HUD Makes $174.6 Million in Grant Funding Available for Construction and Ongoing Project-Based Rental Assistance for Low-Income Seniors

Section 202 Capital Advance and Ongoing Project Rental Assistance Notice of Funding Opportunity supports development of new, deeply affordable rental homes for very low-income seniors.

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) today announced the availability of up to $174.6 million in grant funding opportunities through a Notice of Funding Opportunity (www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=343688) (NOFO) to support the development of new affordable multifamily rental homes for low-income seniors along with ongoing project rental assistance and supportive services. The grants are offered under HUD's Section 202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly program and will be awarded to non-profit organizations across the country.

"The need has never been greater to increase the supply of affordable and safe rental homes for our nation's low-income senior population," said Assistant Secretary for Housing Julia Gordon. "This funding opportunity to support the development of new, deeply affordable senior rental homes is the largest since 2013 and reinforces the Biden-Harris Administration's unwavering commitment to expanding housing for this vulnerable population."

HUD will award Section 202 grant funds to non-profit organizations in two forms:

• Capital Advances: This funding covers the cost of developing, acquiring, or rehabilitating an eligible property. Repayment is not required if the housing remains available for occupancy by very low-income elderly persons for at least 40 years.
• Project Rental Assistance Contracts: This renewable project-based funding covers the difference between residents' contributions toward rent and the cost of operating the project. Section 202 program eligibility requires residents to be very low-income or earning less than 50 percent of the area median income. Most households in the Section 202 program earn less than 30 percent of the median income for their area.

In 2021, HUD awarded $143 million in grants to help finance the development of more than 30 new properties and more than 2,100 new rental homes for low-income seniors under the Section 202 program. Changes in this NOFO from the 2021 funding opportunity include:

• Support for intergenerational households through a funding set-aside of up to $15 million for projects with an intergenerational component supporting elderly residents acting as caregivers for children;
• Enhancements that support safer, healthier, more efficient homes, with new minimum requirements for energy and water efficiency and climate resiliency, with additional rating points for properties that achieve higher energy efficiency or climate resiliency standards; and
• Emphasis on deconcentrating poverty by incorporating rating points based on a measure of the poverty rate of the project's neighborhood, with the maximum number of points for properties located in census tracts where the U.S. Census Bureau's Census Poverty Map indicates a poverty rate of 10 percent or less.

Potential applicants may find full details about the application requirements and process in the NOFO (www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=343688) published today. Applications must be received by January 25, 2023.

About the Section 202 Program

Section 202 grants provide very low-income elderly persons 62 years of age or older with the opportunity to live independently in an environment that provides support services, such as nutritional, transportation, continuing education, and/or health-related services, to meet their unique needs. Section 202 program eligibility requires residents to be very low-income or earning less than 50 percent of the area median income. Most households in the Section 202 program earn less than 30 percent of the median for their area.

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