Earlier this week, the House and Senate passed the biennial budget (HB 7424). This budget proposes $43 billion in spending over the biennium, closes the projected $3.7 billion budget deficit, and anticipates a budget reserve fund that will grow to $2.6 billion by the end of this year.
The Connecticut Housing Finance Authority (CHFA) will host a public hearing on Thursday, June 20, 2019 for public comment on the draft 2019 Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) Qualified Allocation Plan (QAP). The hearing will take place at 1:00 p.m. at the CHFA offices located at 999 West Street, Rocky Hill, CT.
On May 10, 2019, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) issued a new proposed rule to Section 214 of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1980. This amendment will prohibit HUD from providing housing financial assistance to individuals who are non-U.S. citizens and eligible residents. It will require HUD to verify recipients’ eligible immigration status for all individuals in a household and forbid people who do not have eligible immigration status from serving as the leaseholder even in “mixed-status” families.
In a new piece by Market Watch, readers learn about the complex process involved in rehabilitating affordable housing units. The article chronicles the lengthy and costly process of rehabilitating 410 Cedar Street, a 30-unit affordable housing development in the Takoma neighborhood of Washington, D.C. The existing development had fallen into disrepair following several years of deferred maintenance and was severely damaged during a storm in 2016.
On Monday, May 20th, 2019, the Partnership for Strong Communities hosted its second IForum of 2019, Ending Family Homelessness: A Look at Race, Equity, and Prevention Strategies. The event featured a discussion on racial disparities in homelessness in Connecticut and beyond, as well as equity-focused solutions to resolve the family homelessness crisis.
The National Housing Conference has released its 2018 edition of the Paycheck to Paycheck interactive database, as well as an accompanying report titled “Paycheck to Paycheck: Building Homes Affordable to Home Builders.” The Paycheck to Paycheck database allows users to explore the affordability of rental and homeownership for 81 occupations across 259 metro areas. Users are also able to compare the results across occupations and metros.
Enterprise Community Partners recently conducted a national survey studying the connection between health and housing as part of its Health Begins with Home initiative. The survey results suggest that many low-income renters prioritize paying rent above all other household expenses, including health care. 83% of severely cost-burdened renters (households spending more than 50% of their monthly income on housing costs) prioritized rent over anything else.
The Connecticut Housing Finance Authority (CHFA) announced the award of $10.28 million in tax credits to several affordable housing developers. The funds from the federal 9% Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program will provide funding to build or rehabilitate 439 rental units, 348 of which designated as affordable.
CHFA administers LIHTC allocations. This round of 9% LIHTC awards will generate more than $100 million in equity from private investors, and is expected to create 608 jobs, $219.5 million economic activity, and $12.6 million in net state revenue.