Housing Preservation Division

During the second quarter of 2023, we processed 650 releases and satisfactions of second mortgages. In addition, we had 25 Grants for Grads, subordinations, and down payment assistance loans.

We appreciate that our lenders are engaged with OHFA. We have 118 participating lenders and 90% (or 106 lenders) have reserved loans this year. We continue to add lenders, sending out 15 contracts to potential lenders during the second quarter. We also welcomed ON Q Financial, Highlands Residential Mortgage, Bay Equity LLC, Northwest Bank, Holland Mortgage Advisors, First Bank of Central Ohio, Absolute Mortgage and Lending, and Premier Lending to our list of OHFA-approved lenders. 

Schmidt Mortgage Company, Goldstar Financial, and Stockton Mortgage will assist third-party originators participating in OHFA programs. We are excited that third-party originators are starting to reserve loans with our sponsoring lenders.  

Residential Lending

The Residential Lending department worked hard reviewing loans for first-time homebuyers. We enjoyed a very productive spring quarter with more than $200 million in reservations. In August, we had record-setting reservations of $106.3 million. We are privileged to be able to help so many Ohioans realize their dreams of homeownership. Our average sales price is just shy of $180,000 and the median age of our borrowers is 32. In a market where inventory is low and interest rates are high, borrowers need down payment assistance now more than ever.  

We officially increased our review staff by two. The increase in staff will be helpful to keep our turnaround times down and get buyers to their closings in a timely manner. We look forward to helping more Ohioans as we bring in more lenders and ramp up participation in third-party originations.

We couldn’t do any of this without our partners. We are fortunate to collaborate with over 100 lenders and several HUD housing counseling agencies to help first-time homebuyers purchase homes. On October 3, 2023, we celebrated our top 20 lenders and top three counseling agencies at our memorable Annual Partner Celebration at Nationwide Arena where we had a good turnout and enjoyed seeing everyone in person.

Development Division

Program Updates and Reminders

The Office of Multifamily Housing presented the 9% Qualified Allocation Plan (QAP) to the OHFA Board on Wednesday, October 18, 2023, and the final version of the document along with interactive maps can be found here. The Office is reviewing the comments it received regarding the 4% Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program (LIHTC) QAP, the new State LIHTC guidelines, LIHTC Rental Underwriting Guidelines, and the Design and Architecture Standards. Look for updated versions of these documents soon.

We want to thank all of our partners that provided comments on the various program guidelines. Your thoughtful input helps us create program guidelines that ensure we develop quality, affordable housing throughout Ohio. 

Don’t forget to sign up for our listserv so you can receive program updates, including updates on the new State Low-Income Housing Tax Credit. 

2023 Competitive 9% Round

This year, 29 Ohio developments creating or preserving 1,361 apartments for families, seniors, and individuals at risk for homelessness were awarded more than $29.9 million in 10-year federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credits.

Staffing Update

David Foust, director of Multifamily Housing, left OHFA in July to pursue a new opportunity outside of Ohio. Taylor Koch has been named the interim director of Multifamily Housing. We are also pleased to announce that Cody Price has been named the 9% LIHTC Section chief, a post previously held by Sam Makoski. Cody will be responsible for crafting the 9% LIHTC QAP and guiding the annual competitive application process.

Taylor Koch

Interim Director of Multifamily Housing

Cody Price

9% LIHTC Section Chief

Compliance Division

OHFA Audits — Extensions and File Uploads Procedures

The Compliance team at OHFA continues to be very busy with audits, completing 348 file audits and 349 physical audits in the third quarter of 2023. Owners/Management agents must remember that once a Compliance Audit Report (CAR) is issued, the owners have 30 days to provide corrections to the findings. If additional time is needed to complete the corrections, owners must: 

• Actively work on the corrections and request an extension. The request for an extension to the auditor who completed the audit must be in writing and state the reason(s) for the extension.

