🏠 Housing & Land

Section 2 — Housing, Land & Valuation Protections

Section 2 Purpose

This section establishes fair, auditable valuation rules for housing and land, ensuring prices reflect real wages, real conditions, and real improvements rather than speculation or scarcity manipulation.

2.1 Regulated Assessed Current Value (RACV)

2.1.1 Baseline Valuation Standard

All residential property shall be assigned a Regulated Assessed Current Value (RACV) calculated as:

• original purchase or construction cost,
• plus approved inflation adjustments tied to wage growth,
• plus documented improvements,
• minus verified deterioration or deferred maintenance.

RACV is binding for regulated sales, rentals, taxation alignment, and enforcement review. It may not be treated as advisory, illustrative, or optional.

RACV must decrease when verified deterioration or habitability defects exist, regardless of surrounding market appreciation or comparable listings.

2.1.2 Market Limitation Rule

Market comparables alone may not justify prices exceeding RACV limits.

Comparable sales may be used only as supporting context and must be adjusted for speculation, investor premiums, scarcity effects, and non-owner-occupant bidding.

Where comparables conflict with RACV, RACV governs. Any deviation above RACV must be justified by documented improvements or permitted variance under this Act, not general market escalation.

2.1.3 Wage-Anchored Valuation Adjustment

Permissible valuation increases under RACV are tied exclusively to verified wage growth, not speculative inflation, asset scarcity, or monetary expansion.

Where wages remain stagnant, RACV must remain unchanged.
Where wages increase, valuation adjustments apply proportionally and only for the time period during which higher wages were in effect.

Time-weighted adjustment ensures valuation reflects lived affordability rather than retroactive inflation.

2.1.4 Improvements, Maintenance & Condition Adjustment

Only verified capital improvements that materially increase a property’s utility may justify RACV increases.

Routine maintenance and defect correction do not qualify as capital improvements. Maintenance includes, but is not limited to: • roof replacement, • mold remediation, • plumbing or electrical repair, • pest treatment, • structural stabilization, • code compliance correction.

Where property condition deteriorates, RACV must be reduced by the documented cost required to restore baseline habitability.

Condition-based reductions apply regardless of market trends, neighborhood appreciation, or listing activity.

Summary — 2.1 Regulated Assessed Current Value

This subsection defines how property valuation is calculated to prevent speculative pricing.

Examples

Example: A property built for 100k with no improvements is listed at 500k with no basis.
→ RACV limits pricing.

Example: A home with deferred maintenance applies value reduction.
→ RACV adjusts downward accordingly.

Why this subsection exists

Without regulated valuations, price speculation would continue enabling pricing out of local buyers.

2.2 Permissible Variance & Sale Caps

2.2.1 Negotiation Allowance

Sellers may list property within a limited percentage above RACV to allow for:

• negotiation,
• assessment variance,
• localized demand.

2.2.2 Absolute Price Ceiling

Under no circumstance may a sale exceed the RACV plus permissible variance, unless purchased for verified personal occupancy by a priority buyer.

Even under priority purchase, sale price may not exceed the occupancy-verified ceiling set by this Act, and may not be inflated through side agreements, undisclosed fees, bundled service charges, or forced add-ons.

Any attempt to circumvent the ceiling through indirect consideration is void and enforceable as an avoidance violation.

Summary — 2.2 Permissible Variance & Sale Caps

This subsection allows a narrow, negotiable margin above RACV to protect sellers and buyers while preventing price gouging.

Examples

Example: Home listed within allowed variance above RACV.
→ Allowed sale.

Example: Home listed well above variance without justification.
→ Cap enforced.

Why this subsection exists

Rigid valuation without reasonable negotiated range would discourage legitimate sales and tighten markets.

2.3 Anti-Speculation & Vacancy Controls

2.3.1 Use Requirement

Residential land and housing may not be held vacant beyond defined thresholds without:

• legitimate renovation,
• or approved hardship exemption.

2.3.2 Vacancy Enforcement

Extended vacancy may trigger:

• vacancy fees,
• compulsory listing,
• or public acquisition at regulated value.

