March 28, 2024

Iowa Finance Authority awards $7.4 million for affordable housing initiatives

DES MOINES – The Iowa Finance Authority Board of Directors approved a total of $7.4 million in grants to 25 Local Housing Trust Funds to support local affordable housing initiatives which will assist more than 2,600 Iowa families. The funding is provided from the State Housing Trust Fund’s Local Housing Trust Fund program.

“The Local Housing Trust Fund awards announced Dec. 6 are leveraging an additional $3.3 million in local contributions, which is a testament to the shared commitment to provide Iowans with a place they can be proud to call home,” said Iowa Finance Authority Executive Director Dave Jamison. “The Iowa Finance Authority is pleased to partner with Local Housing Trust Funds by providing them with the resources they need to efficiently fulfill unique local affordable housing needs.”

Southern Iowa COG Housing Trust Fund received $253,673 to serve Adair, Adams, Clarke, Decatur, Madison, Ringgold, Taylor and Union counties. For more information, contact Tim Ostroski at 641-782-8491.

The grant funds will be used for initiatives such as preserving aging housing stock, subsidizing local down payment assistance programs, providing low-interest loans or grants to assist Iowans in home rehabilitation, financing construction of new single-family housing for low-income Iowans and supporting housing for persons with disabilities and homeless assistance programs.

The State Housing Trust Fund was created by the Iowa Legislature in 2003. Since its inception, the program has provided $63 million in affordable housing assistance that has benefited nearly 23,000 Iowa families. This funding has leveraged another $152 million in other funds or $2.42 for every dollar of State Housing Trust Fund investment.

The State Housing Trust Fund helps ensure decent, safe and affordable housing for Iowans through two programs. The Local Housing Trust Fund Program receives at least 60 percent of the SHTF allocation to provide grants for organizations certified by the Iowa Finance Authority as a Local Housing Trust Fund. The remaining funding goes to the Project-Based Housing Program, which aids in the development of affordable single-family and multifamily housing. The Iowa Finance Authority administers both programs and provides technical assistance to housing-related organizations.

The Iowa Legislature created the Iowa Finance Authority, the state’s housing finance agency, in 1975 to undertake programs to assist in the attainment of housing for low- and moderate-income Iowans. Since then, the Iowa Finance Authority’s role has grown to include nearly 40 affordable housing, water quality and agricultural development programs. The Iowa Finance Authority is a self-supporting public agency.