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Housing Finance Program
The King County Housing Finance Program (HFP) administers funds for the development and preservation of affordable housing throughout King County. It does this through an annual Request for Proposals process.
Partnerships are encouraged among local governments, public housing authorities, nonprofit housing developers, for-profit developers, and service providers in order to produce the greatest number of units for the most reasonable public investment, and to provide appropriate supportive services to residents with special needs.
2024 Awardees
The following organizations and projects received funds through its 2024 Housing Finance Program (HFP) funding round. These nine projects will generate 939 affordable homes, comprised of 848 new rental units, 66 renovated rental units, and 25 home ownership units throughout the county.
HFP received 24 applications from housing providers and community groups requesting $85 million in total – far exceeding the available funding that HFP is able to provide. Priorities in this funding round included affordable housing for homeless and very low-income populations, equitable community driven development, and transit-oriented development.
South King County
African Community Housing Development (ACHD) will construct the African Diaspora Cultural Anchor Village, a seven-story, 129-unit community in SeaTac. Anchor Village will offer several apartment options, from one-bedroom to four-bedroom units. Gig work and multigenerational households is common in the African Diaspora community. With this in mind, the building will also offer 226 parking stalls for residents and both wrap-around services and multipurpose community spaces that include childcare, outdoor gardening and recreational amenities, performing arts space, and commercial units for retail businesses. Anchor Village aims to address systemic inequities that continue to displace African diasporic communities from neighborhoods they’ve invested in and will provide cultural belonging for residents.
East King County
In Bellevue, Holy Cross Lutheran Church selected Habitat for Humanity to redevelop a site under their ownership. Known as Orchard Gardens, the location will offer 25 permanently affordable single-family homeownership townhomes. A new community center is included in the renovation. Orchard Gardens will also preserve the building’s namesake – an existing p- patch and orchard – for residents and will include residential parking.
Aventine Apartments, purchased by the Low Income Housing Institute (LIHI) in May 2024, is a five-story, 68-unit apartment community in downtown Bellevue. Aventine Apartments’ current residents have area median incomes (AMI) ranging from 30% to 80%. In 2024, this is equivalent to a single individual earning between $31,650 and $77,700. After renovation, the building will include 12 units for homeless individuals and families, 10 for homeless veterans, and eight for people with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities. In addition, 2 of the original units will be converted to case-management offices, with the completed project consisting of 66 units. Existing residents will have the option to stay in their apartments once renovations are completed. The remaining units will be filled with income-qualified households.
Bellwether Housing is developing Prisma in Overlake, a six-story, mixed-use building providing 332 apartments, including 72 two-bedroom and 53 three-bedroom units for households in the 30%-80% AMI range. In 2024, this is equivalent to earning between $45,200 and $110,950 for a family of four. Ten apartments will also be reserved for households that include someone with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities (IDD). Hopelink, a service provider supporting homeless and low-income families, children, seniors, and people with disabilities on the Eastside, will be partnering with Bellwether to provide services to individuals with IDD. Non-residential spaces will include a café, two resident courtyards, and ground floor commercial spaces that will help connect residents and neighbors to one another. The commercial portion of the project will incorporate small business incubation, non-profit organizational support, culturally informed community services, and services provided by the City of Redmond. Bellwether is also collaborating with The Friends of the Village Collective (FVC), a nonprofit coalition working closely with the City of Redmond to design programs and community spaces for residents.
Unincorporated Skyway
LIHI is developing an affordable housing and mixed-use building, with a ground-floor early learning center in Skyway. The building will serve households at risk of displacement in the area and will include 40 units for households experiencing homelessness, at or below 30% AMI. In 2024, this is equivalent to earning at or less than $36,000 for a two-person household, $40,700 for a household with three people, and $45,200 for a family of four. The remaining 13 units will be restricted to 50% AMI. In 2024, this is equal to $60,250, $67,800, and $75,350 for families with two, three and four people.
City of Seattle
Chief Seattle Club’s Sweetgrass Flats is creating permanent supportive housing opportunities for chronically homeless American Indians and Alaska Natives. Sweetgrass Flats is a rapid acquisition and was initially developed by a private developer as 92 units of market-rate housing that are not income-restricted. Chief Seattle Club is acquiring the building and will prepare to convert 84 units into permanent supportive housing, with three units for program staff. This project is also supported by King County’s Health Through Housing initiative as part of the program’s operations-only investments.
The Seattle Chinatown International District Preservation and Development Authority (SCIDpda) is developing the Little Saigon Landmark project, an affordable housing and cultural hub that will help combat the displacement and gentrification of Seattle’s Vietnamese community. The building will provide 70 apartments for families and multigenerational households and include a new Vietnamese Culture and Economic Center for local vendors and community events. Largely informed by the 2020 Little Saigon Action Plan, the Little Saigon Landmark project centers community ownership and identity in all aspects of the building’s design and program offerings.
The Filipino Community of Seattle is leading phase two of a new, seven-story mixed-use building offering 56 units of affordable family housing. Apartments will consist of one-bedroom to three-bedroom units for families making under 30%, 50%, and 60% AMI. In 2024, this is equal to a family of three earning under $40,700, $67,800, and $81,360 a year. The building is adjacent to the Filipino Community Center and phase one of the Filipino Community Village which opened in 2021 with 96 affordable housing units. Commercial space will also be developed for community use, providing direct access to services.
DESC is planning the development of Belmont, a seven-story, 120-unit permanent supportive housing project in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood. Belmont will serve chronically homeless individuals and/or people living with disabilities. Half of the units will be restricted to 30% AMI or individuals earning up to $31,650 a year; the other half will be restricted to 50% AMI or individuals earning up to $52,700 a year. The building will provide onsite supportive services and indoor and outdoor community spaces for residents.
Eligibility requirements
HFP funding programs include:
Transit Oriented Development
Transit oriented development combines affordable housing with easy access to public transit (i.e. Light Rail, RapidRide, Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), Sounder or Sound Transit Express bus station). King County is committed to supporting capital projects that connect people to public transit and meet the housing needs of communities.
Interim Loan Program
Provides low-cost financing for the acquisition of property that will be developed to provide low-income housing, prioritizing projects proposing the development of permanent affordable housing with at least 25 percent of the units for homeless households. Additionally, units must be affordable to households at or below 50 percent of area median income, with homeless units to be at or less than 30 percent of area median income.
Credit Enhancement Program
An initiative to assist in the development of affordable housing. On select projects that meet King County priorities, King County will provide a credit enhancement which reduces the financing costs for housing developments. In exchange for project savings, the developer agrees to set aside affordable units within the project.
Special Needs Funding
HFP also works with other divisions in King County's Department of Community and Human Services and other partners to coordinate planning activities and funding for affordable housing that meets the needs of special populations. Partners include the King County Behavioral Health and Recovery Division, the King County Developmental Disabilities Division, the King County Veteran's Program and King County Regional Homelessness Authority. These partners work with HFP to provide guidance and priorities for developing housing for the special populations that they serve. At various points in time, money may be dedicated to housing for specific special needs populations and administered by HFP.