Becoming a CHDO

Nonprofit organizations may be eligible to be certified as a Community Housing Development Organization (CHDO). A CHDO is a type of nonprofit designation created under the federal HOME Investment Partnerships Program.

The HOME Program seeks to

develop affordable housing, while also promoting partnerships between government and local nonprofit organizations, and simultaneously increasing the capacity of these nonprofits.  To accomplish this, state and local governments that receive federal HOME funds are required to set aside 15% of their HOME allocations for housing development activities in which qualified CHDOs are the owners, developers, and/or sponsors.  Thus, nonprofits may benefit from being designated as a CHDO, because this may help them qualify to participate in the 15% HOME set-aside. 

Within North Carolina, there are multiple “Participating Jurisdictions” (PJs) that receive HOME funds through HUD, including city or county governments, as well as some groups of local governments (called “consortia”).  NCHFA administers the HOME funding for the ‘State of North Carolina’ participating jurisdiction. To participate as a CHDO in other PJs, an organization must apply for a separate CHDO certification through the individual PJ. View the list of all North Carolina HOME Participating Jurisdictions.

Each PJ has distinct requirements for becoming a CHDO, and meets its CHDO set-aside in different ways. In general, NCHFA meets its CHDO set-aside through its existing programs, and does not have any programs specifically targeted to CHDOs.  This means that non-profit housing organizations that wish to become CHDO participants through NCHFA should consider applying to the Agency’s existing programs, such as the Rental Production Program.  Organizations that apply and qualify for these programs and are also certified as CHDOs may become a part of the Agency’s 15% set-aside.  Prospective applicants should note that receiving a CHDO certification does not guarantee that a non-profit organization will receive HOME funds, nor is a CHDO certification necessary for an organization to apply for any NCHFA programs.

In order to be certified as an NCHFA-designated CHDO, a nonprofit should apply using the application.  NCHFA will review applications to ensure they meet both federal and NCHFA-specific standards, which include the following:

• One of the purposes of the organization must be the provision of decent housing that is affordable to low-income and moderate income persons.
• The organization must have at least one year of experience serving the community.
• The organization must have completed at least one CHDO-eligible development within the past two (2) years.  (CHDO-eligible activities may include the construction or rehabilitation of affordable rental housing, or the construction of an affordable home-ownership project). 

The complete application process is described in detail in the application. Once a nonprofit agency has become certified as a CHDO with NCHFA, they must also complete an annual recertification to retain their active status.

To learn more about becoming a CHDO or the requirements for application, contact Rebekah King at rjking@nchfa.com or Katherine Jones at ktjones@nchfa.com.