Investment is a Part of the Housing Trust Fund and Will Help Create and Preserve Affordable Housing for Ohioans
Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) – Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs – announced that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has awarded Ohio $21,186,076 through the national Housing Trust Fund to help create and preserve safe, affordable housing for low-income households and families experiencing homelessness.
“Even before the pandemic, one in four renters in Ohio were paying over half of their incomes on housing, leaving many to choose between buying groceries or paying rent,” said Brown. “This Housing Trust Fund grant will provide over $21 million to create and preserve affordable housing for Ohioans, and give more families a stable foundation for accessing healthcare, jobs, and educational opportunities.”
Ohio’s affordable housing providers can use the funds from this investment for property acquisition, site improvements and development hard costs, demolition, relocation assistance, financing costs, and operating cost assistance for rental housing. The funds will be allocated by the Ohio Housing Finance Agency.
Brown has been a longtime supporter of the Housing Trust Fund, which was created by the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 and is funded by contributions from Government Sponsored Enterprises (GSEs) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. However, after its creation, the Housing Trust Fund was not consistently funded as intended, but, in December 2014, at Brown’s request, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) directed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to begin regular contributions.
And in 2019, following inexplicable delays in the release of these funds by the Trump Administration’s acting GSE regulator, Brown demanded that the Administration quickly disburse the funds so they can be used to create and preserve affordable housing.
