Seattle Thinks It Can Make Housing Cheaper By Making It More Expensive To Build

In response to skyrocketing housing prices, the Seattle City Council passed a “Mandatory Housing Affordability” (MHA) program, which prevents people from building a home on their own property unless they agree to operate public housing or pay the city exorbitant “affordable housing” fees. Like virtually all attempts to mandate lower prices, the MHA program has been a colossal failure—resulting in fewer homes and higher rents. 

Just as importantly, MHA’s extortionate scheme violates the constitutional rights of property owners across Seattle.

As longtime readers may recall, IJ filed a challenge against MHA in late 2022 representing Anita Adams. Anita wants to build a home for her own adult children, on her own property, behind her own home. Seattle’s zoning allows for that project—but MHA requires that Anita pay nearly $100,000 in “affordable housing” fees, in addition to other permitting fees, before she can receive a permit. Because Anita cannot (and should not have to) afford that, IJ filed a case challenging the MHA scheme.

Somehow, Seattle thinks it can mandate “affordable” housing by making housing more expensive.

Unfortunately, the district court refused to hear Anita’s case on procedural grounds, finding that she must first undergo a labyrinthine administrative process before she can challenge MHA as fundamentally unconstitutional. 

That decision was wrong. We are appealing, and Seattle has already conceded to the appellate court that the district court’s reasoning was incorrect (while still insisting it should win for other reasons). Although we are confident in Anita’s appeal, her case is still going to take time. Meanwhile, Seattle is enforcing MHA every day, extorting people while making housing less affordable for everyone else in the process. 

So we doubled down on our challenge against MHA—this time representing married couple Mehrit Teshome and Rocco Volker, as well as local small-scale developer James Vert. These new clients have already paid the MHA fees and are seeking compensation—meaning that their case will not raise the procedural issues that have complicated Anita’s case.

Like Anita’s, their situations illustrate the folly of restrictions like MHA. Mehrit and Rocco want to downsize their home to allow for more housing on their property. James is building a four-unit townhouse on what was previously an empty parcel. During a housing shortage, Seattle—if anything—should be thanking these people for adding to the housing supply. Instead, the city slapped them, respectively, with $35,000 and $124,000 in “affordable housing” fees, in addition to other permitting fees. Somehow, Seattle thinks it can mandate “affordable” housing by making housing more expensive.

IJ has partnered with these new clients to demonstrate our commitment to advancing liberty in the face of all obstacles. The district court’s refusal to address the substance of Anita’s case was, unfortunately, not unusual; many judges prefer to kick the can down the road rather than hold the government to the Constitution’s commands. However, for our Constitution to have any meaning, government must not be allowed to evade court review through procedural escape hatches. 

Together with Mehrit, Rocco, and James, we are sending the message that IJ will not give up. Through either Anita’s appeal or our supplemental challenges, we will force Seattle to justify the MHA program in court—and we will win.

Suranjan Sen is an IJ attorney.

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