HomeMy WebLinkAboutA023 - Email from Robert Howell dated May 22, 2018 City Council - staff report comments
Robert Howell to: amescitycouncil, John Haila 05/22/2018 06:20 AM
Hi City Council and Mayor-
Hope you're doing great. I wanted to reach out one more time as I've had a chance to read the
staff report for today's meeting. Honestly, I wasn't aware this was available to the public so I'm
just now reading it (sorry... I'm not typically a political guy!).
I wish I could be there live for the meeting tonight but am traveling this week for work.
Regarding the staff report, it's nice to see that the staff has developed some initial thoughts to
help in your consideration and I think there are pieces of good ideas.
That said, I do think the report's options are shortsighted and don't address the entire issue.
Here's my feedback:
• Time on Market: I believe it's good to have a time on market requirement. It shows a
good faith effort in trying to sell the house. The one concern I have is the potential
financial burden you are placing on the home owner. For example, what happens if you
have already relocated and can't find a renter under the transitional period? Personally, if
I couldn't find a renter for 9 months, the total cost of the mortgage would be $16,200. For
24 months, the total cost of the mortgage would be $43,200. These amounts would be in
addition to the rent I'm paying in the city I'm relocating to! Given the Ames market is
driven by the university in a big way, there is a very narrow time frame for finding a
renter(majority of people find a place to rent Jan- Apr) and your hardship may have not
come during this time frame to find a renter in Ames. For example, a widow who loses
their spouse in December or a member of the military who gets deployed in October(all
times when it would be hard to find a renter and therefore the person would be financially
burden until they could find a renter). Time on the market requirements are good but you
must find ways to address hardships that have an immediate impact.
• 5-Year Home Homeownership: I'm not sure of the intent of a person needing to own
the home for 5 years and don't think this is applicable in today's world. Careers and jobs
changed rapidly. Life changes happen unexpectedly. If you go back to the list of
hardship examples I sent to you, I think you'll agree that any of these can happen at
anytime... deteriorating health, divorce,job loss, military service, inheritance via death...
most of these aren't controlled by the people who own the homes... it could happen 1 year
after moving in. My belief is the 5-year home ownership is arbitrary and shouldn't be
included.
• Abutting Rentals: I think you'll need to consider the definition of the proximity of rental
properties. At my house for example, I have rental properties on either side and across
the street but behind my property I have city property which houses a water treatment
building. If it's written as strictly three abutting properties then I wouldn't qualify (even
though the 41 comment from home buyers looking at my house is about the rental
properties around my house).
My#1 concern... I'd like to strongly recommend that you consider how to address the time on
market issue vs. the potential hardships that don't fall in the rental signing period for Ames.
Given this issue has now stretched into June, we are well pass the traditional rental period in
Ames and it will be difficult to find a renter even with the transitional renting period. Since my
hardship didn't fall within the rental period, I (and many others like me now& in future) could be
left to cover the mortgage until the next rental period begins. Although I think it's a good idea to
have the time on market requirement, I think you must consider how to address all of the Ames
residents that have been waiting for a city council decision since the moratorium went into action
5 months ago on Jan 1.
To conclude, I'd again like to encourage you to finish your meeting with clear direction this
evening. I understand it most likely won't pass tonight but the more clear action, the better.
Make it a great day!
Robert