I lived within walking distance of that building - even watched it get built! Something the article tap dances around without *explicitly* addressing is the state of the neighborhood itself. One block north is an open-air drug market. A few blocks south, encampments. Tough sell for that income range
The other thing no one (at least in Seattle / Portland) really wants to talk about is that COVID era tenant protections and other social policies put all providers but especially affordable housing providers in a really difficult financial position.
Perhaps surprisingly it turns out that when people learn they can't get evicted for not paying rent a reasonable portion of them decide to not pay rent.
And when people learn they can't get evicted for letting their friend smoke meth in the stairwell... guess what happens?
Affordable housing is generally underwritten to 95% paying occupancy and somewhere between 1.15x - 1.2x debt coverage. Guess what happens when paying occupancy goes to 85% (or lower) insurance doubles, and repair expenses go through the roof?
And most providers are non profits that essentially break even because, well, non profits. Inland (mentioned in the article) isn't but they're the exception.