§__.12(g)(1) – 1
Q: When determining whether a project is “affordable housing for low- or moderate-income individuals,” thereby meeting the definition of “community development,” will it be sufficient to use a formula that relates the cost of ownership, rental, or borrowing to the income levels in the area as the only factor, regardless of whether the users, likely users, or beneficiaries of that affordable housing are low- or moderate-income individuals?
A1: The concept of “affordable housing” for low- or moderate-income individuals does not hinge on whether low- or moderate-income individuals benefit, or are likely to benefit, from the housing. It would be inappropriate to give consideration to a project that exclusively or predominately houses families that are not low- or moderate-income simply because the rents or housing prices are set according to a particular formula.
For projects that do not yet have occupants, and for which the income of the potential occupants cannot be determined in advance, or in other projects where the income of the occupants cannot be verified, examiners will review factors such as demographic, economic, and market data to determine the likelihood that the housing will “primarily” accommodate low- or moderate-income individuals. For example, examiners may look at media rents of the assessment area and the project; the median home value of either the assessment area, low- or moderate-income geographies or the project; the low- or moderate-income population the area of the project; or the past performance records of the organization(s) undertaking the project. Further, such a project could receive consideration if its express, bona fide intent, as stated, for example, in a prospectus, loan proposal, or community action plan, is community development.
Source: Interagency Questions & Answers Regarding Community Reinvestment | July 201