Update on the Moderate Income Housing Program

Overview

The Moderate Income Housing (MIH) program targets moderate-income households making between 60.0 and 150.0 percent of area median income that do not typically qualify for federal housing assistance.

The program is administered by the Kansas Housing Resources Corporation (KHRC). The KHRC describes itself as a self-supporting, nonprofit, public corporation committed to helping Kansans access safe, affordable housing. The KHRC is governed by a board of directors who are appointed by the Governor.

Program Eligibility

The MIH program provides competitive grants and loans to cities and counties with populations less than 60,000. All Kansas cities would be eligible under these requirements except for Kansas City, Lawrence, Olathe, Overland Park, Shawnee, Topeka, and Wichita. Additionally, 96 of the state’s 105 counties would qualify, with the exception of Butler, Douglas, Johnson, Leavenworth, Reno, Riley, Sedgwick, Shawnee, and Wyandotte counties.

The provided grants and loans are to develop single or multifamily properties through new construction, rehabilitation, or conversion for either homeownership or rentals.

Grants and Loans

The MIH program is composed of a mix of grants and loans. Grants are capped at $650,000 per awardee and can only be used for actual housing development. Loans are capped at $1.0 million and can be used for actual housing development or for either off-site or on-site infrastructure development that supports new housing. These activities would include, but not be limited to, extension of streets, utility extension, general site clearing and preparation, and communal infrastructure, such as sidewalks. MIH loan terms are for a period of up to 10 years and generally utilize the applicable federal rate when determining the interest rate.

All projects awarded funding are generally required to be completed within 18 months of the award notification unless otherwise approved by the KHRC.

Since 2012, the KHRC has received a total of $42 million in MIH funds and has awarded almost $40 million.

The KHRC’s goal is to award approximately $5.0 million in grants and loans for each round of MIH funding.

2023 Program Funding Update

The KHRC receives state appropriations through the State Housing Trust Fund to administer the MIH program. This support has traditionally been an annual appropriation of $2.0 million from the Economic Development Initiatives Fund. However, in Fiscal Year 2023, the Legislature appropriated an additional $20.0 million from the State General Fund to support the MIH program, along with the KHRC receiving approximately $20.0 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding from the Office of Recovery and approximately $20.0 million from the Department of Commerce, for a total of approximately $60.0 million.

Since the appropriation, the KHRC has seen a dramatic increase in the number of MIH program applications and dollars requested.

In 2023’s first two rounds of awards, the KHRC provided over $9.6 million. Some of these projects in 2023 include:

• 48 rental units in Dodge City;
• 20 rental units in Independence;
• 20 rental units in Kingman;
• 9 homeownership units in Atwood; and
• 6 homeownership units in Cimarron.

The KHRC opened a third round of request for proposals on September 11, 2023, with a deadline for submission of November 15, 2023. Award disbursement for the round is planned for January 2024.