City Of Seattle Makes Investments Towards Minority Homeownership

For the second year in a row, Mayor Jenny A. Durkan and the Office of Housing are announcing several mid-year investments to support affordable housing. So far this year, the Office of Housing has $ 19.5M $ 50M for a quick acquisition. These city investments are expected to mobilize additional public funding pledges, including tax credits, bonds, and state and federal grants.

“Earlier this week we announced opportunities to quickly create housing for people affected by homelessness. With today’s announcement, more than 200 households will have affordable housing options and an additional 51 will have the opportunity to buy their first homes in resource-rich neighborhoods across the city, ”said Mayor Durkan. “In the days ahead, when I announce my budget, we will continue to make historic investments that provide the flexibility to benefit from housing, prevent displacement, create generational wealth, and enable our communities to thrive.”

The 204 new rental apartments, which will be built as part of a high-income downtown development near the future Judkins Park light rail station, will serve households with incomes of 60 percent or less, or $ 48,600 for a single person and $ 55,550 for a two-person household. New home ownership opportunities in a range of home types will benefit home buyers earning at or below 80 percent of median land income, or $ 92,560 for a household of four.

Since 2017, the city of Seattle has invested more than $ 1.7 billion in affordable housing to build and maintain 6,200 homes through 2023. In the past, the Office of Housing published a Note on Financing Availability (NOFA) in the fall, but given the exceptional needs and availability of federal funding over the past two years, the Office of Housing has published several NOFAs to encourage faster production, Support the maintenance and purchase of affordable housing. The $ 50 million investment announced earlier this week will be used to purchase three new buildings nearing completion, with 165 permanent homes for teenagers and adults affected by homelessness.

“During this pandemic, the Office of Housing has managed an unprecedented number of funding opportunities to support the production, maintenance and purchase of affordable housing across our city,” said Emily Alvarado, director of the Seattle Office of Housing. “There is much more to be done and we need the continued partnership of our affordable housing providers, other public funders and community leaders to achieve our housing and racial justice goals.”

In addition to its annual Fall Financing Availability (NOFA) announcements for affordable rents and home development, the Office for Housing will provide $ 5.4 million in funding this fall to help minority home ownership through implementation Recommendations to be supported by two task forces of the Equable Communities Initiative. The first part of the funding will be provided through a Request For Proposals (RFP), which will be published by the end of the month. The intent of this tender is to stabilize communities at risk of displacement by helping minority homeowners retain ownership of their homes. The second part of the funding will be provided by the end of the year and will support the development of new permanently affordable housing, with a focus on creating equal access to home ownership for communities of color.

Affordable home ownership investments

Total City Investment: $ 5,190,000

Total New Affordable Homes: 51

Building name sponsor	description	Income received	Houses	area
PAHO Homestead Community Land Trust, Edge Developer	Affordable housing in a mixed income condominium with 30 units	80% AMI	19th	Phinney Ridge
Corvidae Co-op Frolicking, habitat for humanity Seattle / King County	Affordable housing within a 10 unit mixed income cooperative	80% AMI	2	Columbia City
14thNS Avenue on Capitol Hill Habitat for Humanity Seattle / King County, Green Canopy	Apartment with condominium (100 percent affordable)	80% AMI	17th	Capitol
fifteenNS in Highland Park Habitat for Humanity Seattle / King County	Country-style houses (100 percent affordable)	80% AMI	12th	Highland park
Puget Ridge shared apartment Homestead Community Land Trust	Transform an existing home into permanent affordability in a 23-unit shared apartment	80% AMI	1	West Seattle

Affordable investment in rental housing

Total city investment: $ 14,387,806

Total New Affordable Homes: 204

Building name sponsor	description	Income received	Houses	area
Grand Street Commons Mount Baker Housing Association	Affordable rental housing in a mixed-income city center development	50% AMI, 60% AMI	204	Mount Baker