At a recent Bloomington Housing and Redevelopment Authority meeting, Commissioner Hooim asked why homes in a city-supported affordable homeownership development were built with unfinished basements. The development is believed to be near 9030 Park.
Hooim also asked whether these homes are taxed any differently from other Bloomington homes.
City of Bloomington@CityofBloomingtonMNCommissioner Hooim raised concerns after finding that homes in a city-supported affordable homeownership development have unfinished basements and asked whether property taxes differ from other Bloomington properties; staff confirmed unfinished basements were intentional to keep costs down and said they would verify how property taxes and a roughly $60,000 down payment with $1,300 monthly payments are factored into affordability.07/14
Under the Bloomington Affordable Homeownership Program, the HRA plans 27 new owner-occupied homes for qualifying households earning about $105,000 a year. The HRA is not building the homes itself. Developers will build them and find qualified buyers. The city says the work will happen in 3 phases. The first homes are expected to be finished in 2026 and the rest by late 2027 or early 2028. Buyer applications are expected to open around late 2026 or early 2027.
This is why staff are so focused on construction costs. Minnesota Housing is providing $3,199,500 through its Community Homeownership Impact Fund. That works out to a "value gap" subsidy of $118,500 per home, which covers the difference between what a home costs to build and the price a buyer at or below 80% of area median income can afford. The homes carry deed restrictions that require owners to live in them. For at least 15 years, resale is limited to other owner-occupants who meet the same income limit. Any added cost, finished basements included, either raises the price or widens a gap that is already being filled with public money.
The city's program page doesn't answer the property tax question directly. It describes the program as a way to "return the land to the tax rolls" by building on vacant HRA-owned parcels and lots with unoccupied, blighted structures. The page doesn't say whether the deed restrictions affect how the homes are assessed.
What happens next: watch for the topic to come back as more of the 27 homes are finished and the first buyers apply. Questions about the program go to Assistant HRA Administrator Mike Palermo at 952-563-8924. The project details are on the city's program page.
From the meeting: Housing and Redevelopment Authority Meeting, July 14, 2026.
