This morning, President Bush signed into law H.R. 3221, CHFA applauds the collaboration between Congress and the Administration to pass this landmark legislation. Our estimates indicate that Colorado stands to receive nearly $250 million in financial resources to help strengthen the local housing market as a result of the Housing Stimulus legislation, primarily coming from the following:

• $11 billion Mortgage Revenue Bond (MRB) allocation, available in 2008, to help meet the increased demand for long-term, fixed rate mortgage finance and refinance loans for low and moderate income homebuyers.
  
  Colorado’s Share: $159.62 million
  These funds work like CHFA’s existing MRB program, but are available to serve a broader audience—including families facing repricing of ARMs. The funds will be used to offer mortgages to both first time homebuyers and also families who need to stabilize their monthly payments.
  
• 20-cent per capita Low Income Housing Tax Credit cap increase to support the creation and rehabilitation of affordable rental housing which is becoming more expensive given escalating construction, land, and energy costs; as well as funding gap challenges resulting from changes in the tax credit marketplace.
  
  Colorado’s Share: $1.97 million additional tax-credit cap between 2008 and 2009
  CHFA is the state’s LIHTC allocating agency. CHFA is working with our General Counsel to understand how quickly these funds can be made available to developers of affordable rental housing. The deadline for the third round of allocations is this week, so CHFA envisions adding possibly a fourth round before the end of the year for the 2008 portion.
  
• $3.92 billion in grants to assist the state and local governments in stabilizing neighborhoods negatively impacted by foreclosure.
  
  Colorado’s Share: $87.9 million to be used within 18 months of receipt(Source: Center for American Progress Action Fund)
  
• Housing Trust Fund to increase and preserve the supply of rental housing for extremely low and very low-income families, including homeless families; and to increase homeownership for extremely low and very low-income families.
  
  Colorado’s Share: The legislation requires the HUD Secretary to establish a needs-based formula for distributing funds to the states within 12 months of enactment of the bill, with a minimum state allocation of $3 million.
  
  CHFA is working closely with the Governor’s office to understand how funds in these last two areas are to be distributed, and are ready to partner with the state on initiatives to distribute the funds to needy families quickly and efficiently.
  
  Additionally, the bill provides CHFA with new opportunities through the following:
  
  
  • Changes FHA programs to allow more single family borrowers access to safe and secure mortgages - permits FHA to insure certain credit worthy refinances;
    
  • Creates new funding for housing counseling;
    
  • Exempts tax-exempt housing bonds and tax credits from the Alternative Minimum Tax, which stands to decrease the cost of capital for those programs by as much as 50 to 100 basis points; and
    
  • Includes numerous provisions to modernize and simplify the administration of the Housing Bond and Credit programs.