Housing Call: November 19, 2024 – North Carolina Housing Coalition

Organizational Updates

No Housing Call next week. We’ll be back on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving, December 3.

Federal Updates

On Wednesday, Republicans secured the seats needed to retain control of the House. This means that in the new year, Republicans will officially control both chambers of Congress and the White House. Our Director of Housing Policy, Stephanie Watkins-Cruz was in DC last week convening with state and tribal partners of the National Low Income Housing Coalition – additional highlights and takeaways will be shared in the days and weeks to come.

Yesterday, the Biden-Harris Administration requested nearly $100 billion in emergency disaster funding. The request includes $40M to replenish FEMA’s Disaster Recovery Fund and $12M for CDBG-DR funding. Congress is expected to release a draft disaster recovery spending bill in early December and vote on it before leaving for the holidays.

State Updates

Yesterday November 18, 2024, the Joint Legislative Commission on Governmental Operations Subcommittee on Hurricane Response and Recovery met to discuss North Carolina’s hurricane recovery efforts, here are a few key takeaways from that hearing.

Late October, the NCGA was notified of a budget shortfall by NCORR after an operational review which amounted to about 175 Million.
After an accounting review – the funding gap grew. And NCORR is ultimately asking for $265 Million in funding to move forward with their homeowner recovery program without interruption for the 1400 homes remaining in the queue. Their funding ask also includes $43-46 million that was on the table to be removed from 5 different LIHTC projects in the east.
They are spending about $2.1 Million in temporary housing relocation assistance a month.
Several members asked about their process, as well as if they should be trusted with any money and resources for Hurricane Helene.
Members from WNC on the subcommittee communicated that they want to wrap up the Matthew and Florence recovery in order to begin moving forward with Hurricane Helene recovery.

It’s important to note that NC only received half of the allocation that was requested from federal funding, and so despite the administrative issues – it is very likely we still would have seen a budget shortfall due to the nature of the need, and the resources that were actually allocated.

The General Assembly convenes today November 19, 2024 at noon where they are expected to vote on SB 382: “The Disaster Recovery Act of 2024 – Part III. We received a draft this morning of what the NCGA may be voting on today – November 19 – and here is what we see so far in this version:

$50 Million – allocated for LIHTC developments in Eastern North Carolina
$229 Million in Helene Fund but unallocated
No mention of the $265 Million allocation needed for homeowner recovery
No explicit authority or resources that allows NCORR to begin working on Hurricane Helene Recovery and set up a CDBG-DR program.

Our Policy Director Stephanie Watkins-Cruz will be at the General Assembly today and provide more highlights in this week’s housing matters.

NCGA Leadership Changes

We’ll be releasing a quick reference to all of the incoming key leaders in the NCGA later this week. Destin Hall (R) is expected to become the new speaker in January. On the senate side, Phil Berger (R) will continue his run as the active longest-serving chamber leader in the country.

Allison Riggs pulls ahead in State Supreme Court Race

Incumbent Democrat Supreme Court Justice Allison Riggs continues to pull ahead after the most recent round of absentee and provisional ballots was counted. She trailed Republican Jefferson Griffin by about 10K votes on election night, but as of 9am this morning leads the NC Supreme Court race by 623 votes out of a combined over 5.5 million votes cast.

NCHFA Releases QAP Second Draft

The Second Draft 2025 Qualified Allocation Plan is now available on the Agency’s website. The QAP establishes the scoring for the upcoming year’s LIHTC applications.

The following are the significant changes from the first draft (all changes are highlighted in the document):

Increase maximum awards to one Principal from $2,000,000 to $2,600,000
Agency Designated Basis Boost for new construction will apply to counties located in Hurricane Helene disaster areas up to 30%
Projects allocated credits in cycle years 2023 and prior will be eligible to receive an allocation of 2025 tax credits
Revised Secondary Amenities classification based on QAP comments-Community Center/Senior Center will be considered as a Public Facility and no longer a separate category
Preliminary applications submitted during the Open Bond Cycle may use established current rent and income limits
Eligible Golden LEAF counties and requirements have been revised
Documents allowed by the Agency to be considered for new construction projects expecting to receive Section 8 PBRA
Properties receiving Agency funding must have Agency approval of all rent increases through the extended use period.

