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VHCB outlines pipeline of affordable units and warns vouchers and rental assistance are essential
Summary
Vermont Housing and Conservation Board told the committee it has invested heavily in shelter and housing during the pandemic and reported a pipeline of roughly 1,000 units in development; VHCB warned that without rental assistance and vouchers many extremely low-income households cannot access new units and noted a pilot for resident service coordinators.
Gus Selig, executive director of the Vermont Housing and Conservation Board (VHCB), and policy director Paula Major briefed the committee on VHCB's recent investments and the pipeline of units expected to come online in the next several years. They noted VHCB has invested in shelter improvements and conversion projects (motel-to-housing examples) and said roughly 718 homes for people who were unhoused have been funded in the last five years with about 1,000 additional units in development.
VHCB provided a near-term pipeline figure: about 305 units expected in fiscal year 2026 and roughly 310 units in fiscal year 2027, with more in later years pending board approvals and available funds. Selig said VHCB's average investment per unit since the pandemic has been about $80,000, even though new construction or harder conversions can be much costlier.
Committee members pressed VHCB on affordability levels and tenant incomes. VHCB explained that many funding programs set rents as a percent of area median income (AMI)—commonly 60% AMI for tax-credit projects—but that actual tenants in VHCB-funded housing often have substantially lower incomes (VHCB cited a $17,000 median household income among many residents). VHCB emphasized that housing choice vouchers and rental assistance are critical to bridge the gap between low tenant incomes and the rents needed to sustain buildings.
To support tenancy, VHCB described a three-year pilot placing resident service coordinators in properties to prevent evictions and support tenancy. The board asked the committee to consider operations and voucher funding in tandem with capital investments to ensure new units serve people exiting homelessness.
