In its commitment to address the affordable housing woes, Amazon is pledging to invest over $2 billion towards low-cost housing in the next five years. The multinational technology company aims to provide budget-friendly homes in three cities where its operation is located.
Amazon's 'Housing Equity Fund'
Amazon housing fund dubbed as "Housing Equity Fund" will focus on providing low-income housing in Seattle, Nashville, and Arlington. The company has over 75,000 employees in its main headquarters in Seattle, more than 1,000 workers in Arlington, and its soon-to-open second headquarters in Nashville. The tech giant is looking into hiring at least 5,000 employees in each region in the next five years.
The tech giant has always been criticized for driving up housing costs in areas where they open large operations, leading local residents to look for cheaper options outside their hometown.
In a statement, Amazon's founder and CEO Jeff Bezos said that their housing program would "create or preserve 20,000 affordable homes in all three of our headquarters regions -- Arlington, Puget Sound, and Nashville."
"It will also help local families achieve long-term stability while building strong, inclusive communities," Bezos added.
The online retail giant said they are targeting to provide affordable housing to households making between 30% to 80% of each location's median income.
Beyond the affordable housing program
Aside from the $2 billion worth of investment, the Amazon housing fund includes an additional $125 million grant to minority-led organizations and public agencies dedicated to addressing the affordable housing shortage.
The grant will also benefit other government partners like school districts and transit agencies.
"We don't have control over how the [housing] markets respond to a large employer coming into the market or expanding in the market, but we can play a role in how Amazon's growth is impacting our local communities," Amazon Community Development head Catherine Buell said, as reported by The Wall Street Journal.
Saving properties for low-income workers
Meanwhile, the Urban Institute said that Amazon's housing fund is an initiative that will help preserve affordable buildings that are being developed into luxury apartments.
"In booming cities across the US, many apartment buildings affordable for teachers, healthcare providers, transit workers, and others with modest incomes are increasingly being redeveloped into luxury apartments, causing displacement and reducing housing options for working families," Urban Institute president Sarah Rosen Wartell said in a statement, as reported by CNN.
"Investments like those announced by Amazon that help preserve these existing buildings and maintain moderate rent levels are critical to local efforts that promote economic inclusion and support the stability and economic mobility of moderate- and low-income families," Wartell added.
Besides Amazon, other top tech companies opening offices in the coastal areas have caused a spike in housing rates leading to a housing shortage. In response, Apple offered $2.5 billion in California, Google pledged $1 billion in Bay Area, while Microsoft Corp allotted $750 in Seattle, all dedicated to funding affordable housing projects.
