Housing Development

The Department of Community Development offers resources in support of Affordable and Market Rate Housing Development through its Housing Development Office. These resources are available to all developers and neighborhoods and come in the form of soft loans, forgivable loans, and grants.  These funds can be used in support of multi-family rental projects and single-family for-sale projects.

Single-family Gap financing

This program is for projects that will include affordable housing units that will serve low-and moderate-income households. Market-rate projects which contain affordable units are eligible and encouraged. A limited amount of the City’s HUD HOME funds will be allocated through an annual RFP, which describes project eligibility, application requirements, and the format for submitting proposals. A limited amount of CDBG Funds (up to $1 million) may also be available for projects that include housing and would benefit from HUD’s CDBG regulatory requirements. The maximum contract amount is up to $40,000. 

The maximum contract amount is determined by project underwriting and subsidy layering guidelines for all HOME activities to determine the appropriate HOME investment. These guidelines require the examination of project sources and uses, cost and profit reasonableness, market demand, developer experience and capacity, and financial commitments. The City will forgive a portion of the Loan, not to exceed $30,000, in the amount the City determines is a gap between the final sales price of the Project Site to an approved homebuyer and the approved activity delivery costs, including an allowance for a developer fee, not to exceed ten percent (10%) calculated based on the direct construction.

Upon the sale of the Project Site, the Borrower must apply principal due to the City, in an amount not to exceed $10,000, against the agreed-upon sales price of the Project Site, as a homebuyer’s Second Mortgage, and have the Promissory Note, Second Mortgage Deed, and all other relevant Second Mortgage documents signed and recorded. The second mortgage amount is determined by the homebuyer’s income eligibility and the financing gap between the homebuyer’s first mortgage amount and the minimum homebuyer down payment of $500.

On Single Family Gap Financing Projects, the Borrower’s (Developer) Development Fee is not to exceed fifteen percent (15%) of the total project costs listed. The Development Fee is calculated on the total construction cost.
The Project must fully qualify as affordable housing, and therefore must satisfy the requirements of 24 CFR 92.254. Thus, among other requirements, the Property must be purchased by a homebuyer whose household qualifies as a low-income household which will maintain the Property as their principal residence throughout the affordability period. In order to maintain the Property as a principal residence, the buyer must reside at the Property at least 270 days per calendar year. The Borrower cannot earn a profit on the sale of the project site.

Construction Gap financing

A construction cost gap exists in many Cleveland neighborhoods. This “gap” is the difference between current market values and the development and construction costs for rehabilitation or new construction of modest quality housing. This Program focuses on single family for sale housing. All neighborhood housing types may be considered in an expanded program, with the understanding that single family values are tied to overall investment and market values in a neighborhood.

The Program Goal is to stimulate and sustain private construction investments in local housing markets. The intent of the program is to provide subsidy of up to $40,000 to a limited number of projects that produce quality housing and establish higher market values for new or renovated housing in a neighborhood. The program prioritizes projects that make a strong positive visual impact in a neighborhood. This visual impact will contribute to improved local market values and encourage additional investment.

Housing Trust Fund – Multi-Family Rental Program

This program supports housing development projects that will include affordable housing units that will serve low- and moderate-income households. Market-rate projects that contain affordable units are eligible and encouraged. A limited amount of the City’s HUD HOME funds will be allocated through an annual RFP, which describes project eligibility, application requirements, and the format for submitting proposals. A limited amount of CDBG Funds may also be available for projects that include housing and would benefit from HUD’s CDBG regulatory requirements.

This year, the City of Cleveland has allocated roughly $3.3M in funding to support affordable housing.  The application for the Housing Trust Fund program is currently open and closes on July 1st at 5 pm.  For more information, please see the 2024 Housing Trust Fund Request for Proposals.

Editable List of 2024 HTF Application Questions

For Single-Family applications, please contact Anthony Bango directly for a copy of the 2024 HTF Workbook for Single-Family Projects.

Please note, that once submitting a proposal, you will receive an email from the Housing Development Office asking for the following attachments.

1. Completed 2024 HTF Financial Analysis Workbook
2. Developer Development experience, last 5 years of completed projects
3. Market Study
   1. See Attachment E of the 2024 HTF RFP
4. Entity Information including:
   1. Certificate of Good Standing
   2. Articles of Incorporation
   3. UEI Number
5. 2 Year previous Audited Financial Statements or a Personal Financial Statement
6. Evidence of Site Control
7. Cost Estimates or a Bid on a General Contractors letterhead
8. Detailed Scope of Work and Project Specifications
9. Green Building Plan or Verification from a Green Verifier that the proposed scope will meet the Cleveland Green Building Standard
10. Architectural Drawings, Site Plans, Elevations, and Sections (as needed)
11. Site Photos of all 4 Elevations and a Location Map
12. Affirmative Fair Housing Marketing Plan
13. Community Outreach Plan
14. URA Forms 1-3
15. Letter of Support from a Local Community Development Corporation
16. Continuum of Care Endorsement (Permanent Supportive Housing ONLY)
17. Phase I ESA (ASTM E1527-21)
18. Initial Lead Risk Assessment and Paint Testing report for all buildings constructed before 1978 where rehab will disturb painted surfaces that total more than (1) 20 square feet on exterior surfaces; (2) 2 square feet in any one interior room or space; or (3) 10 percent of the total surface area on an interior or exterior type of component with a small surface area
19. Any other supplemental reports as a result of the Phase I ESA including, but not limited to, a Lead Risk Assessment or Asbestos Survey Report.
20. HUD Site and Neighborhood Standards Determination
    1. See Attachment C of the 2024 HTF RFP for more information
21. Capital Needs Assessment (for rehabilitation projects with 26+ units)
22. Any other supplemental documentation requested for scoring purposes outlined in the Housing Trust Fund RFP
23. BABA Compliance Plan - The Build America, Buy America Act (BABA) 2 CFR 184 requires that all iron and steel, construction materials, and manufactured products used in federally-funded infrastructure projects are produced in the United States. Determining the Cost of Components for Manufactured Products (2 CFR 184.5). The Developer should provide a written plan from their General Contractor to meet this requirement.

For more information, the Department of Community Development will be giving a presentation and taking questions on this RFP.  This will be held on April 19th, 2024 from 9 am until 10:30 am.  To RSVP, please email Anthony Bango.

Model block

The Model Block initiative believes vacant building rehabilitation and existing owners’ investment in their building exterior will create community benefits. The Model Block program provides a source of public investment capital to remove blight and preserve neighborhood buildings in focused areas. The program itself provides grant funding for exterior repairs on the main structure of 1-4 unit residential properties. All individuals within the areas listed below are eligible for the program and can apply. The total grant amount will not exceed $25,000 and applicants may be required to provide match funding to support their project.

Pre-Development Consulting

The City of Cleveland welcomes new developers to the City and encourages their participation in our communities.  The City offers resources in support of various forms of market rate and affordable housing development in all neighborhoods.  These resources can be difficult to access for new or unfamiliar developers.  As such, the Department of Community Development will offer assistance and support to new developers seeking to use these funds.

Staff at the Department of Community Development can offer support in the following ways:

• Explanation of City Programs and Regulations 
• Evaluation of Project Financials
• Evaluation of Building Plans and Design
• Regular consultation to track project development