Rock the Vote! TIC Coalition in SF

In San Francisco, affording the home of your dreams takes a lot of money, and a tough stomach!

One of the many areas of political battleground on the streets here in San Francisco is that of affordable housing. There are some interesting social intersections here where the typically egalitarian political mood of San Francisco meets with the stratified financial footing of its residents. I won't go off on a political rant here; I am more interested in distributing some useful info on the coming elections...

In San Francisco, the cost per square foot of house is on the upper end of the spectrum nation wide. In an effort to cut some costs, people have taken to buying multi-unit buildings by joining with other buyers - often times strangers - to pool resources and buy the entire building. They take title as Tenants in Common, which essentially gives each party ownership in the building as defined by percentages rather than by area or a specific unit within the building. In many cases, the next step is to legaly convert the building to condominiums, thereby granting each party exclusive ownership of their respective unit, and the freedom to finance or sell separately from other building owners.

Tenancy in Common housing and condo-conversions have really become a political hot-button in recent years. Because a condo has fewer strings attached from the perspective of the owner, it is usually considered more valuable as an asset, thus the tendancey to want to convert. But proponents of affordable housing issues argue that if the city converts too much inventory into condos, they will eliminate relatively affordable living space for the thousands of people in need.

As is with any political battle, the laws swing back and forth between the two competing interests, and currently represent San Franciscos predominantly liberal politics. There are extremists on each side. There is probably an acceptable range of middle ground for a solid utilitarian community. But at times there needs to be resistance to hold the balance in this middle ground. For example, under current law, some owners will wait 5 years before being allowed to convert, and the process itself takes 2 years (if you are lucky!) just to wade through the bureaucratic process that the city requires. In recent years, legislation has pushed this timeline out to be as long as a decade in some cases.

To many, the idea of owning real estate but being legally prohibited from controlling what you do with that real estate is a seagull poop on the statue of the American Dream. To this concern, the San Francisco TIC Coalition has united as a force to represent the interests of home owners. In a recent advisory, they recommended voting "NO" on Prop H, and cited this page for more info. One thing I will rant about politically is the uneducated voter - so do your homework! But consider them a good resource for the home owner in San Francisco - especially if you are involved in a TIC.

* Several interesting reports on Affordable Housing can be found here.
* More info about the SF TIC Coalition can be found here.