DHCD outlines FY25 housing pipeline, rental assistance wind-down and preservation priorities

The Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) briefed the Planning, Housing and Economic Development Committee on April 3 about its FY25 work program, ongoing projects and program outcomes.

DHCD staff described a portfolio of activities that spans preservation, production and homeownership supports. The department said it was actively working on 17 housing development projects that together represent roughly 2,577 units at varying stages — from applications pending legislative approval to projects under construction. DHCD officials said the county’s Housing Investment Trust Fund provides roughly $10 million per year and typically serves as one piece of financing in larger projects.

On preservation, DHCD reported work on 11 properties in the most recent fiscal year, preserving roughly 465 affordable units in mixed-income developments. The department said it generally sets affordability restrictions to reflect the existing rent roll on each property rather than imposing uniform rent levels. DHCD said market conditions slowed some transactions in 2024, in part because of higher interest rates.

Homeownership and rehabilitation programs: DHCD described three homeownership programs — a down-payment assistance program branded “Pathway to Purchase,” a Home Rehabilitation Assistance Program (HRAP) run with nonprofit partners, and a HOPE rehabilitation program delivered in partnership with Habitat for Humanity. In calendar-year 2024, Pathway to Purchase assisted 18 first-time buyers; DHCD said the down-payment maximum was increased from $10,000 to $25,000 in early 2024 and that staff plan to tweak the program further in April to increase market impact. HRAP completed 27 rehabs in 2024 (with five more underway) and the HOPE program completed 25 rehabs with 13 more underway.

Special populations and federal funds: DHCD said it received HOME-ARP funds and used them to support units for people experiencing homelessness and a small number of deeply subsidized units. The department said those HOME-ARP resources will be fully deployed by the program deadline (DHCD staff gave the deployment time frame during the briefing). DHCD also described the “YES” (Youth Experiencing Success) partnership with Department of Social Services and the Housing Authority to deliver units for young adults exiting foster care, capped at a higher income threshold in some projects (staff said they expect actual occupant incomes to be substantially lower in many cases).

Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP): DHCD reported ERAP is in a wind-down phase. Since March 2021 the county has deployed more than $20 million in direct rental assistance and assisted over 12,000 households; in calendar year 2024 the program deployed roughly $7.6 million. DHCD staff said the federal statutory authorities for ERAP limit the program’s deployment window (staff said the federal program concludes under current guidance in 2025), and the county expects to exhaust its funding availability prior to the federal statutory end date.

Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and Community Development (CDBG/CTBG) work: DHCD described annual NOFA rounds, restrictions on eligible CDBG activities (for example, street improvements on county roads are not eligible under CDBG) and continuing high demand for public-service category funds. The department said competitive rounds and technical assistance have strengthened nonprofit partners’ capacity to use federal funds and noted an increase in HUD technical-assistance engagements.

Committee questions touched on timelines for an inclusionary zoning market study to be funded via a regional grant, the planned timeline for HOME-ARP deployment and how DHCD coordinates with DSS on rapid re-housing and supportive services. Council members asked for more detailed breakdowns by geography and for lists of senior housing projects in the pipeline; DHCD said it could supply that information offline and referred Council members to an online dashboard with project-level details.

Why it matters: DHCD’s briefing highlighted both the limits of local finance (county funds are typically a portion of larger project financing stacks) and areas where county policy or added funding could expand permanent local solutions — including rental assistance after federal ERAP funds run out, preservation tools beyond right-of-first-refusal, and expansions of HOME-ARP supported units for extremely low-income households.

Next steps: DHCD will supply requested project-level information, timeline details for the inclusionary zoning market study and senior-housing breakdowns to committee members. Staff said they will continue to coordinate with the Council on funding decisions as projects move from state awards to county funding commitments.