If you need information about VHIP awards granted before 2024, please describe our original VHIP page. The preliminary VHIP funding was sourced from State Fiscal Recovery Funds, which had different regulations. The requirements and alternatives detailed here do NOT use to jobs authorized before March 25, 2024.

The Vermont Housing Improvement Program (VHIP) is relaunching as VHIP 2.0!

Drawing from insights got over the previous 3 years and more than 500 units moneyed, this upgraded program keeps our commitment to expanding economical housing. VHIP 2.0 now provides awards for restricted new construction. Additionally, it introduces a 10-year forgivable loan alongside the existing 5-year grants, intending to even more incentivize property managers. This brand-new option requires leasing systems at reasonable market value without the requirement for recommendations from Coordinated Entry Organizations.

Table of Contents:

What can you finish with VHIP 2.0 financing? How much funding are jobs qualified for? What are the program requirements? 5-Year Grant Versus 10-Year Forgivable Loan VHIP 2.0 Documents Resource Guide for Residential Or Commercial Property Owners Fair Market Rent (Recertification). FAQ's. Recertification. VHIP Recipient List

Resource Guide for Residential Or Commercial Property Owners Program Stats

What can you finish with VHIP 2.0 financing?

VHIP 2.0 offers grants or forgivable loans to:

Rehabilitate existing vacant units. Rehabilitate structural aspects effecting numerous systems, such as the roof of a multi-family residential or commercial property. Develop a brand-new Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) on an owner-occupied residential or commercial property. Create brand-new systems within an existing structure. Create a new structure with five or fewer residential units. Complete repair work necessary for code compliance in occupied units (only eligible for ten years forgivable loan)

Rehabilitation tasks can include updates to satisfy housing codes, weatherization, and accessibility enhancements, of qualified rental housing systems.

How much financing are projects qualified for?

Based on the type of task, residential or commercial property owners are eligible to receive approximately:

$ 30,000 per unit for rehab of 0-2-bedroom systems. $ 50,000 per unit for rehabilitation of 3+ bedroom systems, structural aspects impacting multiple systems , new unit production, or production of Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs)

Structural repair grant or loan awards are offered for an optimum of $50,000 per award produced a residential or commercial property. For each structural award made, a rent-ready system in the very same structure should be overloaded with a VHIP Covenant or FLA/Promissory Note. Contact your HOC or DHCD for more details and to discuss your project if you are considering structural repair work that impact more than one unit.

What are the program requirements?

Program Match: All individuals are required to supply a 20% match of the award, the option for an in-kind match for unbilled services or owned products. For instance, an individual who gets an award of $50,000 will be needed to offer a $10,000 match.

Fair Market Rent: Participants are also required to sign a rental covenant accepting charge at or listed below HUD Fair Market Rent (FMR) or coupon amount for the length of the arrangement (5 or ten years, discover more about these alternatives here). Participants will be needed to submit an annual recertification form to ensure they remain in compliance with the program requirements. To determine HUD FMR for your location, inspect out our resources on Fair Market Rent.

Landlord Education: VHIP 2.0 applicants need to view a Landlord-Tenant Mediation video and complete a Fair Housing Training as part of the application procedure. The Landlord-Tenant Mediation video is offered by the Vermont Landlord Association (Please click here to see). The online, self-paced Fair Housing training is supplied by CVOEO. It includes a summary of state and federal anti-discrimination requirements, examples of unlawful housing discrimination and potential penalties, access requirements for people with impairments, consisting of sensible lodgings and affordable adjustments, and best practices for housing suppliers. This training will be validated through conclusion of a short quiz. Please click here to register. You will be asked to produce an account on the Ruzuku finding out platform, then you'll have immediate access to the training. If you experience any problems or have concerns, please contact CVOEO at classcoord@cvoeo.org or 802-660-3455 ext. 205.

Tenant Selection: VHIP 2.0 participants can choose their renters. However, the occupants they choose should meet the program requirements, based on if they are enrolled in the 5- or 10-year tract (click here to get more information). For residential or commercial properties registered in this program, the residential or commercial property owner might not need a credit rating greater than 500, and participants are limited to charging no greater than one month's lease for a deposit, regardless of whether it is called a down payment, a damage deposit or a pet deposit, last month's rent, and so on. Additionally, residential or commercial property owners must cover the expense of running background examine potential renters. Residential or commercial property owners are likewise needed to accept any housing coupons that are offered to pay all, or a portion of, the tenant's rent and energies. Additionally, residential or commercial property owners need to accept paper applications for occupants with limited internet gain access to.

Out-of-State Owners: Out-of-State owners are required to determine a residential or commercial property supervisor located within 50 miles of the units to ensure a regional, responsible celebration can supervisor the residential or commercial property in the lack of the residential or commercial property owner.

