Two new housing tax credit programs are launching as Ohio grapples with affordable housing.
The state housing tax credit program and the single-family housing tax credit program are part of Ohio’s two-year, $191 billion budget that Gov. Mike DeWine signed earlier this month.
“Governor DeWine recognizes the need to have a holistic statewide housing strategy that addresses affordable housing and housing for our growing workforce,” DeWine spokesperson Dan Tierney said in email.
There is a shortage of about 270,000 affordable and available rental units to the 448,000 extremely low-income households in Ohio — meaning there are only 40 affordable units for every 100 households, according to a March report from Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio (COHHIO) and the National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC).
“We know there is a need for housing and both of them will help create more housing for Ohioans,” said Ohio Housing Finance Authority’s Spokesperson Penny Martin.
Full-time workers need to make at least $19.09 an hour to afford a 2-bedroom apartment in Ohio — a $2.04 increase from last year, according to a joint report from the NLIHC and COHHIO.