• The request must be submitted via the OHFA Inspection system on the Communications tab. If an extension is not requested, the audit will be closed out as uncorrected and 8823s will be issued as applicable. 

OHFA requires the following procedures be followed for tenant file uploads:

• Upload only what is requested, one file at a time.

• Label each uploaded file with the BIN # and Unit #.

• Once the required files are uploaded, send an email to the OHFA auditor assigned to the project to let him/her know that the files have all been uploaded. Please ensure the project name and project number are noted in the subject line of the email.

Failure to follow these instructions will result in the upload being rejected by the auditor.

HOTMA — Update 

The Housing Opportunity Through Modernization Act of 2016 (HOTMA) will present many substantive changes to income calculations, student financial aid, fosters, and much more. It’s a complete overhaul of how the industry has always qualified applicants. Fortunately, HUD gave us a gift! On September 23, 2023, HUD issued guidance recognizing the significant program and system changes on the industry, which may be found here. Multifamily owners now have until January 1, 2025, to fully implement HOTMA. 

However, action is still required!

• By March 31, 2024, owners must update their Tenant Selection Plans (TSPs)

• Once the owners’ software is HOTMA compliant:
• Owners must provide their tenants 60-days-notice that their leases will be modified at the end of the lease terms. Owners must begin using the revised HUD Model Leases at the expiration of the tenants’ lease terms.
• Owners must implement revised TSPs and Enterprise Income Verification (EIV) System policies/procedures.

• HOTMA Notice PIH 2023-27 (Section F.5, pages 54-55) changes the passbook rate effective January 1, 2024. The new rate will be 0.40% and will change every year. This applies to Public and Indian Housing (PIH) and Multifamily Housing (MFH) programs. Applicable programs are listed on the last page of this document.

MFH Owners must use the new passbook rate when calculating imputed asset income for net family assets for qualifications on or after January 1, 2024. OHFA is currently working on updating the OHFA Tenant Income Certification form to reflect this new rate. Questions should be directed to OHFA's Helpdesk.

OHFA TIPS

1. All annual, HUD Interim, and Initial Certifications effective prior to January 1, 2024, should be conducted using current rules and compliance software.
2. Owners should begin creating internal procedures, forms, and policies and train their staff. 

OHFA will issue additional guidance by the end of this year. 

NSPIRE — An Inspired Change?

National Standards for the Physical Inspections of Real Estate (NSPIRE) is the new physical inspection model designed by HUD. NSPIRE’s goal is to reduce health and safety hazards in homes by prioritizing the condition of residents’ units. NSPIRE consolidates inspectable areas into three easily identifiable locations relating to buildings: Outside, Inside, and Units. 

• HUD issued a notice in September 2023 delaying implementation until October 1, 2024, for HOME and National Housing Trust Fund (NHTF). Read the notice here.

• HUD is taking this action to allow the industry additional time to incorporate NSPIRE and allow flexibility to transition to NSPIRE.

Owners should prepare as if NSPIRE will be implemented at all LIHTC projects even though the IRS has yet to issue guidance. This includes updating compliance software, training staff, and updating internal manuals and policies. 

OHFA’s Compliance office will issue additional guidance soon. Ensure you are subscribed to OHFA’s Constant Contact email distribution list to receive OHFA’s guidance on HOTMA and NSPIRE when it is issued. 

Compliance Staff Updates

We are pleased to announce new staff to the Compliance team! 

Kellen Showes joined the team as the director of Program Compliance. Kellen came from the Columbus Metropolitan Housing Authority (CMHA) where he was a development manager. His responsibilities included serving as manager for various projects and application processes as well as the development of financing for new and rehabilitation of low-income housing.

We also welcome Rishawn Levy and Heather White as housing examiners. Rishawn came from the NRP Group where she was part of community management. Her responsibilities included maintaining and monitoring project waitlists and working with residents and service providers. 

