The Department of Housing and Community Development has released a Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) for the National Housing Trust Fund (HTF).

Pre-applications, submitted through the on-line Mass OneStop+ system, will be due to the Department on or before November 21, 2016. Based on the information contained in the pre-application, DHCD, in partnership with the Community Economic Development Assistance Corporation (CEDAC), will determine whether the sponsor is in good standing with the Department, and whether the sponsor has the demonstrated capacity to develop the proposed housing and provide the necessary supportive services. In addition, all pre-applications must demonstrate that the proposed project is highly ready to proceed and that the development cost per unit is reasonable.

Sponsors whose projects receive preliminary approval from DHCD during the pre-application process will be invited to submit full funding applications. Full funding applications, submitted through the on-line Mass OneStop+ system, will be due on or before January 13, 2017. The review of full funding applications will include an assessment of whether or not they meet the standards detailed in the Department’s 2016 National Housing Trust Fund Allocation Plan, posted on DHCD’s website at http://www.mass.gov/hed/economic/eohed/dhcd/.

Many sponsors who are interested in the upcoming supportive housing round already have contacted our Department staff or our colleagues at CEDAC to discuss their projects. If you are a sponsor with interest in this round but have not yet contacted DHCD or CEDAC staff, please do so immediately. Ayana Gonzalez of DHCD can be reached at 617-573-1305. Sara Barcan of CEDAC can be reached at 617- 727-5944.