In late July, Greater Ohio Policy Center, in partnership with the Neighborhood Homes Coalition, held a series of discussions around the Neighborhood Homes Tax Credit (NHTC), a new federal policy proposal aimed at stabilizing and improving distressed housing markets.  The Land Bank Center of Columbus and Franklin County generously hosted the events.

The NHTC proposal aims to create a reliable source of equity investment for developing and renovating 1-4 family housing in distressed neighborhoods. Ohio, like many other states, has dozens of neighborhoods where the cost of renovating or constructing a home exceeds the market price that the house can be sold for.  The NHTC is intended to fill this “appraisal gap.”

NHTC Financing Example
Land $30,000
Construction $140,000
Total Development Cost $170,000
Less:  Sales Price (at Appraised Value) $130,000
NHTC Amount (Appraisal Gap) $40,000

 
The discussion sessions included congressional staffers, as well as affordable housing developers, land banks, and financial institutions.  Attendees agreed that addressing the appraisal gap would be a tremendous tool for neighborhoods in Dayton, Columbus, and other communities across the state. 

The NHTC was developed by an experienced coalition of organizations from across the country, including the Center for Community Progress, Enterprise, Habitat for Humanity, Home by Hand, the Housing Partnership Network, LISC, the National Association of Affordable Housing Lenders, and the National Community Stabilization Trust. 

For more information about the NHTC, please visit the Coalition’s website. To add your organization’s name to the nationwide list of coalition members endorsing the NHTC, please email agoebel@greaterohio.orgor info@neighborhoodhomestaxcredit.org.