Speculation may be inferred from documented patterns, including:

• rapid resale without substantive improvement,
• prolonged vacancy paired with relisting above RACV,
• coordinated acquisitions followed by uniform price increases.

Regulated pricing must remain within allowable RACV variance regardless of market signaling, investor demand, or scarcity manipulation.

Summary — 2.3 Anti-Speculation & Vacancy Controls

This subsection prevents housing and residential land from being held unused to create artificial scarcity, inflate prices, or distort rent markets.

Examples

Example: A company buys 15 homes and leaves them vacant for two years to drive up neighborhood rents. → Vacancy controls apply and may trigger mandatory listing or vacancy fees.

Example: An individual holds a livable home empty as a “store of value” while refusing to rent or sell. → Non-use limits apply after the defined vacancy threshold.

Why this subsection exists

Artificial scarcity raises costs for everyone and locks local buyers out. Vacancy controls keep housing circulating for actual living use rather than speculative storage.

2.4 Blight, Neglect & Valuation Adjustment

2.4.1 Maintenance Obligation

Owners must maintain minimum habitability and safety standards regardless of occupancy.

Minimum maintenance includes preventing structural decay, controlling infestation, securing the premises against hazards, and preventing conditions that endanger neighbors or degrade surrounding property usability.

Failure to maintain triggers corrective timelines, enforceable remediation orders, and valuation adjustments reflecting deterioration and repair cost.

2.4.2 Repair-Based Valuation Reduction

RACV must be reduced by the documented cost required to restore habitability.

Assessors may not inflate value while ignoring required repairs.

Summary — 2.4 Blight, Neglect & Non-Use Penalties

This subsection discourages prolonged neglect, abandonment, or intentional non-use of residential properties.

Examples

Example: A home has mold, a roof leak, and termite damage, but is valued like a move-in-ready property. → Valuation must be reduced by documented repair costs.

Example: A trust holds inherited property without upkeep while awaiting resale. → Compliance timelines and caretaker duties apply.

Why this subsection exists

Neglected properties reduce neighborhood value, increase municipal costs, and restrict housing supply, worsening affordability for active residents.

2.5 Rezoning & Public Value Capture

2.5.1 Original Zoning Baseline

Where rezoning increases allowable use or market demand, RACV must reference the pre-rezoning baseline and may not be inflated solely by public designation changes.

2.5.2 Public Benefit Share

Value created through public rezoning may be partially recaptured for:

• housing development,
• infrastructure,
• affordability programs.

Summary — 2.5 Rezoning, Upzoning & Value Capture

This subsection governs how property value changes resulting from rezoning are assessed, captured, and limited to prevent speculative windfalls.

Examples

Example: A parcel rezoned from residential to mixed-use increases in market demand. → Value increase attributable to rezoning is regulated and partially recaptured.

Example: An owner petitions for rezoning solely to relist the land at a higher price. → Speculative resale limits apply.

Why this subsection exists

Rezoning decisions are public actions that can artificially inflate land values. Without safeguards, private actors could extract unearned profit from public policy decisions.

2.6 Advertising & Market Access Fairness

2.6.1 Equal Exposure Requirement

Properties must be advertised in venues accessible to:

• local residents,
• individual buyers,
• non-corporate purchasers.

2.6.2 Prohibited Targeting

Exclusive advertising to corporations or private investor networks violates priority access rules.

Properties subject to priority access must be marketed in a manner reasonably accessible to priority-eligible individuals, including public listings or equivalent broad distribution.

Selective marketing, off-market steering, or restricted access listings intended to bypass priority purchasers constitutes a violation subject to corrective relisting and penalties.

Summary — 2.6 Advertising & Market Access Fairness

This subsection prevents selective marketing that bypasses local buyers and enables institutional capture of housing supply.

Examples

Example: A seller only advertises to an investor list or corporate buyers. → Violates market access fairness rules.

Example: A listing is placed publicly where local residents can reasonably find it. → Compliant marketing.

Why this subsection exists

Priority rules fail if housing is quietly sold through insider channels. Equal exposure ensures local individuals have a real chance to participate.