The Agency appreciates the First Draft comments submitted and will continue to post Second Draft comments as they are received.

Helene Recovery

Sheltering and Housing Solutions for NC Survivors of Tropical Storm Helene Infographic

FEMA Helene Assistance Metrics (as of Nov. 14)
- 261,719 households signed up for FEMA individual assistance program
- $174,160,883 dollars in individual housing assistance
  - $502,420 in rental assistance money
- 4,549 households in Temporary Shelter Assistance. Of these 4,027 are in NC. The number equates to 10,300 individuals approximately. The number is higher than last week but has stayed roughly the same over the past few days. It’s down from the peak of roughly 6,000.

Public invited to comment on proposed use of state disaster mitigation funds

The N.C. Office of Recovery and Resiliency (NCORR) is seeking public comments through Dec. 14 on a proposed amendment to the action plan for administering HUD Community Development Block Grant-Mitigation funds. The proposed action plan amendment is intended to address homeowner mitigation needs, including establishing the Residential Property Elevation Fund, which will be used to rehabilitate, reconstruct or replace properties located in a floodplain or at risk of future flooding. The new fund will help protect properties against future flood damage through structural elevations and related activities. This fund is separate from the Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery-funded ReBuild NC Homeowner Recovery Program which primarily serves properties that do not need home elevation.

Proposed changes include allocations to the Affordable Housing Development Fund, Public Housing Restoration Fund, Infrastructure Recovery Program and Strategic Buyout Program, among other updates.

A draft of the new Substantial Action Plan Amendment 6 for Mitigation funding is available for review online. The public is strongly encouraged to submit comments by email to ncorr.publiccomments@ncdps.gov or by U.S. Postal Service mail to: NCORR Public Comments, P.O. Box 110465, Durham, NC 27709. Public comments on the new draft action plan must be submitted no later than 5 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024.

In addition to mitigation initiatives, NCORR administers programs that include long-term disaster recovery, resiliency, community development, affordable housing, strategic buyout and local infrastructure. Learn more about NCORR programs at https://www.rebuild.nc.gov/.

Last week, HUD announced $4.8 million to support people experiencing homelessness in communities across North Carolina and South Carolina recovering from Hurricane Helene. Through HUD’s Rapid Unsheltered Survivor Housing (RUSH) program, funding will be allocated to Winston-Salem, NC ($548,000); Charlotte, NC ($1,000,000); Greenville County, SC ($162,699); Lexington County, SC ($108,780); and the State of South Carolina ($2,957,704) to address needs not fully met by existing federal disaster relief programs.
Foreclosure Moratorium in Effect in North Carolina for Certain Counties and Certain Mortgage Loans A 90-day foreclosure moratorium remains in effect for Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-insured mortgages and Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECM) in 25 NC counties that were Presidentially declared a Major Disaster under the Stafford Act. To be clear, It is not a moratorium on all foreclosures and does not apply to, for example, privately insured mortgage loans or other federally backed loans such or loans purchased or securitized by the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation or the Federal National Mortgage Association.
Interested in learning more about tenant and landlord rights, eviction, and housing assistance in the wake of Tropical Storm Helene? Check out this comprehensive article from the UNC School of Government: After the Storm: Summary Ejectment and Assistance Programs in North Carolina

Helene-Related Events

[virtual and tele-town hall conversation] WNC Helene Recovery Conversation: Transitioning from Immediate Emergency Management to Long Term Recovery | NC Department of Health & Human Services, November 20, 12-1:30 p.m.
- Join the event on Zoom at ly/HeleneWNC or from your phone by dialing 855-756-7520 Ext. 117356#. Spanish and ASL interpretation and communication access will be provided.
- Panelists want to hear from community groups, nonprofits and others, and will also share information and answer questions about resources and services available to support the ongoing storm response.

[hybrid event] Mold Matters: Health & Home Safety After Helene | November 25, 11 a.m. -12:30 p.m. @ Land of the Sky Association of Realtors Event Center. Presented by Thrive Asheville in partnership with the Commercial Building Alliance of Asheville, Land of Sky Regional Council, Hood Huggers, Asheville Area Habitat for Humanity, and Mountain True with expert insights from Green Home Solutions.