THDA Launches Phase 2 of Tennessee Housing Assistance Fund
Program will help borrowers and nonprofits
Oct. 5, 2022 – Tennessee Housing Development Agency has successfully launched the second phase of its Tennessee Housing Assistance Fund in an effort to help eligible homeowners lower their monthly mortgage payments.
The second phase of TNHAF program, which went live Aug. 29, assists borrowers at less than 60 percent of National Median Income who have experienced a COVID-related financial hardship and have a secondary mortgage provided by, and owned by, a non-profit housing agency.
The funding is used to extinguish, or reduce, the principal balance of a secondary mortgage, which frees up money for households to cover other needed expenditures.
“We realize that this population of homeowners are the least likely have disposable income,” THDA Executive Director Ralph M. Perrey said. “With the rising cost of household expenses, these families can struggle more than most to make ends meet. This program will help provide some relief to these families.”
Perrey said Tennessee is the only state that is administering these funds in a way that not only helps the homeowners, but the nonprofits that work with them.
The funding will in most cases pay off secondary mortgages owned by nonprofit housing agencies, providing them with an influx of early repayments.
Since the beginning of the TNHAF program’s first phase, approximately $13.5 million has been approved or disbursed to 971 borrowers in Tennessee, with an average disbursal amount of $14,000.
The Homeowners Assistance Fund was established under The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. The state of Tennessee was allocated $168,239,035, of which $20 is being set aside for Phase 2 of the program. THDA was selected by the Governor’s Office to administer HAF funds to those eligible homeowners experiencing a financial hardship related to the Covid-19 pandemic.
THDA is a state agency that was established by the Tennessee General Assembly in 1973. THDA is committed to the belief that housing is a basic human need that has profound impacts, both social and economic, on individuals and communities.
Safe, sound, affordable housing is essential to a healthy household, educational achievement, successful employment, and the stability and safety of the neighborhood. THDA has a broad portfolio of housing assistance programs and continues to vigorously develop a network of industry and municipal partners for their delivery.
As the State’s housing finance agency, the Tennessee Housing Development Agency (THDA) is a self-sufficient, publicly accountable entity of the State of Tennessee. Our purpose is to meaningfully expand affordable housing opportunities for Tennesseans. More information about THDA can be found online at THDA.org.
