Statement in Support of Administration Action Extending the Federal Financing Bank Risk-Sharing Program

WASHINGTON, DC — The National Council of State Housing Agencies appreciates and applauds the positive step the Biden – Harris Administration took today to increase the production and preservation of affordable housing by extending the Federal Financing Bank (FFB) Risk-Sharing Program.

At a time when affordable housing is scarce for so many people who need it so much, extending the FFB program ensures HFAs will continue to have an important and effective way of helping to build and maintain apartments for low- and moderate-income families.

The FFB Risk-Sharing Program is administered by the Departments of Housing and Urban Development and Treasury and has helped state and local housing finance agencies (HFAs) finance almost $5 billion in mortgage capital for more than 40,000 affordable rental homes since 2014.

This extension will help HFAs finance an estimated 38,000 more affordable units over the next 10 years and encourage more HFAs to participate in the program. Without this extension, HFAs would not have been able to enter into any new commitments under this valuable program after September 30 of this year.

Some examples of the new construction and preservation projects the FFB program has helped HFAs finance include:

• Comprehensive renovations and life-changing improvements to 1,810 apartments serving 4,300 residents in the Baychester, Murphy, and Betances houses in New York City;
• New construction of the Renaissance at North Colorado Station, 103 units in a mixed-income housing development in Denver providing homes and services for low-income families and persons experiencing homelessness; and
• 306 affordable and market-rate units at the Montevista Apartments in Milipitas, California, with community facilities and other amenities promoting self-sufficiency, independence, and quality of life.

About the National Council of State Housing Agencies

For more than 50 years, state housing finance agencies (HFAs) have played a central role in the nation’s affordable housing system, delivering financing to make possible the purchase, development, and rehabilitation of affordable homes and rental apartments for low- and middle-income households.

The National Council of State Housing Agencies is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization created to advance, through advocacy and education, the efforts of the nation’s state HFAs and their partners to provide affordable housing to those who need it. NCSHA’s vision: An affordably housed nation. Learn more at www.ncsha.org.

MEDIA CONTACT: Lisa Bowman, Director of Marketing and Communications