Iowa Finance Authority awards more than $4 million in Local Housing Trust Fund grants
Local Housing Trust Fund grants will help preserve or create more than 1,600 affordable housing units
Des Moines, IA – November 16, 2009 – (RealEstateRama) — The Iowa Finance Authority (IFA) Board of Directors recently approved a total of more than $4.3 million in grants to 20 Local Housing Trust Funds. The grants will aid in the development and preservation of more than 1,600 affordable housing units throughout the state. The awards were made through the State Housing Trust Fund’s Local Housing Trust Fund Program (LHTF).
The $4.3 million in grant awards announced today leveraged more than $8 million in additional funds, or $1.87 for every dollar of LHTF Program funding to support affordable housing initiatives.
The funds will be used for initiatives such as 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, supporting transitional housing programs as well as homeless assistance and prevention.
“The awards announced today will not only provide direct housing assistance to thousands of Iowans, but the funds will also support Iowa neighborhoods, and ultimately boost economic activity,” said IFA Executive Director Bret Mills. “IFA is proud to partner with these Local Housing Trust Funds to provide vital housing resources for some of the state’s most vulnerable residents.”
The State Housing Trust Fund Program was created by the Iowa Legislature in 2003. Since its inception, the State Housing Trust Fund has provided more than $17 million in awards.
The State Housing Trust Fund (SHTF) helps ensure decent, safe and affordable housing for Iowans through two important programs. The Local Housing Trust Fund Program received 60 percent of the SHTF allocation to provide grants for communities, counties and organizations that wish to create a local housing trust fund. The remaining 40 percent goes to the Project-Based Housing Program that aids the development and rehabilitation of 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.
Contact:
Shawna Lode: 515.725.4897
