In Reply to: USDA data casts doubt on China's soybean purchase promises posted by mh on November 17, 2025 at 11:58:29
Developers say building all-affordable housing complexes rarely makes financial sense. Now in Los Angeles, it is the hottest game in town.
Apartment developers across the city are lining up to submit proposals for 100%-affordable apartment buildings. The rush is thanks to a policy that promises to streamline the approval process by cutting the previous wait time from about a year to 60 days.
Since the city implemented the policy in December 2022, plans for about 42,300 units of affordable housing have been submitted to the city under what is known as Executive Directive 1, or ED1, according to the mayor’s office.
While some developers say they are still encountering issues, about 31,700—or 75% of those units—have received approval so far. That is more than double the total affordable-housing units getting the green light during the three years before ED1, according to city planning data.
The new process cuts out public-hearing periods and City Council votes on housing projects in which on balance all the units are for tenants who make no more than 80% of the city’s median income.
The policy is even attracting developers who specialize in market-rate apartments and have never built affordable housing before.