Rutgers University has released a comprehensive new report analyzing the economic impact of the Federal Historic Tax Credit. The findings confirm the value of preservation incentives in creating jobs and spurring investment.
The report is the first ever to examine the economic impact of the Federal Historic Tax Credit. Congress enacted the program in 1981 providing a 20% income tax credit for the rehabilitation of certified income-producing historic properties. Rutgers researchers found that the economic activity leveraged by the credit returns more tax revenue to the U.S. Treasury than the cost of implementing the program. The study also concludes that the program is highly efficient in creating jobs.
Other key findings include:
• In inflation-adjusted (2008) dollars, $16.6 billion in Federal Historic Tax Credit expenditures by the Treasury have encouraged $85 billion in historic rehabilitation since 1981.
• This rehabilitation activity has created about 1.8 million new jobs during the life of the program – 58,000 in 2008 alone.
• Jobs generated by history rehabilitation require higher skill levels and pay better wages than those generated by new construction.
• About 75% of the Federal Historic Tax Credit’s positive economic impacts are retained in the municipalities, counties and states where the projects are located.
Click here to download the complete report.
The repurposing of the former Rice Hotel (1913, pictured) as Post Rice Lofts and the rehabilitation of Houston’s JPMorgan Chase & Co. Building (the former Gulf Building, 1929) are just two of the Houston projects that have utilized the Federal Historic Tax Credit.
To qualify for the federal credits, a building must be listed on the National Register of Historic Places, be an income-producing project (no private homes) and the rehabilitation plans must be certified in advance by Texas Historical Commission and the National Park Service. A complete explanation of the preservation incentives program is available on the Park Service Web site.
GHPA staff can help guide property owners through the designation process. For additional information, contact GHPA at (713) 216-5000 or info@ghpa.org.
Photo: Post Rice Lofts by Jim Parsons