Heather came from Woda Cooper Companies where she was a Certified Occupancy Specialist. Her responsibilities included assisting managers with lease-ups, monitoring rent and occupancy issues, and completing public housing authority (PHA) vouchers for approvals.

Kellen Showes

Director of Program Compliance

Rishawn Levy

Housing Examiner

Heather White

Housing Examiner

On another note, we are very sad to see the departure of Ashley Sweeney from the Compliance staff. Gratitude is to be extended to Ashley for her service and leadership over the past nine years. Her guidance, passion, and expertise will truly be missed. We wish Ashley all the best in the next steps of her professional journey.

OHFA's Office of Research and Analytics had a very productive spring and summer!

The Office of Research and Analytics wrapped up OHFA’s yearly strategic planning process, which is comprised of three components: the Annual Plan, the Ohio Housing Needs Assessment, and the Annual Report. Approved by the Board on June 21, 2023, the 2024–2025 Annual Plan guides the Agency’s strategic priorities for the next two years. 

To inform initiatives, our office developed the Ohio Housing Needs Assessment, which is a critical component of the annual planning process. We use a wide range of data to identify the scale and scope of Ohio’s housing challenges and utilize these data as baseline information for determining the Agency’s strategic priorities. This year is the first full update since 2020 and our first look at the post-pandemic housing landscape. Some key takeaways that underscore the need for affordable housing include:

• Over 1 million Ohioans (8.8%) live in households that spend at least half of their incomes on housing, which puts them at risk of foreclosure or eviction. 

• The median home price in Ohio in 2021 was 2.6 times the median household income — the largest price-to-income ratio since 2005 — making homeownership more unaffordable to many prospective homebuyers.

• Ohio renters are spending more on rent. Adjusted for inflation, median gross rent in Ohio increased by 10% from $788 per month in 2012 to $870 per month in 2021. When adjusted for inflation, rent is higher than in any year on record other than 2021.

• After years of gradually shrinking, the affordability gap between supply and demand for the lowest income renters is now widening with a net loss of over 15,000 affordable units between 2020 and 2021.

The most recent version of the Ohio Housing Needs Assessment was published at the end of July and utilizes interactive dashboards to visualize the data. In September, Devin Keithley presented key findings to local health departments across the state at the Ohio Department of Health’s Community Health Equity and Learning Practice (CHELP) monthly workgroup meeting. 

Finally, we worked closely with our Office of Public Affairs team to produce the Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Report, which highlights OHFA’s impact on Ohioans throughout the previous state fiscal year.

Another way that we show OHFA’s impact and underscore statewide housing needs is through our summary reports for all Ohio legislative districts. Each report is tailored to a specific district and includes Agency impact, OHFA homebuyers’ and low-income renters’ profiles, and a snapshot of housing needs in that area. At the end of August, we published updates to our reports and interactive maps to reflect changes to districts and elected legislators. 

Image: Example of homebuyer demographics for the 15th Congressional District

The Office of Research and Analytics has also been working diligently to support the Save the Dream Ohio (SDO) program. Using Tableau, we built internal dashboards that visualize program data and perform automatic calculations for reporting and decision-making purposes. The SDO online reports are updated on a quarterly basis and provide program data for the public and other housing finance agencies (HFAs). As of September 30, 2023, over $210 million in assistance had been disbursed to over 29,000 households across the state to avoid foreclosure and/or utility shutoffs. 

Last but not least, we welcomed an amazing intern to the team in September!

Madeleine Drost (pictured right) has her doctorate in Human Development and Family Science from The Ohio State University. Her role at OHFA is part of her post-doctoral scholar position in which she researches affordable housing, consumer finance, and rural–urban differentials.

Third Quarter Employee of the Quarter

Saving the best for last! Ashlie Depinet was named OHFA's Third Quarter Employee of the Quarter at our All Staff Meeting on November 20. Congratulations, Ashlie!

Ashlie Depinet

Assistant Chief Legal Counsel

Legal