The grant ties for highest grant amount
CHRISTIANBURG – Community Housing Partners (CHP), which provides affordable and sustainable housing throughout the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic, has been awarded a $9 million grant from the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Capital Magnet Fund (CMF).
CHP tied with several other organizations for the highest award amount in the FY 2024 funding round, which ranged from $1.5 million to $9 million.
The 2024 CMF round awarded $246.4 million to 48 organizations, with the combined efforts projected to develop over 26,400 affordable homes nationwide, including rental and homeownership opportunities for low-income families. These grants are expected to leverage nearly $9 billion in public and private capital to expand housing affordability, access to childcare, and community healthcare services in underserved areas. (Read the announcement about the CMF awards from the U.S. Department of Treasury.)
The Capital Magnet Fund, created by the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008, requires award recipients to leverage each dollar of grant funding with at least ten dollars of additional private or public investment. This mandate not only amplifies the impact of the CMF grants but also promotes sustained investment in areas of economic distress.
“Receiving this grant from the Capital Magnet Fund is transformative for CHP’s real estate development and affordable housing preservation activities,” said Jeff Reed, President and CEO of CHP. “The funding allows us to make significant investments from pre-development costs to permanent gap financing to ensure our projects are financially viable and impactful. This award strengthens our ability to support low-income families and revitalizes communities through quality housing.”
“This is a game-changing award for our organization,” CHP’s Chief Financial Officer, Lance Sutherland, added. “We will strategically use the CMF funding for new construction and preservation developments, in many cases making projects that would otherwise be infeasible due to the rising costs and interest rates environment, possible. This award is particularly impactful for certain rural projects in CHP’s portfolio that would not otherwise have a viable path to much-needed rehabilitation without the critical gap funding provided by CMF. This award significantly increases CHP’s capacity to create and preserve affordable housing for years to come.”
CHP will leverage the Capital Magnet Fund grant with public and private funding sources to invest more than $189 million in the development or preservation of affordable rental homes in Virginia, Maryland, and North Carolina. More than 1,000 affordable homes in CHP’s service area will benefit from the grant funding. All the homes created or preserved will serve low-income families, with over 70% of the households earning 50% or less of area median income, and 85% of the homes located in areas of economic distress. Additionally, over 25% of the award will be committed for use in rural areas.
“Tying for the highest award amount demonstrates the impact and effectiveness of CHP’s work to create affordable homes,” said Andy Davenport, Vice President of Real Estate Development at CHP. “We are grateful for this critical funding that will allow us to serve even more low-income families and distressed communities.”
This is the second time CHP has received a CMF grant. In 2020, the organization was awarded $4.5 million, which it leveraged to invest over $158 million in the development and preservation of affordable homes across three states.
Community Housing Partners
