NORTH WALES, PA. – July 12, 2019 – Senator Maria Collett (D-12) today announced that local affordable housing projects in Bucks and Montgomery County received nearly $800,000 in funding through the Pennsylvania Housing Affordability and Rehabilitation Enhancement (PHARE) fund. The Bucks County Housing Services Department was awarded $275,000 to implement and expand services to address homelessness. The Montgomery County Department of Housing and Community Development was awarded $500,000 towards its “Your Way Home” program.

“The affordable housing investments announced today by the PA Housing Finance Agency (PHFA) are important for our region and will serve our citizens for years to come,” Collett said. “Many people don’t realize that economic insecurity is a significant issue right here in our local communities. I commend the work being done by Bucks and Montgomery Counties to combat homelessness.”

Across the Commonwealth, 39 affordable multifamily housing developments received $41.6 million in low-income housing tax credits and $7.7 million in PennHOMES funding. Additionally, 211 housing and community development initiatives in all 67 counties will share a portion of the $51.2 million in PHARE funding.

The PHARE fund is managed by the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency. Since 2012, the program has received a portion of the impact fees collected from natural gas companies operating in the state with the goal of addressing an affordable housing shortage caused by the economic impact of drilling. Those funds are supplemented by two new funding sources including a portion of realty transfer taxes and money from the National Housing Trust Fund.  PHARE funding was increased by $15 million with the most recent adoption of the 2019-2020 state budget.

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