Coalition Reports on Housing Credits

ALBANY—The Rural Housing Coalition of New York recently released a report on the state’s allocation of Low-Income Housing Tax Credits to rural areas in the five-year period 2019-2023. There are three main types of credits that support affordable housing development in the state: four percent federal tax credits for projects with tax-exempt bond financing; nine percent federal credits awarded through a competitive application process; and state Low-Income Housing Tax Credits that are paired with the federal programs.

Although more than 36 percent of the state lives in rural areas, only 20 percent of the four percent credits are awarded there. The report noted that this finding was expected, as these projects tend to be large-scale and poorly suited for small communities. The nine percent credits are more equitably distributed, but this does not make up for the discrepancy due to the greater prevalence of four percent credits; they fund about 70 percent of tax credit units.

“This report indicates that more needs to be done to fund housing programs that target smaller and rural communities that are left out of a major funding source for affordable housing development,” said RHC Executive Director Michael J. Borges. “State policymakers need to continue to invest in programs targeted to rural and smaller communities like the Small Rental Development Initiative, the USDA 515 Rural Preservation Program, as well as ensure that the allocation of all types of tax credits are more fairly distributed.”

To view the full report, visit https://ruralhousing.org/wp-content/uploads/LIHTC-Report_RuralHousing_RPA-03-2025-2.pdf.