A new program announced by U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson is designed to encourage Opportunity Zone investments that address poverty and underinvestment.
Keith Larsen reports: "[T]he Department of Housing and Urban Development has announced an initiative to encourage affordable housing investment within the thousands of designated Opportunity Zones nationwide."
"The Federal Housing Administration’s low-income housing tax credit financing pilot program will now include 'new construction' and 'substantial rehabilitation' of multifamily projects only," according to Larsen. "The provision could speed up the application process for developers looking to use the low-income tax credit to build new ground-up apartment projects, or for those seeking to drastically redevelop old buildings in Opportunity Zones."
Larsen places the announcement of the new program in context of criticisms that the Opportunity Zone program is benefitting neighborhoods that don't need much government help.
FULL STORY: HUD expands low-income housing tax credit program to encourage Opportunity Zones investment
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