5-Year Grant Versus 10-Year Forgivable Loan

The primary distinction in between the 5-year grant and the 10-year forgivable loans are:

- The period for which the residential or commercial property owner need to charge at or listed below HUD Fair Market Rent for the registered units (5 v 10 years). The 5-year grant alternative features additional occupant choice requirements to rent to a household exiting homelessness

To get more information specifics about these two options, evaluate the areas below.

5-Year Grants

Any residential or commercial property, with the exception of occupant occupied units dealing with code non-compliance problems, making an application for VHIP 2.0 can opt to receive a 5-year grant. This compliance duration will begin once the VHIP 2.0 system is put in service. This grant needs that:

The system is leased at or below HUD Fair Market Rent for the area for a minimum of 5 years. That the residential or commercial property manager work with Coordinated Entry Lead Organizations to discover appropriate renters leaving homelessness for at least 5 years or with USCRI to find refugee homes to rent the system to

Participants should sign a rental covenant to this result. This covenant will be reliable for 5 years and states that for this duration, the unit needs to stay a long-lasting rental with a month-to-month rental rate at or listed below HUD Fair Market Rent and that the Department of Housing and Community Development must approve the sale of the residential or commercial property.

Tenant Selection: If the Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) or the Homeownership Center (HOC) that provided the grant identifies that a home exiting homelessness is not readily available to lease the system, the landlord shall rent the system to a household with an income equivalent to or less than 80 percent of area average income. If such a home is unavailable, the residential or commercial property owner might lease the system to another home with the approval of the DHCD or HOC.

Grant to Loan Conversion: A landlord might convert a grant to a forgivable loan upon approval by DHCD and the HOC that authorized the grant. When the grant is converted to a forgivable loan, the residential or commercial property owner will get a 10% credit for loan forgiveness for each year in which the proprietor participates in the grant program. For instance, if the residential or owner took part in the grant program for 2 years prior to transforming to a forgivable 20% of the funding will be forgiven, and the forgivable loan terms would get 8 years.

Note. This only applies to projects that received funding through VHIP 2.0. The preliminary VHIP funding was sourced from State Fiscal Recovery Funds, which had various regulations. The requirements and options outlined here do NOT use to projects authorized before March 25, 2024, and those grants can NOT be converted to forgivable loans.

10-Year Forgivable Loans

Any residential or commercial property obtaining VHIP 2.0 can opt to get a 10-year forgivable loan. This compliance period will begin as soon as the VHIP 2.0 unit is put in service. This grant requires that the unit is leased at or listed below HUD Fair Market Rent for the location for at least ten years. The owner must lease the unit for ten years at or below FMR to be forgiven in its totality. Funds will need to be paid back to the State of Vermont for each year this requirement is not fulfilled i.e. if an owner just leases the unit for 7 years at or below FMR, 3 years (30%) of funding will not be forgiven.

VHIP Documents

General Documents

VHIP 2.0 Resource Guide for Residential Or Commercial Property Owners - This extensive guide walks residential or commercial property owners through every step of the VHIP 2.0 process, from identifying if the program is an excellent fit for your task, how to use, payment dispensation, preserving program requirements, to offering a VHIP 2.0 residential or commercial property.

VHIP 2.0 Recipient List - The identity of VHIP receivers and the amount of a grant or forgivable loan are public records and are released quarterly on this site.

Since there are several job types VHIP 2.0 supports, the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) are specific to the kind of task looking for financing. To ask questions about your project, get in touch with your regional homeownership center.

Rehabilitation or Conversion of Unoccupied Units Accessory Dwelling Units New Unit Creation (within a brand-new structure). Rehabilitation of Occupied Units

Fair Market Rent & Recertification

All residential or commercial property owners taking part in VHIP 2.0 are required to charge rents at or listed below HUD Fair Market Rent (FMR) for the length of the arrangement, depending upon whether the residential or commercial property owner chooses the 5-year grant or 10-year forgivable loan option. FMRs routinely published by HUD represent the expense of renting a moderately priced house system in the local housing market.

Fair Market Rent Calculator - To use the calculator, you must finish the utility worksheet, which indicates which energies the occupant is accountable for payment. Once the energy worksheet is total, the calculator will show the optimum permitted rent based on the county the unit lies in and the number of bedrooms.

Fair Market Rent Recertification Form - Residential or commercial property owners participating in VHIP 2.0 should submit an annual recertification kind to ensure they comply with the program requirements, including FMR. While the program requirements are in result, residential or commercial property owners will receive an annual demand to finish the recertification kind. Residential or commercial property owners are encouraged to proactively finish this form upon turnover or lease renewal.

If you require support completing the recertification kind or figuring out FMR for your area, please get in touch with your local Homeownership Center or the State Housing Division (VHIP@vermont.gov).

More Questions?

As this program matures, the Department is working to increase accessibility and response eligibility concerns. Additional information and answers to regularly asked questions will continue to be posted to this site as offered. Click on this link to join our email list and remain up to date on Vermont Housing Improvement Program 2.0 updates and news.