our products
In support of our mission to ensure that all Rhode Islanders have access to a safe, affordable home that meets their needs, Rhode Island Housing has dedicated extensive resources to building a better Rhode Island through efforts that not only increase Rhode Island's stock of safe, affordable homes, but also take a more collaborative and holistic approach to community.
KeepSpace
One way Rhode Island Housing is taking “working together to bring you home” to a new level is through our groundbreaking initiative, KeepSpace. We are reaching out to new partners with varied interests for a comprehensive and cooperative effort to create thriving communities. KeepSpace Communities are living, breathing, growing places where neighbors meet, people work, children play.
Through these unique partnerships, particularly among those who focus on jobs, environment, real estate, and local government, we will combine our expertise, rather than work on isolated parts of land development and preservation. The result: strong, healthy, prosperous communities that use integrated solutions to many of the development and environmental challenges facing Rhode Islanders and their state.
Products for Builders and Developers
A sound business decision begins with sound financing. Rhode Island Housing offers a wide array of safe, affordable funding options, technical support, and flexible financing services available to builders and developers.
• Interim financing with fixed or floating rates
• Construction financing
• Long-term, fixed-rate, permanent financing
• Land Bank loans for municipalities and eligible developers
Development Mortgages
Tax-exempt and taxable first-mortgage financing is available for construction and permanent financing for terms of up to 40 years. Details of our loans for mixed-income projects can be found at Mixed-Income Rental Program Term Sheet. Contact us at development@rhodeislandhousing.org for more information.
HOME Program
Each year, Rhode Island Housing receives approximately $5 million in federal HOME funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. HOME funds finance both rental and homeownership opportunities and are used to acquire property, rehabilitate existing affordable housing, and to construct apartments and homes. The timing of funding rounds varies.
Since 1992, we have awarded more than $75 million in federal HOME funds to both for- and non-profit developers to finance the creation of 3,857 affordable homes in 509 developments across Rhode Island. For more information, contact us at 401 457-1134 or pcoleman@rhodeislandhousing.org.
Rhode Island Housing recognizes the importance of providing gap financing and seed money to support initiatives that lead to more homes for Rhode Islanders. Our HOME Program provides grants and low-interest loans to encourage the construction or rehabilitation of affordable homes, provided matching funds are available. For more information, contact us at 401 457-1134 or pcoleman@rhodeislandhousing.org.
LeadSafe Homes
If you are making improvements to an older home that may have lead, we can help. The builders and developers we work with have access to our safe, affordable LeadSafe Homes loans. For more information, contact us at 401 450-1350 or ainfante@rhodeislandhousing.org.
Low-Income Housing Tax Credits
These federal tax credits are the principal federal program for the construction and rehabilitation of affordable apartments. The tax credits are a dollar-for-dollar credit against federal tax liability. Rhode Island Housing allocates the tax credits to developers of affordable apartments. Developers then sell the credits to investors, generally for-profit corporations and investment funds, generating the equity necessary to complete their projects. Our Qualified Allocation Plan explains the allocation process and priorities in detail. For more information, contact us at 401 457-1269 or aberman@rhodeislandhousing.org.
Land Bank
The Rhode Island Housing Land Bank acquires and retains properties on behalf of nonprofit developers and municipalities, while they obtain the funds to develop the properties as affordable homes. Land banked properties are held up to 12 months after which the property may be sold or transferred to another nonprofit through an RFP. All costs incurred by Rhode Island Housing and a 6% holding fee are due upon take out from the Land Bank. Occupied properties and those requiring demolition are generally financed with a 6% bridge loan to the applicant. For more information please contact Peter Calo, 457-1288 or pcalo@rhodeislandhousing.org
Construction Financing
Rhode Island Housing offers construction financing for developers with fixed or floating rates for land development or the rehabilitation of existing buildings for rental or homeownership. For rental development transactions, we also offer a conversion option, which includes long-term, fixed rate permanent financing. Using a variety of options including taxable or tax-exempt bond financing, conduit bond financing or lender participations, we can customize a financial structure to meet the goals of your development. For more information, contact Joe Voccio at 401 457-1284 or jvoccio@rhodeislandhousing.org.
Thresholds Program
The Thresholds Program increases the supply of housing for people with serious and persistent mental illness. Rhode Island Housing administers the Thresholds Program on behalf of the Rhode Island Department of Mental Health, Retardation and Hospitals (MHRH) using bond funds.
The program requires participating housing sponsors to make units affordable to this population in return for:
Projects that integrate people with a serious and persistent mental illness with the rest of the public are preferred over projects that segregate this population in single or adjacent buildings. Housing exclusively for people with a serious and persistent mental illness must either be supervised or provide access to on-site mental health services during the day.
The Thresholds Program includes capital development funding and pre-development loans. For more information, contact Diane Benjamin at dbenjamin@rhodeislandhousing.org or 401 450-1347.
Rhode Island Housing created the Special Needs Rental Production Program to encourage the development of rental homes for the homeless, disabled and/or very low-income individuals and families. The program provides cash flow and deferred loans to developers for the acquisition and development of homes with supportive services for special needs populations.
Special Needs Rental Production Program funds do not cover operating or supportive services costs. However, the funds are often partnered with state Neighborhood Opportunities Program funds that provide operating subsidies. The federal HOME Program is also frequently used in conjunction with the Special Needs Rental Production Program.
Applications are accepted on a rolling basis. For more information, contact us at pcoleman@rhodeislandhousing.org or 401 457-1134.
-Regulations
-Term Sheets
-Application
-Social Service Plan Components
Pre-development Loans
Our pre-development funds provide critical, short-term financing to qualified non-profit developers to cover pre-closing costs incurred in determining development feasibility and obtaining site control. For more information, contact us at 401 457-1288 or pcalo@rhodeislandhousing.org.
Preservation Loan
We will finance the purchase of or refinance existing Section 8 apartments in exchange for extending the affordability restrictions beyond the term of the original HAP contract. This program also can give Section 8 owners access to a project's residual reserves. Details can be found in the Preservation Program Term Sheet (PDF)
and the Preservation Refinancing Program Term Sheet (PDF).
For more information, contact us at 401 457-1269 or email us at aberman@rhodeislandhousing.org.
Rental Housing Production Program
This is our primary program for financing the construction and rehabilitation of affordable apartments. It combines many of our financing vehicles into one-stop shopping for financing affordable homes. The apartments must be affordable to households earning no more than 60 percent of HUD's median family income. Our downloadable Developers Handbook
explains the allocation process and priorities in detail. For more information, contact us at 401 457-1269 or email us at aberman@rhodeislandhousing.org.
Gap Financing
Intended to serve as gap financing to ensure long-term affordability in the absence of other subsidies, our deferred-payment Targeted Loans encourage the construction or rehabilitation of affordable apartments. Generally, Targeted Loans are available only when used with Rhode Island Housing first mortgage financing from us. For more information, contact us at 401 457-1269 or aberman@rhodeislandhousing.org.
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