Affordable Housing Relief Coming to Southern California

The article features an interview with Enterprise Community Partners Southern California Director Jeff Schaffer and Vice President of Public Policy Ali Solis. Enterprise Community Partners will oversee the $100 million New Generation Fund for affordable housing and helped lobby Washington for some of the community rehabilitation funds found in the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008.

"The fund is intended to advance the housing agenda of the city. The fund in and of itself does not have targeted priorities. The city has indicated that its priorities, when it comes to the housing development, will focus on transit-oriented development (TOD), preservation, properties with expiring use restrictions, as well as some of the large residential hotels in the Downtown Los Angeles area."

"The bill includes a set of proposals to modernize the Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program, the nation's largest affordable rental housing production program, which Enterprise helped create as part of the Tax Reform Act of 1986. Among other things, the modernization proposals would streamline the rules and regulations of HUD and USDA housing programs when they are used in conjunction with the LIHTC in order to provide comprehensive community development and revitalization."

"We haven't seen legislation like this in decades. Our goal is to continue to find new innovative policy solutions that help close the affordable housing gap for millions of low-income families."

Thanks to James Brasuell