Innovative Program That Helps Homeless Hillsborough Residents Receives National Recognition

The National Association of Local Housing Finance Agencies (NALHFA) honored the Hillsborough County Housing Finance Authority with the Award of Excellence during the NALHFA Annual Conference held in Tampa. The NALHFA Award of Excellence is the most prestigious national award in the local affordable housing finance community. The award recognized the agency for its efforts to help homeless residents move to permanent housing.

The National Association of Local Housing Finance Agencies honored nine innovative programs across the country that have come up with creative ways to deal with the shortage of affordable housing. The Housing Finance Authority of Hillsborough County was recognized for its Up & Out program that provides rental assistance to families and the elderly who have been homeless. The aim of the program is to fill the gap where formerly homeless fami- lies often lose government assistance as they enter the workforce. That loss of assistance often leads to a cycle where a family is homeless, then has shelter, then becomes homeless again.

The program works with numerous nonprofits that act as a bridge between the residents and the developer and can serve up to 53 families a year. The average income of the families in the program has been less than a third of the area median income. The Housing Finance Authority of Hillsborough County was created in 1985 to provide incentives to the private sector to relieve the shortage of affordable housing. The seven-member board is appointed by the Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners.

The awards were announced May 4 during the annual meeting of the National Association of Local Housing Finance Agencies, which this year was held in Tampa.