Congress in Recess Until Jan. 2024
Little progress has been made to resolve disagreements on overall government funding levels. Lawmakers will return facing critical funding deadlines, with funding expiring for HUD, USDA, and several other agencies on Jan. 19th. This Washington Update will resume in the New Year.
HUD Releases Video Highlighting Their Work to Build Safe, Affordable, and Quality Housing
Per HUD Press Release (Dec. 21st) – As 2023 comes to a close, HUD today released a video recapping key historic accomplishments achieved under the leadership of HUD Secretary Marcia Fudge. View the video here on HUD’s YouTube channel. These milestone achievements include:
- HUD has housed people through 120,000 new incremental vouchers in a three-year period, a 20-year record.
- The Federal Housing Administration has cut costs for homeowners and brought first-time homebuyers into the fold, achieving the first-time homebuyer rate at the highest it has been in over two decades.
- HUD has addressed the legacies of racial discrimination in housing.
- New investments will build for the future, ensuring communities are resilient to the effects of the climate crisis, particularly for Black, Indigenous, and low-income residents of color, which are often hit the hardest.
- Government National Mortgage Association (Ginnie Mae) supported a record high of over $2.5 trillion in current government lending, by providing liquidity in the housing finance system and facilitating the flow of more investment capital into US housing markets.
For more, see the press release summarizing these accomplishments and how HUD aims to make housing more safe, affordable, and resilient for Americans heading into 2024.
HUD-MFH Announces $173.9 Million in Grant Funding Awarded Through Green and Resilient Retrofit Program
Please Note: Below is an email from HUD MFH Programs (Dec. 21st).
Dear Multifamily Owners and Operators,
Today we have awarded approximately $173.9 million in grant funding and loan commitments under the Green and Resilient Retrofit Program (GRRP) to support energy efficiency, electrification, clean energy, low embodied carbon materials, and climate resilience improvements in 30 HUD-assisted multifamily properties that include 3,070 rental homes for low-income individuals and families. See the press release.
These investments will help tackle the climate crisis and support equitable economic development in American communities as part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda and historic environmental justice agenda. GRRP grant and loan funding announced today will improve the quality of life for residents by expanding energy efficiency, reducing climate pollution, generating renewable energy, promoting the use of green building materials, improving indoor air quality, and enhancing climate resilience.
The GRRP Notices of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) and additional guidance detail the multiple funding options for which property owners may apply:
- Elements provides funding to owners to include proven and meaningful climate resilience and utility efficiency measures in projects that are already in the process of being recapitalized.
- Leading Edge provides funding to owners with plans for ambitious retrofit activities to achieve an advanced green certification.
- Comprehensive provides funding to properties with the highest need for climate resilience and utility efficiency upgrades, regardless of prior development or environmental retrofit experience.
Property owners are encouraged to continue to submit applications for grant awards or loans in any of the three categories. HUD is accepting applications under one category each month for the duration of funding availability. HUD expects to announce awards regularly throughout 2024.
FHFA Announces LIHTC Cap Increase for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
Per FHFA News release (Dec. 21st) – the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the Enterprises) will each be allowed to invest up to $1 billion annually in the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) market as equity investors, beginning in 2024. The Enterprises will also adjust their LIHTC investment policies to ensure their investments only support projects that remain affordable for the entire 30-year period intended by the program. “Since restarting their LIHTC investments in 2018, the Enterprises have furthered their ability to create and preserve affordable housing, especially in areas that have difficulty attracting investors,” said Director Sandra L. Thompson. “Today’s announcement provides additional stability for investments in this critical segment of the housing market.”
Within the $1 billion investment cap, any investments by the Enterprises above $500 million in a given year must be in transactions FHFA has identified as having difficulty attracting investors. This increases the amount of investments under the cap that must support housing in Duty to Serve-designated rural areas, preserve affordable housing, support mixed-income housing, provide supportive housing, or meet other affordable housing objectives. In addition, the Enterprises will only make LIHTC investments in projects that waive the qualified contract provision, ensuring the 30-year affordability period envisioned by the LIHTC program.
Previously, each Enterprise was limited to $850 million of investment annually in the LIHTC market. Increasing the Enterprises’ LIHTC investment cap ensures they continue to play a consistent role in supporting the creation and preservation of affordable housing.
LIHTC is the primary federal government program available to address the shortage of affordable rental housing by creating and preserving affordable units in underserved areas throughout the country. FHFA will continue to evaluate the Enterprises’ participation in the LIHTC equity market on an ongoing basis.