HFAs Adapting to the Times

I’ve spent the last couple of weeks nagging state housing finance agencies (HFAs) about surveys for the November/December issue of Affordable Housing Finance. Our annual surveys detail 2009 low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) and tax-exempt bond activity and the qualified allocation plan (QAP) changes and estimates of authority for 2010.

I know how busy the HFAs have been this fall, particularly with assessing and allocating the Tax Credit Assistance Program and the credit exchange, and am extremely grateful to the time they spent gathering the information for Affordable Housing Finance. The data from the states I’m covering really demonstrate the problems many affordable housing owners and developers are facing in terms of equity pricing—mainly in the $0.65 per tax credit dollar range—as well as demand outweighing supply.

Some states are planning to make changes to their 2010 QAPs because of the current market challenges. For example, Kentucky Housing Corp. is going to an open window process instead of competitive rounds so that projects with financing in place can apply for tax credits when they are ready to move forward. New Hampshire Housing Finance Authority has decided to go to just one round so it can “get the resources out the door more quickly” as well as a higher maximum allocation because “resources don’t go as far as they used to.”

To read more about what the state HFAs are doing, look for the November/December issue online at www.housingfinance.com and in your mailboxes at the beginning of December.