New York, NY – September 30, 2008 – (RealEstateRama) — Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) Commissioner Shaun Donovan announced today that the City is releasing the third Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) for financing of affordable housing using revenues from the Battery Park City Authority (BPCA). This year $22.6 million in BPCA funds will be distributed through the New York City Housing Trust Fund (NYC HTF) administered by HPD. The affordable housing created will be part of Mayor Bloomberg’s New Housing Marketplace Plan to build and preserve 165,000 units of affordable housing.
The Housing Trust Fund will be used to create or preserve 4,300 affordable housing units. The funding in this NOFA will be used for the new construction or substantial rehabilitation of developments targeting income groups that are currently the most difficult to reach, one of the three goals of the Housing Trust Fund. During a three-year period, approximately $70 million of the $130 million NYC HTF total will be used to subsidize projects that target hard–to-reach households, those whose earnings are either below or above the incomes usually targeted by federal affordable housing subsidies. The $70 million will contribute towards the development of an estimated 2,450 apartments for these families. The first two years of funding will produce 1612 affordable rental and co-op units.
“After two highly successful years for the Housing Trust Fund, we are once again asking affordable housing developers to apply for funds,” said HPD Commissioner Shaun Donovan. “Affordable housing remains one of New York City’s most pressing needs. The Mayor’s $7.5 billion New Housing Marketplace Plan will provide homes for 500,000 New Yorkers, more than the entire population of Atlanta. The Housing Trust Fund is an example of how we are using new and innovative sources of funding to accomplish this goal.”
In order to be eligible for funding consideration, proposed projects must include a minimum of 20% of units affordable to hard-to-reach households. NYC HTF subsidies will provide up to $50,000 per unit for all units that serve households earning up to 80% of the HUD Income Limits. Hard-to-reach households are defined as those whose earnings are at or below 30% of the Income Index ($23,050 for a family of four or $16,150 for a single person), or between 61% and 80% of the Income Index ($46,001 to $66,350 for a family of four or $32,301 to $43,000 for a single person). Preference will be given to applicants who demonstrate project readiness, incorporate the most units affordable to hard-to-reach households with the least amount of subsidy and commit to more than the required period of affordability. In addition, preference will be given to those applications that include elements of sustainable design.
In the first two years of the Housing Trust Fund nearly $49 million was awarded to fund 1612 units of affordable housing from the Greenpoint Williamsburg waterfront to the northwest Bronx. 445 units are affordable co-ops and 1167 are affordable rental units.
Applications for the new NOFA will be accepted starting immediately. The application submission period will remain open while funding is available. Proposals will be reviewed by HPD. Funding will be awarded on a rolling basis and based on application completeness, feasibility and the extent to which proposed projects meet the competitive criteria and threshold requirements.
Electronic versions of the NOFA are available on HPD’s website and hard copies may be made available upon request.
Completed applications should be submitted by mail to: NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development, NYC Housing Trust Fund, 100 Gold Street, Room 9-W1, New York, NY 10038, or submitted electronically to schrayl (at) hpd.nyc (dot) gov.
The New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development’s (HPD) mission is to promote quality housing and viable neighborhoods for New Yorkers. The department is the nation’s largest municipal housing development agency and is implementing Mayor Bloomberg’s New Housing Marketplace Plan to build and preserve 165,000 units of affordable housing. The New Housing Marketplace Plan is the largest municipal affordable housing effort in the nation. As part of Mayor Bloomberg’s PlaNYC, HPD is working to create homes for almost a million more New Yorkers by 2030 while making housing more affordable and sustainable. HPD also encourages the preservation of affordable housing through education, outreach, loan programs and enforcement of housing quality standards.
