Compton Needs Affordable Housing for Seniors

COMPTON, CA—Meta Housing has opened Metro @ Compton Senior Apartments, a 75-unit affordable senior housing development. The City of Compton has a high demand for affordable living options for seniors. Demand is so high that this property received 1,200 tenant applications during the leasing phase. The property is currently fully leased.

“The demand is extremely high in the city of Compton for senior affordable housing,” Tim Soule, senior project manger at Meta Housing, tells GlobeSt.com. “I believe that 20% of the community is age 55 and older, and one of the biggest issues of concern for the constituents of council members is affordable housing options. This is a similar need that we see throughout the Los Angeles basin. There was a small lease-up period, and we received an interest list of more than 1,200 individuals. We methodically make our way through the list to identify tenants. It takes a while to qualify tenants and confirm passage of our background checks.”

The property, which is available to seniors aged 55 or older with annual incomes between 30% and 50% of the average area income, is a Green Point-rated project with solar power, a photovoltaic system that uses sunlight to heat water and generate electricity for the building and a gray water system that utilizes used water from on-site washing machines for landscape watering. The property is located near a metro station and is within walking distance to the new Compton Community Center.

With a development cost of $20.3 million, the project found funding through the redevelopment agency in the City of Compton; however, it ran into some approval issues due to the shuttering of many agencies. “Redevelopment agencies were shuttered by the Governor in response to the budget crisis,” explains Soule. “This project had to go through a review process with a local oversight board, which is an entity established by the department of finance in the County of Los Angeles, to confirm that the project was required with funds that were appropriate for affordable housing. It was subsequently approved by the Department of Finance.”

The property has one- and two-bedroom floor plans. Y&M Architects designed the property, and Optimus Construction served as the builder.