Newsroom
Application Period Now Open for NJHMFA’s Small Landlord Emergency Grant Program
The New Jersey Housing Mortgage and Finance Agency (NJHMFA) today announced that the application period for the Small Landlord Emergency Grant (SLEG) Program is now open. NJHFMA, whose mission is to increase the availability of and accessibility to safe, decent, and affordable housing to families in New Jersey, developed the SLEG program to reimburse small landlords for missed or reduced rent payments between April 2020 and July 2020 due to COVID-19. The SLEG is open to owners of residential properties in New Jersey with 3 to 10 rental units.
RIHousing Launches Mortgage Payment Assistance Program to Help RIers
RIHousing today announced $2 million in available mortgage payment assistance funding through the federally-funded Hardest Hit Fund Rhode Island (HHFRI) program. The new program provides financial assistance to Rhode Island homeowners negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and struggling to make their mortgage payments. Borrowers must have experienced unemployment or underemployment due to the COVID-19 pandemic to be eligible.
RIHousing Announces Inaugural Michael Van Leesten Awards Program
RIHousing today announced a new awards program to honor the life and work of Michael Van Leesten. Born and raised in Providence, Van Leesten was dedicated to improving the lives of Rhode Islanders through his business leadership, civil rights activism, and public service. The newly established Michael Van Leesten Memorial Awards program honors his lifelong commitment to housing and education and includes both a scholarship program and fellowship position.
PHFA Provides Update About CARES Assistance to Pa. Renters And Homeowners
After six weeks of administering CARES financial assistance for renters and homeowners, the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency is providing an update on the progress of both programs, which have been accepting applications since July 6. As of Aug. 14, the CARES RRP has received 14,074 applications from renters who are using receipt of unemployment compensation as their method to qualify for assistance. PHFA is providing a county-by-county breakdown of these numbers. The processing of these applications is being managed by organizations in all 67 counties, and the data being provided today comes from these groups.
Governor Wolf Announces Funding to House the Erie Center for Arts and Technology in the Old Wayne School Building
Governor Tom Wolf today announced that Commonwealth Cornerstone Group has completed a New Markets Tax Credit transaction of $9.5 million with the Erie Center for Arts and Technology (ECAT) to transform the mostly vacant Wayne School building into a new resource for the community. The renovated building will become a community hub for job training, health care, social services and the arts through a mixed tenant base.
NCSHA Washington Report | August 14, 2020
Over the past few weeks, millions on Twitter have received, and retweeted to millions more, a series of messages from one of the service’s most powerful and prolific accounts warning of the...
Secretary Carson Approves New Uses for Communities’ Coronavirus Relief Funds
Washington - U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Ben Carson today announced new flexibilities states and local government can use in order to best utilize Community...
Governor Wolf Announces 2020 PHARE Funding to Support Affordable Housing Across Pennsylvania
Governor Tom Wolf today announced recipients of a new round of funding for housing programs made available through the Pennsylvania Housing Affordability and Rehabilitation Enhancement (PHARE) fund. The governor named 214 housing and community development initiatives in 67 counties that will share a portion of the total $45.79 million in PHARE funding. The PHARE fund, which is sometimes referred to as the state Housing Trust Fund, is managed by the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency.
Governor Wolf Announces Funding for Affordable Rental Housing
Governor Tom Wolf today announced awards totaling $42 million in Low Income Housing Tax Credits, $6.08 million in PennHOMES funding, and $12.6 million in National Housing Trust Funds for the construction of 36 affordable multifamily housing developments in Pennsylvania. The federal tax credits are administered by the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency and were approved by its board.
Deadline Nears for Rural Professional Housing Funding
Small, rural communities must register to be considered for Alaska Housing Finance Corporation’s Teacher, Health Professional, and Public Safety Housing program before Friday, August 21 at 5 p.m. Registration is necessary for access to the $2 million in funding made available by AHFC. Following registration, AHFC will provide project developers with training and support to submit proposals that will be evaluated objectively for criteria that includes community need, number of units to be developed/renovated, other funding and project costs, including consideration of renewable or efficient energy sources.
HUD Publishes CARES Act Guidance for CDBG Program
On August 10, HUD published a Notice providing guidance on program rules, waivers, and alternative requirements allowed in accordance with the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act for the $5 billion in supplemental Community Development Block Grant funding Congress provided to help states and localities respond to the coronavirus pandemic (CDBG-CV). The Notice also provides flexibility and relief for annual formula CDBG grants for fiscal years (FY) 2019 and 2020, so that grantees may use regular yearly CDBG resources for those years as part of their coronavirus response.
Executive Order Directs Agencies to Consider Ways to Prevent Evictions, Foreclosures
On August 8, President Trump issued an Executive Order to address COVID-19-related challenges for renters and homeowners. The E.O. directs a number of federal agencies, including the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Department of Treasury, to consider actions to prevent eviction and foreclosure. However, it does not include specific policy changes.
