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Troubled home builders hit hard by a busted Inland Empire housing market are looking for enormous breaks - 1990s recession-type breaks.
And because sales incentives aren't doing much to move inventory and cauterize developers' bleeding balance sheets, it's going to take some good ol' fashion lawmaking to get those breaks.
Legislation that would let builders delay payment of local impact fees until their housing inventory is sold off is being considered by state legislators and touted by the California Building Industry Association.
Cities use these fees, which range from $30,000 to $100,000 per house, to build new roads, sewer systems and infrastructure before new residents move to town.
But if the bill passes, home buyers might not get that shiny, nearby fire station immediately.
"If the fees were for a fire station, or a major road, or whatever, it could delay (those projects)," said Dave Dillon, economic development director for Beaumont.
He said he isn't worried because Beaumont has a bond program that pays for new housing infrastructure.
Not every town has this luxury.
Some cities in San Bernardino and Riverside counties, where rampant home building occurred during the boom, are feeling the brunt of the slump. They might support an impact-fee deferral to get developers building again.
The idea here: Jump-start the economic, job-creating construction engine that came blazing through the counties just a few years ago, only to a lesser extent. That's assuming the plan works.
"The builders are trying to tie their impact to the payment of the impact service," said Barry Gross, president of Developers Research, an Irvine-based company hired by developers for financial evaluations. "But on the other side of the coin, if government agencies get the money six or eight months later, they're losing some of that interest they would've earned on it."
Steve PonTell, president of Upland-based economic think tank La Jolla Institute, said a fair argument can be made against impact-fee deferrals.
"You'd want to make sure the appropriate infrastructure is in place before the housing comes in - roads, water, sewer," he said.
A related bill would extend the life of expiring subdivision maps for two years.
Builders collectively shelled out millions of dollars into the framework behind these tentative maps during the real-estate rush. They'd lose almost every penny on their investments if the maps expire.
The death of either bill could force some home builders to go belly up, or at least bring them to their knees.
Legislation that would let builders delay payment of local impact fees until their housing inventory is sold off is being considered by state legislators and touted by the California Building Industry Association.
Cities use these fees, which range from $30,000 to $100,000 per house, to build new roads, sewer systems and infrastructure before new residents move to town.
But if the bill passes, home buyers might not get that shiny, nearby fire station immediately.
"If the fees were for a fire station, or a major road, or whatever, it could delay (those projects)," said Dave Dillon, economic development director for Beaumont.
He said he isn't worried because Beaumont has a bond program that pays for new housing infrastructure.
Not every town has this luxury.
Some cities in San Bernardino and Riverside counties, where rampant home building occurred during the boom, are feeling the brunt of the slump. They might support an impact-fee deferral to get developers building again.
The idea here: Jump-start the economic, job-creating construction engine that came blazing through the counties just a few years ago, only to a lesser extent. That's assuming the plan works.
"The builders are trying to tie their impact to the payment of the impact service," said Barry Gross, president of Developers Research, an Irvine-based company hired by developers for financial evaluations. "But on the other side of the coin, if government agencies get the money six or eight months later, they're losing some of that interest they would've earned on it."
Steve PonTell, president of Upland-based economic think tank La Jolla Institute, said a fair argument can be made against impact-fee deferrals.
"You'd want to make sure the appropriate infrastructure is in place before the housing comes in - roads, water, sewer," he said.
A related bill would extend the life of expiring subdivision maps for two years.
Builders collectively shelled out millions of dollars into the framework behind these tentative maps during the real-estate rush. They'd lose almost every penny on their investments if the maps expire.
The death of either bill could force some home builders to go belly up, or at least bring them to their knees.
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