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Credits to help finance construction or rehabilitation of
69 affordable housing developments

(AUSTIN) — Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (“TDHCA”) has announced awards through the 2017 Housing Tax Credit Program allocation that will help finance the development of rental properties offering reduced rents and increased housing options.

TDHCA will provide $67 million in housing tax credits to private developers constructing or rehabilitating 69 properties across the state that will offer rents affordable to households earning up to 60 percent of the area median family income. The credits are expected to help finance the building of 50 high quality, new properties with a total of 4,009 units, and the rehabilitation of 19 properties offering 808 units to income-eligible households across the state.

“High quality affordable housing serves as a vital component to the state’s economic prosperity, accommodating an ever-expanding workforce and meeting the needs of households living on fixed incomes,” explained Tim Irvine, Executive Director of TDHCA.
“The tax credits allocated today give cities and communities long term solutions for sustainable and purposeful growth, providing a positive impact on local economies by retaining existing households and attracting new residents."

The Housing Tax Credit Program, authorized under the Internal Revenue Code, is the state’s primary means of directing private capital toward the development of affordable rental housing. Investors purchase credits allocated to developers which they may apply toward their federal tax liability each year for ten years on a dollar-for-dollar basis in exchange for their investment in the property.

Developers use proceeds from the sale as financing for their property. The credits announced today are designed to cover approximately 70 percent of each property’s eligible development costs.

Since 1987, more than 238,000 affordable housing units have been built or preserved in Texas using the Low Income Housing Tax Credit Program. It’s estimated that the new construction and rehabilitation of developments open in 2016, alone, led to the creation of more than 13,000 jobs statewide with compensation totaling $455 million. The total economic impact generated for the state was approximately $1 billion.