IFA awards $285K to Jasper County’s Housing Trust Fund

Jasper County and its sister regions in Boone, Marion and Warren Counties were awarded $285,548 by Iowa Finance Authority to use for their Local Housing Trust Fund, which was formed last year to reinforce affordable housing needs.

Led by an appointed governing board featuring two representatives from all four counties, the Local Housing Trust Fund group’s job is to identify, secure and allocate resources for the trust fund and solicit comments from the public every year, Newton Daily News previously reported.

IFA announced Wednesday in a press release that more than $6.4 million in grants have been given to 27 Local Housing Trust Funds across the state to support local affordable housing initiatives. Grant awards are made available through the Local Housing Trust Fund program.

The grant money is expected to assist more than 2,500 families.

“Local Housing Trust Funds serve all 99 counties and are a critical vehicle to ensuring leaders can make local housing priorities a reality,” Iowa Finance Authority Executive Director Debi Durham said in the press release.

"Not only do Local Housing Trust Funds make a very real difference in the lives of thousands of Iowa families," Durham added, "but they also leverage millions
er contributions, showcasing the shared commitment to advancing affordable housing throughout our state."

What the grant money does for Iowans

The grant funds will be used for initiatives such as preserving aging housing stock, subsidizing local rental and down payment assistance programs, providing low-interest loans or grants to assist Iowans with home rehabilitation, financing construction of new single-family housing for low-income Iowans and supporting housing for persons with disabilities and homeless assistance programs.

The State Housing Trust Fund was created by the Iowa Legislature in 2003. The awards announced today will leverage an additional $2.7 million in other financing or $.42 for every dollar of Local Housing Trust Fund program funding. Since its inception, the program has provided $77.2 million in affordable housing assistance to benefit more than 26,200 Iowa families.

The State Housing Trust Fund helps ensure decent, safe and affordable housing for Iowans through two programs. The Local Housing Trust Fund Program receives at least 60 percent of the SHTF allocation to provide grants for organizations certified by the Iowa Finance Authority as a Local Housing Trust Fund.

The remaining funding goes to the Project-Based Housing Program, which aids in the development of affordable single-family and multifamily housing. The Iowa Finance Authority administers both programs and provides technical assistance to housing-related organizations.