Policy Update 10-19-22 – North Carolina Housing Coalition

Federal Updates

The Biden-Harris Administration announced final and temporary regulations to address the average-income set aside rule for LIHTC development. The new average income set aside regulation removes the “cliff test” and allows unit redesignations based on a wide range of justifications. This particular test was especially contentious because under the proposed regulations, one unit being out of compliance with the required set aside could threaten the credits of the entire project.

In the same update, the Biden-Harris Administration also announced clarification and extensions to some deadlines for LIHTCs with awards from 2019, 2020, 2021. If you missed our blog post on this, check it out here.

State Updates

NCORR Funds its Largest Affordable Housing Project
The North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resiliency (NCORR) announced McArthur Park II, its largest affordable housing project to date. The multifamily apartment development is located in Fayetteville and will include 80 rental units for families earning 60% of the area median income or below. The apartments are intended to create access to housing in a location that lost naturally occurring affordable homes during hurricanes Matthew and Florence.

This project is also supported by the North Carolina Housing Finance Agency and is one of 51 proposed projects that were selected to receive a Housing Credit Award in the 2022 cycle. Together, the 51 projects will produce 4,429 privately owned and managed affordable apartments across 29 counties in NC. Check out our blog piece for more details on this year’s LIHTC awards.

AARP Hosts Summit in NC
AARP hosted their Age My My Summit NC in Raleigh last Wednesday, where practitioners gathered from across the state to discuss social determinants of health and the 8 domains of livability, which include housing. AARP consistently finds that the vast majority of older adults want to reside in their current home or community for as long as possible. To accomplish this, their home must be designed or modified for aging in place, or a community can offer housing options that are suitable for differing incomes, ages and life stages.

Governor Cooper attended the event and spoke about ensuring that North Carolina be a place for people of all ages. He emphasized the valuable role that seniors play in our communities across the state.

Ted Budd Leading in North Carolina’s Senate Race
North Carolina’s U.S. Senate race continues to be one of the closest in the nation, although recent polls have Republican congressman Ted Budd taking a lead. Sen. Cory Booker was in Charlotte last weekend to campaign on behalf of Rep. Budd’s opponent, former State Supreme Court Chief Justice Cheri Beasley. The two candidates met for a debate earlier this month, focusing on topics such as inflation, abortion, and immigration. North Carolina is among a handful of battleground states that will decide control of the Senate in the midterm elections.

Local Updates

Additional Affordable Housing Slated for Chapel Hill-Carrboro
Recently, CASA announced they expect construction to be complete by January at Perry Place, a 48-unit tax credit property on Merritt Mill Rd., situated on the line between Chapel HIll and Carrboro. The development is the first tax credit property for both the Town of Carrboro and CASA. The development is not yet accepting applications, but income-qualified people interested in applying may be placed on a waitlist.

Carrboro Town Council recently approved additional investments in affordable housing in their revised allocation plan for expenditure of ARP/CSLFRF funds. The plan allocates $1M towards the creation of affordable housing, $500K towards the emergency housing assistance program, and $500K towards home energy efficiency renovations.

Raleigh Releases Annual Affordable Housing Report
Throughout FY 21-22, the City created or preserved 156 units. The report notes that challenges brought on by the pandemic have dampened production for the past 3 years and outlines plans for the City to boost supply over the next four years. In addition to their goal of 570 units produced or preserved annually, the City’s 2020 housing bond is expected to fund an additional 1,300 units over the next 4 years.

Habitat Wake Announces New CEO and Shares Midterm Candidate Responses to Questions on Affordable Housing.
Habitat for Humanity of Wake County announced a new CEO last week. Patricia Burch was chosen by the board out of over 150 applicants. She comes to Wake County after serving as the executive director of Habitat for Humanity in Birmingham, AL, where she worked for almost 16 years. The organization also recently released candidates’ responses to a questionnaire about affordable housing. Candidates running for Wake County Board of Commissioners, Raleigh Mayor, and Raleigh City Council shared their stances on affordable on ssues like displacement, rent prices, property taxes, racial equity and density.

Asheville-Buncombe Community Land Trust Sells First Home
A first-time homebuyer purchased the home for $125K. In keeping with the land trust model, the organization will retain ownership of the land, which allows them to control the sale price of the house and ensure that it remains affordable for future income-qualified homebuyers. The city dedicated $1M towards the land trust in 2018 in response to displacement and the growing need for affordable housing (the median sale price in Buncombe County is $475K).

Motel Rehabs Create Affordable Housing in Raleigh & Charlotte
The City of Raleigh recently announced that they plan to convert 25 rooms at the former extended-stay Hospitality Studios off of Capital Blvd into supportive housing units. The City purchased the motel in September 2021 using ARPA dollars and City Council recently approved an additional $2M in ARPA funds for renovations. The City purchased the property for the purpose of preserving naturally occurring affordable housing.

The Southern Comfort Inn extended stay motel in West Charlotte closed in June but the motel plans to re-open as a nonprofit called Freedom Community Outreach. The Southern Comfort Inn general manager and Freedom Community Outreach president,Traci Jones, says renovations are underway on the motel rooms, which will primarily provide transitional housing to veterans, seniors and disabled individuals. The nonprofit also plans to build modular homes on site. Additional funding will be needed to complete renovations by early next year.

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