Housing
With rents high and vacancies scarce, NC officials seek to expand affordable housing supply
Federal tax credits and other financing awards will help to build $1.1 billion in affordable apartments in 25 counties this year, the N.C. Housing Finance Agency (NCHFA) recently announced. In total, tax credits and tax-exempt bonds, including bond awards from January and June 2024, were approved for 50 projects by the North Carolina Federal Tax […]
NC economy suffers from lack of labor policies, report shows
North Carolina’s economy is missing out on billions of dollars in economic activity each year due to inaction from lawmakers, according to a North Carolina Justice Center report released Thursday. Entitled “The Cost of Inaction — 2024 State of Working North Carolina,” the report attributes the losses to the failure of state lawmakers’ to ensure […]
A Durham man’s experience shows the value and importance of homeownership
Paul Slack was 22 years-old when he bought his first home. That was 10 years ago in Minneapolis. Slack, who now lives in Durham, had just finished college in Atlanta. After graduation, he returned home to Minneapolis and moved in with his parents. The stay at his parents’ home was a short one. “My dad […]
North Carolina joins antitrust lawsuit against real estate software company
North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein on Friday announced that he has joined an antitrust lawsuit filed by the U.S. Department of Justice alleging that the real estate software company RealPage violated antitrust law and artificially increased rent prices for tenants in North Carolina and across the country. The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. […]
A look at how federal plans could make the costs of housing more affordable
As renters and would-be homeowners struggle with the high cost of housing, the Biden administration has announced policies to address this strain on household budgets. That includes $100 million in funding for a program to incentivize affordable housing production and streamlining loan application processes to expedite building more housing. Some of those proposals – such […]
NC Housing Finance Agency awarded $8M federal grant to secure housing for people with disabilities
The North Carolina Housing Finance Agency (NCHFA) is one of 18 state housing agencies that recently received an award from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to secure affordable housing for people with disabilities. NCHFA will receive nearly $8 million to help people with disabilities pay for affordable, safe housing. The agency […]
VP Kamala Harris outlines economic policy plan during a North Carolina campaign stop
Vice President Kamala Harris introduced a broad economic plan at her presidential campaign stop in Raleigh on Friday that focused on day-to-day economic issues many people face such as high grocery bills, the cost of raising a family, and affording a home. Voters rank the economy as their top priority. Polls have shown that voters […]
High building costs, interest rates take a bite out of housing affordability
Skyrocketing building costs and higher interest rates have made $900 rents a thing of the past, says Sarah Odio, the associate director of housing for the Development Finance Initiative (DFI) within the UNC School of Government. In the past, Odio said, $900 rents covered money developers borrowed from lenders and equity investors to build affordable […]
Public-private partnerships pave the way for new mixed-income housing in Durham
Construction equipment beeped and whirred in the background and dump trucks roared in the distance during a groundbreaking ceremony Wednesday for Commerce Street Apartments, a 172-unit, mixed-income apartment complex in downtown Durham. Local, state and national housing officials called the construction noise sounds of progress. “I thought that was an intentional soundtrack for today,” said […]
NCDEQ faces complaints about oversight of weatherization assistance program
The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ) is not responsive to the concerns of agencies that administer the state’s Weatherization Assistance Program, leaders of the N.C. Community Action Association complained Tuesday. Dozens of NCCAA-member agencies from across the state traveled to Raleigh to rally outside the NCDEQ building on Jones Street, hoping to get […]
A small apartment community is reborn to continue serving people with mental disabilities
On a quiet morning in July, Riley Henderson sat at a cement table in the courtyard of the recently renovated 15-unit Driftwood Apartments in Wilmington to discuss how he landed in the permanent supportive housing complex for people with disabilities who have experienced homelessness. The bespectacled 20-year-old Henderson shared with NC Newsline that he suffers […]
N.C. Office of Recovery and Resiliency touts affordable housing successes
The N.C. Office of Recovery and Resiliency (NCORR) is reporting that it has spent $51.2 million to build 752 new low-income rental units in the aftermath of hurricanes Matthew and Florence, as well as areas damaged by Tropical Storm Fred. Another 1,430 such rental units are planned to increase the availability of safe, affordable housing in […]