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Housing Opportunity Fund approves $600,000 grant for six renovated homes on Edith Place in South Oakland
Summary
The HOF advisory board authorized up to $600,000 in For-Sale Development Program funding for Oakland Planning and Development Corporation to cover holding and soft costs for six renovated two-bedroom homes that will remain affordable to households at or below 80% AMI for 99 years.
The Housing Opportunity Fund advisory board approved an increase to a For-Sale Development Program grant for Oakland Planning and Development Corporation (OPDC) to help sell six rehabilitated for-sale homes on Edith Place in the South Oakland neighborhood.
David DeBernardo, lending analyst in the URA residential lending department, told the board the grant will increase the existing award from $420,000 up to $600,000 to cover additional holding costs, soft costs and recent maintenance expenses incurred while units remained on the market. With the increase, HOF support will be up to $100,000 per unit, which staff said is within current program guidelines.
Andrea Boikowitz, executive director of Oakland Planning and Development Corporation, told the board that the properties were financed with private acquisition debt and that interest, taxes, utilities and insurance have contributed to holding costs. She said two of the properties required additional maintenance and one required active construction work in the previous two months. Boikowitz said OPDC has engaged a new real estate agent with experience selling affordable units and has been reaching out to University of Pittsburgh and UPMC employees to find buyers.
The six units are two-bedroom, one-bath homes that OPDC says will be sold to buyers at or below 80% of area median income and will carry a 99-year affordability restriction. DeBernardo told the board the units were acquired and renovated under an earlier HOF award (authorized November 2022, closed March 2023; renovations completed December 2023) and have since remained unsold.
Board member questions focused on why the homes have drawn limited interest. Boikowitz said the homes are modest, narrow rowhouses built in the 1910s and that some prospective first-time buyers do not picture homeownership in this configuration; she also said the lack of accessible entries and small size (two bedrooms) reduce appeal for some households. Boikowitz described transit access and proximity to the Cathedral of Learning as selling points. The board asked OPDC to supply marketing materials to distribute through members and staff.
Ending: The advisory board approved the increase and asked OPDC to provide marketing materials and an updated sales report at a future meeting.
