Housing Call: November 1, 2022 – North Carolina Housing Coalition

Federal Updates

Midterm Elections. We’re one week away from Election Day! NC early voting continues until 3 pm on Saturday, Nov. 5. Polling places in NC will be open on election day from 6:30 am-7:30 pm.
HUD Announces Creation of RUSH Program. Last week, HUD announced the creation of the Rapid Unsheltered Survivor Housing program (RUSH). The program provides longer-term direct rental assistance and supportive services for people at risk of or experiencing homelessness. This is great news after years of advocacy from NLIHC and other supporters. RUSH is similar to the Disaster Housing Assistance Program (DHAP), which both Republican and Democrat administrations have supported but FEMA has failed to activate in recent years. HUD will use $56 million in reallocated ESG funds to fund RUSH and has already made its first set of allocations ($6.7M) in response to Hurricane Ian in Florida.
HUD Releases DDAs, QCTs for 2023: HUD recently released 2023 difficult development areas (DDAs) and qualified census tracts (QCTs). LIHTC properties built in a DDA or QCT can boost their eligible basis by up to 30%. New QCT and DDA designations will go into effect January 1st, 2023. There are 13 NC counties on the non-metropolitan DDA list and 10 different HUD Metro FMR areas and specific zip codes within them on the metropolitan DDA list. HUD makes these designations based on the modified small area fair market rents, FY2022 income limits, and 2020 Census population counts.

State & Local Community Updates

WAMY Community Action received a $7.5K donation from Bank of America to help preserve affording housing in Watauga County in WNC. This funding fills an urgent need for home repairs in the county. Last year, over half of all of the home repair requests WAMY received were deferred because there weren’t enough unrestricted funds to meet the county’s needs.
Last week, Asheville City Council allocated $6M to the city’s Housing Trust Fund. This allocation comes from $6.5M in bond funds left from the 2016 housing bond. The remaining $500K will be set aside for activities on city-owned land. Next week, Buncombe County will vote on a $40M affordable housing bond.
NC organizations Eliminate the Digital Divide and the Center for Digital Equality hosted an event to address the digital divide last Thursday at an affordable housing community in Charlotte’s Westerly Hills neighborhood. More than 150 residents received free laptops and information about the FCC’s Affordable Connectivity Program.
Wake County secured a $47M bank loan for their Affordable Housing Preservation Fund. This loan, combined with financial commitments from both the City of Raleigh and Wake County brings the Fund’s total to almost $62M. Developers and nonprofits that want to purchase, rehabilitate, or maintain affordable apartments can apply for loans from the Fund. The program is expected to preserve the naturally-occurring affordability of around 3,200 units over 15 years.
Rocky Mount City Council voted last week to award United Community Ministries Community Shelter $50K in CDBG-CV funds. City Council also voted earlier in October to award the shelter a $30K grant. This funding is expected to keep the community shelter, which has served 158 individuals this year, from being forced to shut its doors due to lack of funding.

NLIHC Updates

Sign on by the November 16 deadline to add your organization to the Campaign for Housing and Community Development Funding’s letter, urging Congress to work together to ensure affordable housing and community development programs receive the highest funding possible in fiscal year 2023. Add your organization here.

NCHC Updates

Important changes on our recent piece on the Source of Income Discrimination and prior comments the corrected version is available.

City of Raleigh – 2021
City of Winston Salem – June 2022
City of Charlotte – July 2022
Mecklenburg County – September 2022

Help us develop our 2023 Policy Agenda! The survey will be released in our housing matters this week if you want to get a head start, you can visit our 2021 policy agenda, and start thinking about:

What should we prioritize? Add? Change? What is missing?
How do you want to engage?
What are the biggest issues facing your community and those you serve?

The 2022 County Profiles feedback survey is now closed! Thanks to those of you who took the time to share your thoughts with us. Your responses provided valuable insight into how you use this tool and how we can best support you in your work. Our staff are busy incorporating your ideas into the County Profiles and brainstorming additional NCHC resources to meet your needs.

Big themes that emerged from your feedback:

You use them, thank you!
You’d like to see more information about eviction & foreclosure rates, homelessness, and median rents and mortgages.
You use these profiles across a variety of audiences: community members, elected officials, partner organizations, funders & donors, and volunteers.

Thanks again for your thoughtful contributions and we hope you’ll continue to reach out if you have any other ideas about ways we can best support you in your work.

Events

[virtual] HUD House Party – Let’s Talk About the House! | HUD, 11/1, 6:30 p.m.
- Featuring HUD Secretary Marcia Fudge, the session will feature a discussion on pathways to homeownership and solutions to overcome barriers to homeownership, such as credit scores, student loan debt and down payment savings.
- This event is to help encourage young adults who wish to become homeowners but feel the barriers are too steep, especially in communities of color.
[hybrid] Livable Appalachia: Creative Housing Solutions | AARP NC, 11/3, 10 am-2:30 pm, Jubilee House Retreat Center in Abingdon, VA
- Free but must register in advance
- featuring presentations from developers, funders, local government and grassroots organizers working towards housing solutions for south-central Appalachia.
- Lunch and networking opportunities will be integrated into this experience. The event will conclude with a tour of ElderSpirit, an intentional, participatory, cohousing community designed for a mixed-income community of elders.
- Recording of event will be available afterward
[in-person] Housing Lunch and Learn | Pisgah Legal Services, 11/9, 12:00-1:30pm @ First United Methodist in Hendersonville.
- Learn how local advocates are working together to prevent homelessness and create affordable housing opportunities in Henderson County. Lunch will be complimentary but registration is required. Sign up
[virtual] Looking Forward: Making Sense of the Election Results in North Carolina | NC Justice Center, 11/15, 12pm
[virtual] Next-Generation Innovations in Housing Affordability | Urban Institute, 11/15, 1pm
[virtual] Leveraging Data in Decision-Making for Local Governments | HUD, 11/15, 2pm
[virtual] Improving Experiences for Residents with Disabilities in Federally Assisted Family Housing | Urban Institute, 11/16, 12:15-1:30pm
[virtual] Toward New Narratives About Aging in Place | Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies, 12/8, 12pm
[in-person] HFA Institute 2023 | NCSHA, January 8-13, Washington, D.C.
Registration is now open for the National Alliance to End Homelessness’s Innovations and Solutions for Ending Unsheltered Homelessness Conference. The conference will take place March 1–3, 2023, in Oakland, CA.