-income ratio of 2.5—so you must provide proof of income that is 2.5 times the rent of the affordable unit you qualify for.

For affordable housing applications, do you check criminal records?

Other than the income and household size qualifications, the verification process is no different than any market rate unit. From a fair housing perspective, we treat every applicant the same way.

If someone has a history of mental incompetence and are homeless, can they qualify for affordable housing?

We follow all Fair Housing requirements when determining applicant qualifications. If the applicant meets the income and household size required by the affordable housing program and fulfill all obligations of any other applicant, they will be offered an apartment to rent.

Can undocumented worker qualify for affordable housing?

As described in a previous FAQ, other than income and household composition requirements, the application process is the same as market rate apartments.

Residency in an affordable apartment
I currently live at Mariners Village in a market rate apartment. Would I need to give notice for my current unit if I’m approved for an affordable unit?

As a resident of Mariners Village, you don’t need to give notice for your current apartment. Once you are accepted into the affordable housing program, you can move into your affordable unit as soon as it becomes available.

If the median income rises, does the rent go up?

The affordable units’ rent tends to go lock step with the Area Median Income (AMI) for LA County. If the AMI increases, the rent would increase, as would the household income limits.

If my neighbor in an affordable housing unit gets rowdy, what’s the process for managing my noise complaints about them?

All residents at Mariners Village are treated in the same manner as outlined in the lease. We make no distinction based on income.

The renovation process is projected to be five years. If you're moved into an affordable housing unit that has become available. Does that also mean that you're going to be moved out during renovation?

No, the affordable housing units won’t be available until they’re renovated. As the renovation progresses and more units are renovated, 20% of those renovated units will become affordable housing. This will continue throughout the five-year renovation. As mentioned in a previous FAQ, if you currently reside at Mariners Village and your affordable housing application is approved, you may need to transfer from your current apartment to a renovated affordable housing unit.

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