Florida Housing Finance Corporation will hold a workshop on Wednesday, February 24, 2016, at 1:30 p.m. to discuss two key topics with the public and stakeholders:

  • Florida’s implementation of the National Housing Trust Fund; and
  • Florida Housing’s current approaches to finance Permanent Supportive Housing through its Request for Applications process.

The meeting will be held at the Holiday Inn Tampa Westshore – Airport Area, 700 N. Westshore Blvd, Tampa, Florida.

National Housing Trust Fund (NHTF). The goal of this federal program is to create an ongoing, dedicated source of capital for development of affordable housing. It is new funding for Florida and does not supplant or replace any existing state or federal funding. Through the NHTF, Florida Housing will make funds available to develop housing affordable to households with incomes at or below 30% of Area Median Income (AMI). The NHTF will primarily finance development of rental housing as U.S. HUD rules mandate that at least 90% of the funding must be used for this purpose. Properties which receive NHTF funding must remain affordable for a minimum of 30 years.

The formal planning process for this new funding will not begin until after U.S. HUD has released the allocation amounts for each state and additional guidance. This workshop will provide attendees with information about the NHTF program and provide an opportunity to hear Florida Housing’s ideas for how the program might be used. Workshop participants will help identify priorities for this new source of funding which will assist Florida Housing in preparation of a draft Allocation Plan for the formal citizen participation process later in 2016.

At the workshop, Florida Housing staff will solicit input to help identify priorities appropriate to the implementation of NHTF including:

  • Eligibility requirements for recipients;
  • How to use NHTF to leverage other FHFC resources;
  • The form the funding should take;
  • Priorities for meeting housing needs of various household groups within the ELI population; and
  • The connection between housing and supportive services in properties financed with NHTF.

In addition, Florida Housing staff will answer questions about HUD requirements, eligible activities, and the process of formally adopting an NHTF Allocation Plan.

Stakeholder Input on Permanent Supportive Housing Strategies Implemented by Florida Housing. Florida Housing would also like feedback on its approach over the last several years to financing a range of Permanent Supportive Housing opportunities. Now that several Request for Application (RFA) funding cycles will soon be completed, it would be useful for Florida Housing to hear from stakeholders about what has gone well, what problems/barriers should be addressed, and whether the Corporation’s approaches are appropriate for current and emerging priorities to serve persons with special needs.

An agenda for this workshop on both of these topics will be posted closer to the date of the meeting. For more information about the NHTF, please visit the Florida Housing website at:http://apps.floridahousing.org/StandAlone/FHFC_ECM/ContentPage.aspx?PAGE=0459