Published December 3 2024
City launching update to its Affordable Housing Strategy
Continuing its commitment to housing affordability, Bellevue recently kicked off its year-long process of updating the city’s Affordable Housing Strategy – a seven-year plan aimed at producing or preserving a target of 5,700 affordable units over the next 10 years.
The target – approved by the City Council in May – represents a 128% increase from the prior 10-year target for affordable housing production or preservation. Of the 5,700 affordable units, 2,700 will be dedicated to households earning up to 30% of the area median income, while 1,450 are for households earning between 30 and 50% of AMI. The remaining 1,550 are for households earning between 50 and 80% of AMI.
“Bellevue is a city that continuously strives to improve,” said Mayor Lynne Robinson. “As pleased as I am with the tremendous progress we’ve made in reaching our original target for adding and preserving affordable housing, it’s simply not enough. I am proud of these ambitious new goals that we have set for our future. Our Affordable Housing Strategy update represents an ongoing dedication to ensuring Bellevue remains a place that everyone can afford to call home.”
Since the council adopted its initial Affordable Housing Strategy in 2017, the city has made significant progress toward achieving 21 specific housing actions within five overarching strategy areas. In 2022, Bellevue initiated "Next Right Work" affordable housing actions, which specifically aimed to increase housing diversity within the city and reduce barriers to creating more housing types and choices.
The Next Right Work actions helped Bellevue achieve its original 10-year target of adding or preserving 2,500 affordable housing units by 2027. To date, 2,270 units have already been produced or preserved and 709 units are approved in the city’s development pipeline.
The new affordable housing target and strategy update will focus on creating housing opportunities for residents earning up to 80% of the area median income and helping the city keep pace with expected growth projections in the recently adopted 2024-2044 Comprehensive Plan.
Development of the Affordable Housing Strategy update will occur over the next year and include a range of community engagement opportunities. Learn more at Affordable Housing Strategy.