Moody’s Investors Service has upgraded the Vermont Housing Finance Agency’s (VHFA) Issuer Credit Rating (ICR) from A2 to A1. The upgrade is based on the Agency’s consistently strong financial performance and overall high-quality assets. Moody’s ICR is an assessment of the overall, general credit strength of the Agency as opposed to an assessment of the likelihood of timely repayment on any specific bond or other debt issue of the Agency. Moody’s A1 rating places VHFA in the top tier of credit rating levels which are collectively called “investment grade” by financial market participants. VHFA’s ratings on specific bond issues are all in the upper investment grade tiers.
The credit rating upgrade from Moody’s comes at a time when the high cost and scarce supply of housing in Vermont makes finding affordable housing difficult or impossible for many low- and moderate-income Vermonters. As Chris Flannery, Chief Financial Officer for VHFA describes it, “VHFA’s strong credit ratings translate directly to a lower cost of funds for the Agency which in turn allows us to provide cheaper financing for first time homebuyers and developers of affordable housing.”
For Vermonters stuck in between needing and being able to afford decent housing, the upgrade is good news. The State of Vermont Housing Needs Assessment (pdf) released in 2024 indicates a significant shortage in affordable rental homes and homes for sale throughout the state. The A1 ICR strengthens the Agency’s ability to finance the development of more low- and moderate-income housing statewide.
VHFA is a non-profit agency established in 1974 to finance and promote affordable, safe, and decent housing opportunities for low- and moderate-income Vermonters. Since its inception, the Agency has helped approximately 31,000 Vermont households with affordable mortgages and financed the development of approximately 9,000 affordable rental apartments.
For more information about VHFA, visit www.vhfa.org. For more information about affordable housing statistics and data in Vermont, visit www.housingdata.org.