With rents high and vacancies scarce, NC officials seek to expand affordable housing supply

North Carolina officials are working to attack the state's shortage of affordable by building thousands of new affordable apartment homes. (Photo: Clayton Henkel)

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 Reform Allocation Committee, based on recommendations from the NCHFA. The agency administers the federal Low-Income Housing Tax Program (LITHC) or Housing Credit program as it is also known.

The program will help to produce 4,211 privately owned and managed affordable apartments, including 3,631 apartments for families and 580 for senior citizens, the agency reported. As many as 420 of the apartments will be targeted for people with disabilities. The new awards will boost the number of Housing Credit apartments in North Carolina to 128,900.

Click here to see the complete list of awarded projects .

The Housing Credit is considered the nation’s single most important resource for creating affordable housing. It was created by the Tax Reform Act of 1986 . Under the program, developers are awarded tax credits in exchange for agreeing to maintain the property as affordable housing for a minimum of 30 years.

“The LIHTC Program is essential for creating and maintaining affordable housing across North Carolina,” Scott Farmer, executive director of the NCHFA, said in a news release. “These apartment homes will strengthen our communities by providing much-needed affordable housing options for working families and seniors.”

The NCHFA evaluates tax credit applications on behalf of the N.C. Federal Tax Reform Allocation Committee. The program received 60 applications this year.

The agency reported that 28 properties have been awarded $37 million from the Workforce Housing Loan Program established by the North Carolina General Assembly in 2014 to encourage development of Housing Credit apartments in low-income counties and reduce rents in moderate- and high-income counties. Agency loans of more than $17.5 million were awarded to 17 properties under the Rental Production Program, which uses state and federal funds to improve economic feasibility for rental developments.

The Golden LEAF Foundation, which provides funding to increase economic opportunity in rural, tobacco-dependent, and economically distressed communities in North Carolina, provided up to $6 million to support the development of new construction family properties in designated counties. Meanwhile, two properties received a combined $4 million under the Golden LEAF Affordable Workforce Housing Initiative, which is provided as a 30-year deferred loan at 0% interest.

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 Reform Allocation Committee, based on recommendations from the NCHFA, which administers the Housing Credit program.

A new report from the Joint Center on Housing Studies at Harvard University ( The State of the Nation’s Housing 24 ) documents the struggle renters have in affording their homes. In its assessment of the report, the NCHFA noted that rents have increased 21% since 2001, while incomes have only increased 2% (both figures adjusted for inflation). Renters making less than $30,000 annually are left with only an average of $310 per month after paying rent.

The agency reports that 45.4% of North Carolina renters are housing cost-burdened, which means they spend more than 30% of income on housing costs.

Last week, North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein 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.

“Rising rents create real financial and emotional strain,” Stein said during a press conference. “Folks are worried about how to make ends meet. They’re worried that they don’t have enough money for retirement or an emergency and they’re worried that if their landlord increases their rent again, they may not be able to afford their home any longer.”