Affordable housing has always been a problem for many Florida counties, but now it’s a crisis. Apartment communities who originally built their units using federal or state grant monies agreed to set aside a certain number of units to be used “only” for affordable housing. Many grant units have now expired and no one is building more affordable housing because it isn’t profitable for the builders. As a result, those apartment communities are no longer under obligation to keep those units for low-income affordable housing. I’ve seen it happen in Vero Beach, St. Petersburg and Miami and there are probably more counties with the same problem. Then you’ve got vacation rental housing depleting rental units and increased costs to own housing, especially in Monroe County (Florida Keys).
To make matters worse, landlords have caught on to the Airbnb wave offering tourists a “home away from home” while making more money renting by the week than with long-term rentals. For example, Monroe County has seen an increase in the number of vacation rentals of private homes by 27.1% or 502 units from 2017 to 2018 according to the South Florida Sun Sentinel. This doesn’t even include those homeowners who do not register their vacation rental with the county.
The Florida Keys already had a rental housing shortage and after Hurricane IRMA blew through in 2017, it is now a severe crisis! Many homes were destroyed and residents were forced to relocate out of the Keys. The South Florida Sun Sentinel reports that nearly 3,000 people have left the Florida Keys after Hurricane IRMA. As the demand for housing increases, so do the prices which only exacerbates the situation. The Keys lost 2,000 housing units after Hurricane IRMA.
Now take into consideration your minimum wage workers like CNA’s, bank tellers, hotel workers and fast food chain employees. Where are these companies obtaining their workforce since the workers can’t afford to live in Monroe County? The answer is that they are being bussed in from Miami daily using Dade County transportation. Some are even sleeping in their cars so they don’t have the long commute each day. I have personally seen the fast food and grocery workers get off the bus with their blankets and small pillows or sleep in their cars because it is a two-hour drive by car and even longer on a bus that makes many stops. Yes, they sleep on the bus on the way to work and on the way home. That’s 4-hours a day getting back and forth to work and 20 hours per week! That’s another part-time job. These workers cannot afford to live in Monroe County with rental rates for efficiencies starting at $1,400 and two bedrooms running from $2,200 to $3,000 depending on the location. On the mainland, apartments in Miami high rises start at $1,400 a month with luxurious cabinets, granite and many amenities.
The people of the Keys are paying a high price to live in “paradise”, but how long before everyone but the rich are forced out? Who will clean their house, serve them their favorite food or pour them drinks at a local bar in the future? The cost to own a home has also increased significantly due to mandates for flood and wind coverage by mortgage companies. Then the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) administered by FEMA is up to its eyeballs in debt to the tune of $25 billion with no way to pay it off but increase premiums. FEMA even stated that it would take them more than 20 years to fund their 1% statute required reserve. When you consider that almost all of Monroe County is in the highest flood zone rating, it’s a recipe for disaster now and even tougher times in the future.
How will the Keys survive this challenge? Only time will tell. Meanwhile, businesses can’t open or stay open due to a lack of workers along with a lack of affordable housing. Many businesses have thrown in the towel and simply closed. We will see what community leaders and government officials do to resolve the problem, but they must act quickly!
Get The WORD Out! 