Minneapolis Affordable Housing Coalition

PURPOSE: To change public policy on condo conversions so that it preserves the affordable rental housing stock, protects low-income tenants and buyers, and engages residents and communities in the process.

The coalition's planning committee members include:

HOME Line
Housing Preservation Project (HPP)
Jewish Community Action (JCA)
Legal Aid Society of Minneapolis
Metropolitan Interfaith Council on Affordable Housing (MICAH)
Minnesota Tenants Union
Minnesota Senior Federation
Southwest Interfaith Neighborhood Group (SWING)
Minneapolis Urban League

The coalition's partners include:

Community Stabilization Project (CSP)
Family and Children’s Services – Jobs and Affordable Housing Committee
Office for Social Justice Saint Paul and Minneapolis
Minnesota Public Interest Research Group

Update

On Friday, June 16, 2006, Minneapolis City Council Members Cam Gordon, Ralph Remington and Gary Schiff asked the Council to consider making changes to the City’s current ordinance regarding condominium conversions, and the subject was passed into the Public Safety and Regulatory Services Committee for further discussion. From there an ordinance to address the issues will be drafted, a public hearing held on the proposed ordinance, and an ordinance presented to the full council for consideration. Said Council Member Gordon, “The City currently has a local ordinance that regulates condo conversions, but its enforceability is questionable, and it does not address all of the issues conversions present. What we need is a responsible ordinance that will support the positive new homeownership opportunities that can be created by conversions, while simultaneously protecting the City’s invaluable affordable rental housing stock and safeguarding the rights of tenants.”

Sign a petition supporting this proposed ordinance!

Media

When available, we have provided a link directly to the article. Most of the other articles can be purchased for a small fee on the publisher's website.

Condo Mania: More and more renters are being forced from homes and communities they never expected to leave
AARP Bulletin, July-August 2006

Hold Your Breath and Count to One Million: How an Uptown condo conversion turned a basement into an OSHA hazard
City Pages, June 28, 2006

Condominiums: Face It, They're an Issue
Uptown Neighborhood News, March 2006

If You Lived Here, You’d be Broke by Now
City Pages, February 22, 2006

Conversion Busters
Southwest Journal, November 7, 2005

Minneapolis Losing Affordable Housing to Condo Conversions
Minnesota Public Radio, September 30, 2005

Stevens Square Apartments Could Lose Affordability
Southwest Journal, August 15, 2005

The Rules of the Condo Conversion Game
Southwest Journal, April 18, 2005

Lower-Income People Most Harmed by Condo Conversions
Minnesota Spokesman Recorder, December 14, 2005

Condo Conversions Deplete Affordable Housing Supply
Minnesota Spokesman Recorder, December 7, 2005

Condo Rush Consumes Low-Cost Apartments
Pioneer Press. October 23, 2005

The Tycoon and the Tenant
Star Tribune, May 29, 2005

Condo Conversion Concerns
Star Tribune, June 23, 2006

3120 Hennepin Owner Responds (from the Letters to the Editor
Uptown Neighborhood News, April 2006.

Anatomy of a Condominium Conversion - 3120 Hennepin
Uptown Neighborhood News, March 2006

Spreadsheets and Reports

PLEASE NOTE: All of our data is compiled from 3rd party sources. HPP does not guarantee the accuracy of this information.

Minneapolis Condo Conversions
This data was compiled from the City of Minneapolis Planning Division, the Minneapolis Assessor’s office, and through searches of real estate records. We welcome information on any omissions or inaccuracies.

Power Point Presentation on Condo Conversions
This presentation was compiled by HPP to help educate community members and city leaders on the problems created by condo conversions. It includes affordability statistics and maps.

Analysis of Condo Converted Properties in Minneapolis 2000-2005
A report prepared by Housing Link for the Housing Preservation Project. This report challenges the conception that the converted units were all previosuly high end rentals, and finds instead that 58% of the converted units had been affordable to families earning 50%MMI.

Condominium Conversion Ordinance: Frequently Asked Questions
This document answers commonly asked questions about the proposed condominium conversion ordinance in Minneapolis and condo conversions more generally.

Buying a Converted Condo? Read This Before You Buy
Includes information on what exactly a condo conversion is, and questions to ask about affordability issues, form of ownership issues, condition issues, and what documents to get from the realtor.

Maps and Charts

If you have ArcView software and would like to be sent the original files so that you can interact with them, please email Emily.