HOME PROGRAM
One of the key resources for financing affordable housing is the HOME Investment Partnerships Program, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and administered by the Commission on behalf of the County of Los Angeles.
What is the HOME Program?
HOME funds are allocated to the County by the federal government on an annual basis. Approximately $5.5 million dollars are made available annually for housing development, with 15 percent of these funds reserved exclusively for use by non-profit Community Housing Development Organizations (CHDOs).
HOME funds are awarded to proposed developments, based on proposals that are submitted by developers and evaluated on a competitive basis. The funds are allocated only to developments in the unincorporated county areas (the yellow colored areas in a Thomas Guide), and in 46 cities that participate in the Commission’s Urban County Program. Participating Cities are cities with less than 50,000 in population and are listed in the Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) for the HOME Program.
HOME Program funds are awarded for use along with other financial resources. The funds are awarded to finance the “affordability gap” in affordable multifamily rental and for-sale housing development. The “affordability gap” is the dollar amount of financing needed when the rental revenues are inadequate to repay a loan(s) needed for the development of housing or when a mortgage amount available to a low-income household is not enough to purchase a house.
Affordable rental developments proposing to use HOME funds are required to set aside a minimum of 20 percent of the units for households that earn 50 percent or less of the median income for the Los Angeles/Long Beach area (median income). For-sale developments proposing to use HOME funds must make all units available to households earning 80 percent or less of the median income.
Proposed developments that are located within 500 feet of a freeway are not eligible. To determine proximity of a property to the freeway, applicants are to use the GIS Measurement Guide listed below as a link.
Applications to use HOME funds are accepted upon the issuance of a Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA). Please see the NOFA for details.
For information and to obtain a copy of the NOFA for HOME funds, please contact Carmen Hernandez at (323) 890-7258 or email her at carmen.hernandez@lacdc.org.
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Design Guidelines
Homeownership Design Guidelines
Rental Housing Design Guidelines
2008 Utility AllowancesHousing Development
City of Industry Funds
Multifamily Bond Program
Housing Categories and Definitions
Design and Underwriting Guidelines
2008 HOME Rent and Income Limits
2008 GIS Measurement Guide