Funding Towards Affordable Housing
For a number of years, County decision makers have made affordable housing a top priority, allocating available funding to support development and rehabilitation of housing wherever feasible.
There are a number of funding sources at the local, state and federal level that are used to support affordable housing projects in Marin.
The main funding streams for affordable housing in Marin include the following:
- CDBG - Community Development Block Grants: federal funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development administered through the County of Marin.
- HOME - HOME Investment Partnerships: federal funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development administered through the County of Marin.
- HOME-ARP - HOME Investment Partnerships American Rescue Plan Program: federal funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development administered through the County of Marin intended to reduce homelessness and increase housing stability.
- PLHA - Permanent Local Housing Allocation: non-competitive state funds from the California Department of Housing and Community Development.
- LHTF - Local
Housing Trust Fund: competitive state funds from the California Department
of Housing and Community Development intended to match commitments made by
local Housing Trust Funds.
- Housing - Housing Trust Fund: revenue from affordable housing impact fees, as well as General Fund contributions.
- Measure W - Measure W Community Housing Funds: portion of revenue from the Measure W Transient Occupancy Tax approved by voters in November 2018 that sets an additional 4% tax on short-term rentals in the Measure W Tax Area of West Marin.
The graph below illustrates that Marin has steadily increased the number of units of new affordable housing funded from 2015 to 2023, through acquisition, new development, rehabilitation, and/or conversion. In 2015, 124 units (13 new development, 91 rehabilitated, and 20 acquired) were funded. The highest peak of new units funded in the 2015-2023 timeframe occurred in 2022. In this year, 493 units (235 new development, 9 rehabilitated, 206 acquired and 43 converted) were funded. In 2023, 138 units were funded, including 125 new development, 11 rehabilitated and 2 acquisition.
Despite a drop in both funding and units in 2017, the funding allocated towards development and rehabilitation of affordable housing remains consistent at around $5 million a year. This has resulted in the funding of a total of 1,608 units (718 new development, 478 rehabilitated, 266 acquired and 146 converted).
CDBG funding has ranged from a low of $568,790 to a high of $1 million in that period. HOME funding has ranged between a low of $601,435 in 2017 and a high of $1.7 million in 2023. Housing funds have a large range with the lowest in 2017 ($110,000) and over $16 million in 2022. Measure W funding begins in 2020 with $221,810 and increased since, with a high of $1,024,000 in 2021. PLHA funding begins in 2020 with $689,292 and increases in 2022 to over $1.1 million. In 2022, the County received a competitive LHTF award for approximately $3.2 million. In 2023, the County received HOME-ARP funds for approximately $2.6 million.
For more information, visit www.marincounty.org/housing