The Rental Revolving Loan Fund (RRLF) and Community Housing Accelerator (CHA) are two related programs that provide low-interest loans to developers of middle-income rental housing.
About the Rental Revolving Loan Fund (RRLF)
The Rental Revolving Loan Fund was created as part of Vermont's Housing Made for Everyone (HOME) Act, which was signed into law on June 5, 2023. The Act created RRLF to incentivize the creation and preservation of rental housing for middle-income households earning between 65%-150% of the Area Median Income (AMI). The program provides developers and builders with a subordinate loan for up to 35% of the development cost per rental unit for middle-income households.
VHFA held forums about RRLF around the state in fall 2023, made draft program materials available for public feedback in November 2023, and opened applications for RRLF in March 2024. VHFA received strong interest in the program, with applications totaling more than twice the available funds. In June 2024, the VHFA Board of Commissioners awarded all currently available RRLF funds. The awards will fund development of 265 rental homes in nine communities across Vermont.
Future rounds of RRLF will be dependent on additional funds becoming available for this program through Legislative appropriations or other sources.
About the Community Housing Accelerator (CHA)
The high level of interest in RRLF from small-scale and emerging developers, and in underserved Vermont communities, helped spur the creation of the Community Housing Accelerator (CHA). CHA is funded by philanthropic investments, VHFA’s partnership with the Vermont State Treasurer’s Local Investment Advisory Committee (LIAC), and VHFA funds.
CHA is a subset of RRLF, and will use many of the same program materials, including updated Guidelines, Application, and Pro Forma. CHA differs from RRLF in that it has slightly different award priorities, including a focus on smaller-scale developments with between 4 and 20 units. More detail is available in the program Guidelines.
The schedule for CHA is as follows:
- November 8, 2024: Applications open
- January 8, 2025: Applications close
- March 20, 2025: Anticipated awards
Program materials - RRLF and CHA:
- RRLF-CHA Guidelines (updated November 8, 2024)
- RRLF-CHA Application (updated November 8, 2024)
- RRLF-CHA Pro Forma/Budget (updated November 8, 2024)
- Affordability thresholds matrix (used to determine RRLF and CHA rent levels)
Program materials - CHA only:
- CHA Technical Assistance Program (published November 8, 2024)
Program materials - RRLF only:
- RRLF Employer Survey (updated March 28, 2024)
- RRLF FAQ (published March 1, 2024)
- RRLF Post-Closing Compliance Guide (published July 10, 2024)
- RRLF Use Agreement (updated July 31, 2024)
- RRLF During Construction one-pager (published August 22, 2024)
- RRLF Flow of Funds worksheet (published August 22, 2024)
For more information:
- Press release: VHFA Awards $10 Million In First Year of New Rental Revolving Loan Fund
- Recording of public meeting about the RRLF draft guidelines that VHFA held on Nov. 20, 2023
- Slides from public meeting (PDF) about RRLF draft guidelines that VHFA held on Nov. 20, 2023
- Text of the Housing Made for Everyone (HOME) Act (PDF), with information about RRLF beginning on p.57
- Housing development funding forums that VHFA held in fall 2023 (including recorded presentation)
Other resources:
- Vermont Department of Housing and Community Development's "Homes for All Toolkit," with information and resources for small-scale home builders and developers