Application materials will be available by June 3rd. The CFA will open to applicants on June 17th and submissions from the regional councils are due September 24th.
Author: blairsebastian
Endorse the Campaign: National Low Income Housing Coalition
Endorse the Campaign: National Low Income Housing Coalition.
The NHTF was authorized by Congress in 2008 but remains unfunded while the need for affordable housing for the lowest income households is at an all-time high. Once funded, the NHTF will expand, preserve, rehabilitate, and maintain the supply of rental housing affordable to America’s poorest families.
How we can achieve it: We can adequately fund the NHTF through basic modifications to the MID.
The changes are simple: reduce the size of a mortgage eligible for a tax break to $500,000, and convert the deduction to a 15% non-refundable tax credit. By converting the MID to a credit, 16 million more homeowners would be eligible to receive the tax break. Most importantly, these moderate changes would generate almost $200 billion in revenue that could fund the NHTF and expand the supply of housing for those most at risk of homelessness.
How you can take action: Endorse United for Homes!
The first step toward being part of the solution is having your organization endorse the campaign. The more endorsers we have, the stronger our efforts. Join the movement to end homelessness and to help communities across America provide affordable homes for those who need it most. We can acheive this together.
Rural Job Market Turns Inside Out | Daily Yonder | Keep It Rural
CDBG and HOME Cuts Proposed in FY 14
Tkaczyk, on Main Street, offers plan for rural economy – Hudson Catskill Newspapers: News
Housing Budget Negotiated
The Governor and the Legislature completed negotiating the state budget this weekend. All of the budget bills have now been printed and introduced. The Assembly returns to Albany on Thursday and the budget should be passed on time.
As we announced last week, the final agreement rejects the Governor’s proposed Article 27 Community Preservation Program and retains the Rural and Neighborhood Preservation programs.
RPC and NPCs received funding from two sources. The program was funded “off budget” in an Article 7 bill at $3,539,000 with funds swept from the Mortgage Insurance Fund. An additional $655,000 is found in the Aid to Localities bill and is therefore “on budget” These combined sources should allow RPCs/NPCs to be funded at about last year’s levels or about $66,000 per group. Having part of the program’s funding “on budget” is a good thing. Each Coalition was funded at last year’s levels as well
There is a new Article 27 but this one creates a new Urban and Rural Communities Fund. This new program provides funds for small rental projects, with a focus on mixed use and community revitalization projects. The Rural and Urban Community funds are initially funded at about $5.4 million.The new Article 27 fund requires 1/3 match and defines rural as under 25,000 in population. Rural areas have a forty percent set aside for for this program. This funds mixed use new construction or rehab with affordable housing at 90% of median, can be structured as a grant or loan and is available to for profits as well as non profits
The Mortgage Insurance Fund was also used to fund UI at $2million and RARP at $1.5 million. Rural Rental Assistance was funded at $20,400,000
Community based, Rural Preservation Corporations supported
We have received word that the Governor, the Assembly and the Senate agreed to turn back the Governor’s Article 27 Community Preservation proposal and to restore funding to Rural and Neighborhood Preservation Companies under the existing Articles 16 and 17.
Members of the Senate in particular were just unwilling to leave our communities without a dedicated stream of rural specific funding. That has been our principle goal from the beginning of this session and therefore, we are pleased with this outcome.
The three way agreement also rejected the proposal to move HHAP to DHCR. We think that this is also a very good thing.
We understand that the particulars of funding have not yet been worked out and will likely be negotiated today. The Senate continues to press for increased funding for the LPA programs and Main Street and RESTORE in particular and we will be following those discussions as well.
The legislature now hopes to return Monday, and if the budget does not get passed on Monday it looks like they will take a break for the first 2 days of Passover and return at the end of the week
Speak Your Piece: ‘Rural’ and Housing | Daily Yonder | Keep It Rural
Speak Your Piece: ‘Rural’ and Housing | Daily Yonder | Keep It Rural.
EDITOR’S NOTE: This is part of a series of columns on the USDA’s proposal to change eligibility requirements for some of its development programs. Previous columns have been by former congressional staffer Aleta Botts and the USDA’s Doug O’Brien.
If it “ain’t broke”
Rural Advocates continue to respect the work done over the past 30 years and the recognition that rural resources, needs and plans for the future are different than those in urban areas. While rural communities might be closer in nature to upstate urban communities than those with greater density downstate, they do not received entitlement programs, often do not have the benefit of professional planners and grantwriters on staff and available or resources of lenders and financial support. We will continue to advocate for protection of existing rural resources for our communities, the support of professional grassroots non profit development corporations and the need to do even more
USDA Rural Development-Housing Programs Administered in Accordance with Federal Law
USDA Rural Development-NewsRelease.
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By Tammye Treviño, Administrator, USDA Rural Housing Programs
USDA continues to operate its housing programs under the law and in accordance with the will of Congress. Earlier today, Reuters filed a report based on a study of USDA’s home loan portfolio. USDA disputes certain findings in that report. The Reuters story alleges that the USDA rural housing program staff approved a substantial number of guaranteed home loans that are in urban areas, that USDA Rural Housing Service guaranteed loans of $1 million or more to individuals making substantial incomes. The facts are that the USDA Section 502 Guaranteed program adheres to statutorily prescribed eligibility requirements, which include population thresholds. To do otherwise would contravene U.S. law. Irrespective of the sizes of the communities it serves, the 502 Guaranteed program finances only modest homes for borrowers with limited means, and it relies upon conservative mortgage structures. Nationally, the average household income of those participating in the program is $48,000. When preparing its story, Reuters provided a Continue reading |
NEW YORK STATE RURAL ADVOCATES 