The nation's sputtering real estate market hasn't been the good news one might expect for low-income Philadelphians looking for affordable housing.
For one thing, prices haven't dipped that low. Plus, the slower pace of home sales and mortgage refinancing has greatly reduced the fees collected by the city for its affordable housing fund.
Funding for the city's Housing Trust Fund, launched in mid-2005, has dropped about $2 million - nearly 15 percent - over the last year as real estate transactions slowed. By city ordinance, the fund receives $70 for each deed and mortgage recorded.
Fewer deals equals a smaller kitty to promote the construction of affordable units, as well as renovations to keep low-income owners in their properties. So far, the fund has provided $35 million to help more than 2,200 families.
An estimated 60,000 city residents can't afford housing, so it's good that Mayor Nutter has proposed tapping the general fund to add $1 million annually to the trust fund over five years.
Some on City Council want to make that investment even larger.
But a coalition of housing and nonprofit community development groups has an even better idea: Tap new sources of sustainable revenue, such as giving the housing fund a portion of the revenue collected when the first of the city's 10-year property tax abatements expire this year.
Another good idea is to have builders pay into the trust fund as an alternative way of meeting the city's proposed requirement that every major residential project contain some affordable units.
It's unclear how many dollars would flow into the trust fund as a result of Councilman Darrell L. Clarke's inclusionary housing bill, approved by Council in December.
But not one dime will be generated until Council and the mayor - closely watched by developers - craft the set of incentives to builders required under the ordinance.
These incentives designed to reduce builders' expenses could include streamlining building-code rules, allowing higher building density, help with land acquisition, or tax credits.
A recent national study of such inclusionary programs in other metro areas concluded that so-called density bonuses, in particular, were key to producing more affordable units.
While developers have been leery of the city's push for an inclusionary housing mandate, Clarke pledges to write rules that "will not put undue burden on builders" to create affordable units. That's the right approach, as long it doesn't take forever to work out the details.
City officials need to push ahead on all of these fronts. More affordable housing is needed now.