MaineHousing Awards $13.4 Million in State Funding for 129 New Affordable Rental Homes in Lewiston and Portland
The Awards Mark the End of Additional State Funding for Affordable Housing Development, as Funds Approved by the Legislature in 2023 are now Exhausted.
AUGUSTA — MaineHousing is pleased to announce it has awarded $13.4 million in state subsidies that will help create 129 new affordable rental homes in Lewiston and Portland. This latest round of funding leverages low-income housing tax credits and will lead to the development of two apartment buildings in Lewiston and one in Portland.
The awards mark the end of the availability of additional state funding for affordable housing development, as resources approved by the Legislature are now exhausted. Another seven proposals that sought to create an additional 264 affordable rental units across the state under the program were not funded due to a lack of resources.
This program, along with two others, the Affordable Homeownership Program (AHOP) and the Rural Affordable Rental Housing Program (Rural), will have added 895 new affordable homes for rent or purchase in Maine.
Combined, these state investments equal $106 million and will produce not only much-needed housing but also at least $316 million dollars more in economic activity for the state of Maine.
“This state funding has allowed MaineHousing to significantly increase the production of affordable rental homes in Maine,” said MaineHousing Director Dan Brennan. “We are grateful that these programs, initiated by Governor Mills and approved by the Maine Legislature, will help thousands of Mainers have a safe, warm, and affordable place to call home for many decades in the future. Without additional state funding or an alternative to it, MaineHousing’s current production pipeline for affordable housing will begin to taper dramatically in the coming years.”
“Governor Mills and the Legislature have taken historic action to create more affordable housing in Maine, putting roofs over the heads of Maine’s working families for years to come and bolstering our economy,” said Greg Payne, senior housing advisor in the Governor’s Office of Policy Innovation and the Future. “But more action is needed to maintain this momentum and ensure that Maine people of all incomes can afford to own and rent a home. We continue to collaborate with the Legislature to keep Maine heading in the right direction on affordable housing.”
Maine’s Legislature is currently considering several pieces of legislation that could help refuel these state subsidy programs and create significant additional housing opportunities for Maine people.
This includes LD 1082, a bill to create Maine’s first dedicated funding source for affordable housing through reform of the real estate transfer tax, and LD 1829, which reforms zoning requirements to encourage housing creation in growth areas.
“Housing is the solution to our state’s challenges,” said Laura Mitchell, the Executive Director of the Maine Affordable Housing Coalition. “Homes that are affordable for Maine people require funding. Our Legislature has the power to sustain our progress, building desperately needed homes that our workforce, seniors, and families can afford. Our coalition is strongly urging lawmakers to support continued state funding for affordable housing development and a housing bond so the building of these homes throughout rural Maine and in our cities continues beyond 2026.”
For additional details on these awards see chart below.
ABOUT MAINEHOUSING: MaineHousing is a mission-driven, independent, quasi-state agency created in 1969 by the Maine State Legislature to address the problems of unsafe, unsuitable, overcrowded, and unaffordable housing. A $3.1 billion financial institution with a staff of over 190 people, MaineHousing is governed by a 10-member Board of Commissioners appointed by the Governor. Each year MaineHousing assists more than 90,000 Maine households to buy, heat, rent, and repair their homes while also investing more than $750 million in the Maine economy.
