The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) published a final rule amending the Federal Home Loan Banks’ (FHLBanks) Affordable Housing Program (AHP) regulations. FHLBanks are required to allocate 10 percent of prior year’s income to fund the AHP, which helps subsidize the purchase, construction and rehabilitation of affordable rental and owner-occupied housing for moderate-, low- and very low-income households.
The rule authorizes the FHLBanks to establish competitive funds that target specific affordable housing needs, with demonstrated need, in their districts. The rule also removes the requirement for retention agreements for owner-occupied units where the AHP subsidy is used solely for rehabilitation.
The owner-occupied retention agreement requirements must be implemented by Jan. 1, 2020 and all other changes must be implemented by Jan. 1, 2021. FHFA will host a webinar at 2 p.m. EST on Dec. 13, 2018, to describe the final rule and answer questions. Questions may be submitted in advance to DHMG.HCI@fhfa.gov. Register here for the webinar.
