Review of the Housing Development Incentive Program (“HDIP”)
The Housing Development Incentive Program (“HDIP”) provides millions in state tax credits and local tax breaks for developers of market rate and often luxury housing in the 26 Massachusetts Gateway Cities.1 The commonwealth has awarded almost $90 million in credits for this program and will distribute millions more every year—indefinitely. As the affordable housing crisis in Gateway Cities spirals out of control, HDIP millions subsidize only unaffordable housing, with rents that can be shockingly high and no limits on increases.
To address the lack of information about HDIP credit awards and developments, MLRI submitted several public records requests to the Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD), the agency that administers the program. The facts collected thus far demonstrate that HDIP should be revised to address program inequities and deficiencies, to better serve residents of Gateway Cities, and to ensure that taxpayer subsidies are invested wisely for the public good.