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DCA outlines how Georgia Housing Credit fuels affordable rental development
Summary
Department of Community Affairs officials told the State Planning & Community Affairs committee that the federal 9% housing tax credit, paired with a state match and a 35% rural set-aside, remains the state's primary tool for creating and preserving affordable rental housing but that allocations meet only a fraction of rising need.
The Department of Community Affairs told the State Planning & Community Affairs committee that Georgia’s housing credit program remains the principal lever for financing affordable rental housing across the state.
Laurel Hart, division director of DCA’s Housing and Finance division, said the program centers on the federal 9% Low-Income Housing Tax Credit, matched by a state credit, and that policy features include a 35% rural set-aside and monitoring provisions that allow credits to be recaptured for noncompliance. "The Georgia Housing Credit is one of DCA's largest and most successful tools for encouraging private investment in the creation and preservation of affordable rental housing," Hart said.
Why it matters: Hart told lawmakers the credits have funded the vast majority of affordable rental housing created since the federal program’s authorization in the Tax Reform Act of 1986 and that Georgia tax-credit properties now house more than 100,000 units. She stressed the credit’s pay-for-success model — federal credits are awarded after completion and occupancy and private investors bear much of the financial risk.
Program scale and constraints: Hart said the IRS allocates federal credits using a population-based formula. She gave a recent allotment figure — about $28 million for Georgia in one year — and said that level of allocation supported roughly 2,300 units in that year. "We build somewhere around 30 properties each year with what we're allocated," she said, while noting that rising construction costs and increasing demand have made it harder to keep pace with need.
Geography and priorities: DCA staff said the program aims for geographic balance; a recent map highlighted 128 rural properties funded in the last five years, and DCA reported funding about 290 properties in that period overall. Hart also noted partnerships with USDA and use of 4% credits and tax-exempt bonds to preserve smaller properties in Georgia’s smallest counties.
Eligibility and services: Committee members pressed DCA on tenant eligibility and resident services. Hart said tenants in tax-credit properties generally must have incomes at or below 80% of area median income (AMI), though Georgia occasionally applies lower local income standards. She described competitive scoring that rewards developers who bring on-site health services — for seniors this can include blood-pressure and diabetes screenings and counseling to reduce avoidable emergency care.
Scale of need: DCA staff estimated roughly 500,000 Georgians pay more than 30% of income on housing and are cost-burdened; officials said they perform county-level market studies to tailor resources to local needs and offered to provide consolidated-plan data to lawmakers seeking historical and geographic detail.
What’s next: Lawmakers requested additional data on historical allocations, unit counts by year and county-level market studies. DCA committed to supplying that information for follow-up.
