Affordable Housing Trust Fund

The Affordable Housing Trust Fund is a source of funding established by the federal government and used to support affordable housing programs in the US. The trust fund is usually administered at the state level through the determination of eligible activities which varies from community and state and the funds are allocated every year.

The affordable housing trust fund is used for emergency rent assistance, low-income families facing eviction, and so on.

Affordable housing trust funds are used to support many housing needs for families in the US in almost every state and town in the country.

The housing trust fund is targeted at the support and availability of affordable housing for individuals and families to get decent affordable housing. Currently, there are over 47 states in which the housing trust fund is implemented.

According to the guidelines of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, housing trust funds must benefit low-income families and individuals who do not exceed 60% of the median income.

The funds are used to provide rehabilitation assistance to homes, emergency rental assistance and other assistance for low-income families and individuals. In this article, we will be discussing some of the housing activities sponsored by the affordable trust fund and their benefits to the target population.

Activities Which are Funded By the Affordable Housing Trust Fund

Any housing program can be funded by the housing trust fund, but this is dependent on local priorities and other state regulations. Below are examples of programs that can be funded by the affordable trust fund.

Homebuyer Assistance

The trust funds are used to purchase a primary residence for low-income families and the property must be occupied by the family or owner and not leased out. In some states, this type of funding may be restricted to only first-time buyers.

Rental Assistance

For this type of funding, the family income must be 60% or less of the stipulated median income to be eligible. Families receiving this trust fund must meet the income eligibility requirements at all times.

Community priorities

Housing trust funds are funded by the community through tax payments and are used to address each community’s issues, such as rehabilitation of vacant homes for new homeownership and assisting with other housing needs of the community.

Target population

Affordable housing trust funds are targeted towards low-income households and families at risk of losing their homes due to housing costs. In some states, moderate-income families who earn about 80% of the income area median are also allowed to apply for the housing trust fund. The program encourages mixed-income developments in various states.

Key Benefits of the Affordable Housing Trust Fund

The Affordable housing trust fund focuses on assisting low-income families and individuals to receive funding for rental housing and also for home buyers.

The program also creates an avenue where moderate-income households can benefit from this program. Let’s take a look at some of the other benefits of the trust funds.

• Housing trust funds are designed to support different purposes and housing needs of a community, which may vary from affordable housing for low-income families, homebuyer assistance, and homes for the elderly.
• The requirements for the housing trust fund vary from state to state as it does not follow the same federal requirements, making it flexible for application.
• The housing trust funds are well detailed and benefit the target population through their funding activities. It is also flexible enough to adapt to housing market changes and other conditions.
• Housing trust funds can be used to solve the issue of economic downturns and reduce revenues, taxes, and other housing fees.
• The housing trust fund is used to reduce the number of homeless families and individuals who suffer housing costs due to their income level making it difficult to get affordable housing.
• The creation of affordable housing for moderate-income households who earn above the area median and are not eligible for the federal housing program can be eligible for the affordable housing trust fund. These types of families can apply to the housing trust fund to get access to its funds.

Administration of Affordable Housing Trust Fund

The funds used for the affordable housing trust fund are usually sourced by the state or county with the support of other key stakeholders, which makes the funds available each year to fluctuate.

The affordable housing trust fund is administered by the city administrator who takes charge of giving out the regulations for the administration of the funds.

The city council approves the funds received from the Foreclosed and Defaulted Residential Property Registration Program or other programs to be used for the affordable housing trust fund. At the end of the allocation of funds, an annual report must be submitted by the city administrator detailing the revenues generated, expenditures and any other funds commuted to the program to the city council.

Conclusion

The affordable housing trust fund is administered at the state and county level to families in need of housing assistance. The good part is that each state gets to make their guidelines for eligible households and the funds received vary from year to year, giving more opportunity to households suffering from housing issues to apply for funds.