A Saint Paul property tax abatement program for landlords is keeping 2,244 apartments in 289 buildings affordable to households making 60 percent of the Twin Cities area median income (AMI). The City Council, acting as the Housing and Redevelopment Authority (HRA) Board, approved new guidelines for the 4d Affordable Housing Incentive program on October 12 and reauthorized the program for another year.
The 4d program was first implemented in 2019 to preserve what is described as naturally occurring affordable housing.
The 4d program was first implemented in 2019 to preserve what is described as naturally occurring affordable housing, or NOAH. Ward 3 City Council member Chris Tolbert, who chairs the HRA Board, described the program as a great incentive for landlords to make rental housing more affordable.
The program reduces the property taxes on a multi-family building if a landlord agrees to keep all or some of the rental units affordable. The city program is tied to a state program that was instituted almost a decade ago. The state program is typically for buildings with 50 or more rental units. The 4d program can apply to much smaller rental buildings.
Saint Paul enrolled 66 properties in the 4d program in 2019 with a total of 410 units. This year 289 properties were enrolled with a total of 2,244 units. Of the units in 2022, 1,474 are affordable to households making 60 percent of the Twin Cities’ AMI and 771 are affordable to households making 50 percent of the Twin Cities’ AMI.
The program has reduced the property taxes of participating landlords by a total of $1 million in 2022. It is also supported through the city’s Housing Trust Fund with direct grants to landlords of up to $1,200 per enrolled property.
— Jane McClure
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