Kirkland affordable housing celebrated
For about 160 low-income people, the 66-unit Plum Court Apartments in tony downtown Kirkland offers much-needed sanctuary at a price they can afford.
Job-seeking mother of two Raquel Soliz, for instance, qualified for a three-bedroom apartment at $543 per month. She loves environment for children, she said.
But for a handful of residents who didn't get the rent breaks they hoped for, their experience at Plum Court has turned sour. Some have moved out while others are paying higher rents than they had planned.
Property managers say the same unfortunate pattern repeats at many new affordable-housing developments: New tenants misunderstand or misrepresent their income and later learn they don't qualify for rent breaks.
Several agencies involved
The Plum Court complex was bought last April by Bellevue-based nonprofit Downtown Action to Save Housing, which arranged for $10.5 million to be invested in the project. The nonprofit, which attempts to preserve affordable housing, owns 777 affordable-housing units on the Eastside and in Tukwila.
The nonprofit worked with various public and private agencies, including Banner Bank, Homestead Capital and A Regional Coalition for Housing, to pull off the Plum Court deal. It is largely funded by private investors who benefit from tax credits, which in turn enables the nonprofit to offer the below-market rents.
It has spent $1.5 million renovating Plum Court by installing new appliances and flooring, upgrading the ventilation system and fixing the roof. The complex provides some housing for developmentally disabled people, with four units housing 12 disabled residents.
"There is much more to do to end homelessness in this city," said Kirkland Mayor Mary-Alyce Burleigh at yesterday's ceremony. "But Plum Court is a giant step."
Residents earning less than 30 percent of the median family income, or less than $21,600 annually, get the biggest rent breaks.
One resident, Jennifer Nelson, unwittingly put herself above the threshold when she paid her bills by cashing in a retirement account, which the federal government considers income. She didn't find out until the day before moving in.
She had already rented a U-Haul truck and given notice at her former apartment in Tacoma by the time she found out, she said. She had no choice but to move in to Plum Court and pay the higher rent of $825, though she thought she would be paying $475. After one year, her income will be reassessed and she may qualify for a lower rate.
Because it takes up to six weeks to verify tenants' income information, some, like Nelson, did get last-minute shocks, acknowledged Gaye Barrett, who manages the property for Quantum Management Services.
One former resident, Jean Vaughn, said she moved in last October and was told by a manager, who has since left, that her rent would drop from $950 to $550 once the Downtown Action to Save Housing program kicked in by March. But Vaughn received a letter in March telling her that her new rental amount would be $948, a saving Quantum, the property management company, calculated as seven cents per day.
"They told me over and over again that I did qualify and would be eligible for $550," Vaughn said. "I feel like I was baited to move in there."
Mark E. Thometz, the executive director of Downtown Action to Save Housing, said the nonprofit has no incentive to lure people who will not qualify for rent breaks or will not want to stay. In fact, it tries hard to work with residents to make the best of their situation, he said.
For those residents who leave upset, "It's a very unfortunate situation ... and I feel personally bad about it," Thometz said. "But these are IRS regulations.
"We run into these every project we do," he added. "A few people don't work with us, or give us inaccurate information to begin with. Sometimes they have more income or other assets. I think it's unfortunate, but we can't make exceptions."
Barrett, the property manager, said she doesn't know the specifics of Vaughn's case. She said all residents were advised what subsidies they would receive, although some hoped — and tried to work with management — to get better rates. That didn't always work out, Barrett said.
That was the case with mother of three Sue Ann Johnson. A tenant of Plum Court for two years, she hoped she would qualify for rent breaks like her new neighbors. She didn't, and rather than continuing paying $948 a month at Plum Court, her family began moving out yesterday into a two-bedroom apartment in Bothell costing $760 a month, she said.
Problems arise
Such problems usually arise in new projects like Plum Court, when scores of people are applying for apartments and existing residents are weighing whether to stay, Barrett said.
But many new tenants seem pleased with Plum Court. Nelson applauds the new ventilation system and improved counters in her apartment.
For Soliz, who moved in last month, yesterday was an opportunity to celebrate her new home. "I love it. Everybody here is really nice," she said. "It's like a little community."
Nick Perry: 206-515-5639 or nperry@seattletimes.com