A multi-family home in the Davis Square area has a “FOR RENT” sign in its window. — Photo by Melina Nguyen

Mayoral candidates campaign on plans to alleviate it
*

By Melina Nguyen

As prices for rentals and homes for sale rise, Somerville residents worry more expensive housing will lead to dramatic demographic changes. The concern is shared by the Somerville mayoral candidates who’ve detailed their plans to combat the housing crisis on the campaign trail.

“I first ran for City Council because I was tired of having to move year-after-year due to rising rents and wanted to do something about it,” said Will Mbah via email. “When I joined the City Council, I wanted to do something for residents like me who did not have peace of mind about their living situation.”

City Councilor Mbah is one of the two final candidates running for mayor in Somerville. His housing policy focuses on extending the eviction moratorium, relying on rent control to help with high prices and “increasing the affordable housing requirement for large development projects to 25 percent,” according to Mbah and his campaign website.

“I did not wait until I ran for mayor to take this pledge [to not accept contributions from real estate developers],” said Mbah. “I have always done it because it is what I believe is right and I am the only candidate in this race that can say that.”

Rick Nilsson, the Communication Coordinator for Katjana Ballantyne, another candidate for mayor, explained how Ballantyne’s direct experience with affordable housing and non-profit organizations has propelled her mayoral campaign.

“The experience of actually working to build actual affordable housing qualifies her to understand how challenging that can be, what the hurdles are, what the market conditions need to be in order to get these projects to happen,” said Nilsson who’s also Ballantyne’s husband.

Ballantyne was the Board President of Somerville Community Corporation for over a decade and Project Director for Workforce Development for the Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Development Corporation, which both aided in jobs access and affordable housing for qualified residents.

Over a third of Somerville households spend more than 30% of their income on rent or mortgage payments, according to a Somerville housing needs assessment released in 2015. That helps explain why the city’s longtime residents have faced frustration with housing for years. Then, the pandemic renewed a sense of urgency around affordable housing issues.

While COVID ushered in an initial decrease in rental prices and an increase in vacancy rates due to the absence of in-person university students and residents moving to less urban areas, the trend reversed as the pandemic stretched on.

“The Somerville rental market has returned to where it was pre-pandemic,” said Ellen Shachter, the director of the Office of Housing Stability. “[It’s] one that is extremely difficult for tenants of low and moderate income, even if they have a housing subsidy to help them pay their rent.”

With two-thirds of housing units in Somerville being renter-occupied, according to the OSPCD report, residents have relied on government assistance such as the Section 8 voucher and rental assistance funds.

In addition to difficulties finding affordable places to rent, higher home prices also present a hurdle for Somerville residents.

“Housing sales prices have skyrocketed even during the COVID pandemic, which was unanticipated,” said Shachter. “It has remained a brutal sellers’ market.”

In June 2021, the median price for a single-family home in Somerville was $578,500, an increase of 27.1%, and condominium prices rose by 25% to $500,000 as compared to June 2020 sales, according to the Massachusetts Association of Realtors.

However, Shachter stressed that the extension of Somerville’s eviction moratorium and the revised ordinance on condominium conversions have been put in place to help residents in need of affordable housing.

Earlier this month, the Board of Health and Mayor Joe Curtatone passed an emergency order extending the eviction moratorium in the city until April 30 of next year. The order addressed the public health crisis of COVID-19 in terms of eviction.

“What it does do is say that landlords cannot render people homeless during the COVID crisis,” said Shachter. “The data is 100% clear that the transmission rates of COVID and death from COVID are significantly increased when people are evicted.”

The updated Condominium Conversion Ordinance “primarily provides protection to tenants

facing displacement as a result of conversion to condominium units,” according to the Somerville government website. It also aids new homeowners who want to own homes in Somerville.

Aislinn Cannistraro, a 20-year-old Spring Hill resident, worries about the growing presence of condominiums. “I just hope that… there aren’t a ton of new condos developing,” said Cannistraro. “There already are a ton being made, but I don’t want Somerville to be ‘Condoland.’”

In a city experiencing significant economic growth and development, Somerville’s residents stand at a crossroads between the city’s quirky, intimate vibe and looming increases in population and density.

Jeanne Aiello, a retired Somerville resident, reflected on the changes within her own neighborhood in awe.

“I don’t even know how people who have moved into my neighborhood recently afford their mortgage,” said Aiello. “Definitely have to have more than one income, or you have to be a trust fund baby or something.”