Funding will support new construction and rehabilitation of over 3,936 affordable and special needs housing units

Governor Glenn Youngkin today announced more than $93 million in Affordable and Special Needs Housing loans for 57 projects across the Commonwealth. The recommended projects will create and preserve 3,936 total units for low-income and extremely low-income households, including 298 permanent supportive housing, 3,825 rental units and 111 units for sale as homeownership opportunities.

“Increasing Virginia’s supply of attainable, affordable and accessible housing is foundational to strengthening Virginia’s economy, and furthers my administration’s Make Virginia Home Plan,” said Governor Glenn Youngkin. “These awarded projects will create and preserve almost 4,000 units of affordable, quality housing for our most vulnerable residents.”

The Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) administers Affordable and Special Needs Housing (ASNH) loans, which combines state and federal resources to provide a simplified and comprehensive application process. Funding comes from four main sources: the federal HOME Investment Partnerships Program, the federal National Housing Trust Fund (NHFT), Housing Innovations in Energy Efficiency (HIEE), Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) state funds and the Virginia Housing Trust Fund (VHTF).

VHTF is provided by the General Assembly and supports financing for housing construction projects that create or preserve affordable housing units, reduce the cost of affordable housing and increase homeownership. This funding is a key source of financing for these affordable housing initiatives to support moderate- and low-income families, as well as supporting homeless reduction grants to provide rapid re-housing and longer-term housing solutions for individuals experiencing chronic homelessness.

“Stable and affordable housing is vital to building a thriving economy, and we are aligning housing development resources to holistically fill this need across Virginia,” said Secretary of Commerce and Trade Caren Merrick. “Increasing the supply of affordable housing is integral to our economic development efforts as we continue to build an economy that works for all Virginians.”

Affordable and Special Needs Housing loans are awarded through a competitive process. Sixty-one applications were received for this round of funding, requesting more than $108 million. The funded projects will leverage over $1.39 billion in additional federal, state, local and private lending resources. To learn more about the ASNH program, visit www.dhcd.virginia.gov/asnh.

A FULL LIST OF THE 2022 FALL ASNH AWARDS CAN BE FOUND HERE.