Source: ChatGPT
On October 19, 2026, the Richardson City Council discussed ways to address housing needs identified in the City's 2025 housing study. The discussion focused on only two closely related methods, HFCs and PFCs. Other approaches that are promised to be on future agendas include Community Development Block Grants (CDBG), Opportunity Zones, and zoning changes to foster missing middle housing. For now, it's all about HFCs and PFCs.
A presentation by Hilltop Securities (financial advisors) and Chapman & Cutler LLP (legal counsel) explained what HFCs and PFCs are:
"HFC/PFC participates in the ownership of developments that create and/or preserve affordable housing."
"Developments are typically privately developed, privately financed, and professionally managed apartment communities."
"At least 90% of the units must be restricted to persons of low and moderate income, as determined by the HFC." [This is a simplified description. Current state law imposes additional income-tier, rent-reduction, and compliance requirements for multifamily developments seeking the property-tax exemption.]
"Developments may serve households earning up to 60%, 70%, or 80% of Area Median Income, including teachers, first responders, municipal employees, healthcare workers, and other working professionals."
For convenience, I'll sometimes refer to HFCs and PFCs collectively as HFC arrangements, although they are distinct legal structures with different statutory requirements.
Mayor Pro Tem Ken Hutchenrider challenged the presenters' characterization of the program as workforce housing because the same presentation discussed low-income housing tax credits. City Manager Don Magner explained that Council had flexibility in choosing between models. Hutchenrider emphasized that he wasn't expressing a position. He said he was trying to understand the difference. A year ago, when the Council first considered the housing study, Hutchenrider said, "When I speak to people out in the community, they're saying, we want to support people who are, you know, gainfully employed, who need assistance... You know, teachers and firefighters, police. It's not your traditional low income, ie, you know, below poverty level." He didn't take a position then, either. Does Hutchenrider want the city to prioritize households in poverty, working households with moderate incomes, or both? He should say.
Council Member Curtis Dorian emphasized the importance of keeping the city's options open, including housing types such as starter homes, tiny homes and duplexes. I support Dorian's goal of expanding the range of housing options. Whether an HFC is the right tool for starter homes, tiny homes and duplexes is a separate question. The presenters noted that financing individual homes for sale is more difficult than addressing multifamily projects. Dorian did not say whether he would support establishing an HFC if it proved to be a poor fit for some of his stated goals.
Council Member Daniel Burdette had no questions and offered no opinions on whether he supported HFCs.
Council Member Joe Corcoran asked if the City of Richardson could set its own requirements on the percentage of units affordable to people at specific income levels. He was told it could, subject to limits set by state law. He also asked whether city councils commonly appoint themselves, or most of their members, to HFC boards. He was told practices varied but some councils do that. He did not express support or opposition to HFCs.
Council Member Arefin said he was struggling to follow the complicated financial calculations (welcome to the club) and wanted to understand the bottom line: how much money the city would receive or give up (answer: it depends on the structure of the HFC). His questions reflected concern about committing to a complicated tool without fully understanding its consequences. But no financial forecast can eliminate uncertainty. Council should seek the best available estimates without letting imperfect knowledge dissuade it from exploring this option.
Mayor Amir Omar pointed out that "workforce housing" is not an abstract category. Some Richardson employees, depending on their salaries and household sizes, could fall within the income limits for qualifying housing. He asked Council to consider whether it wanted to help make living in Richardson affordable for those workers. He said establishing an HFC would create an option. It would not commit the city to using it for any specific project. He noted an important distinction between an HFC arrangement and, say, a traditional tax abatement. An HFC arrangement might allow the city to negotiate payments from the developer that offset some of the property-tax revenue the city would otherwise collect. But this isn't automatic. It depends on the agreement and its enforceability. A conventional tax abatement, by contrast, generally reduces the taxes owed rather than providing a separate payment to the city. Both methods can result in indirect economic benefits, like increased spending at nearby businesses.
City Manager Don Magner proposed further research into the effects on school district budgets and the performance of existing HFC arrangements, followed by further discussion of Council's affordability goals. Omar asked the Council whether it was comfortable with that plan, and the members agreed. That's when we'll find out whether Council is prepared to turn its interest in below-market-rate housing into a concrete policy. Which households does the Council want to serve—those earning up to 60%, 70%, 80% or some mix of those thresholds and/or other tiers? There's no "correct" answer. It's a political question. Council members should have their own answer ready.
My own takeaway from the presentation? Developers are attracted to HFCs primarily because of the potential property-tax exemption. For Richardson, the attraction is the possibility of facilitating affordable apartment construction that might not otherwise occur. The financial details matter, and Council should insist on understanding them. But uncertainty about the outcome is a reason to do the research, not a reason to abandon the option.
Quotes have been lightly edited for clarity and brevity.
"Make a home for all.
Spreadsheets cannot choose for us.
Values must decide."
—h/t ChatGPT
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