Letter from the Board Chair and the Executive Director

Inspiring Hope & Creating Housing Opportunities

The year 2021 produced one of the hottest housing markets in recent memory. Nationally, home prices increased by 18.8% in a year-over-year market analysis – representing the highest gains in 34 years of collecting this type of data according to S&P Global1. Florida had two of the hottest markets on the list –Tampa (29.4%) and Miami (27.3%). That is great news for Florida’s homeowners and ensures these households have substantial equity in their investments. Markets like this highlight why people are so eager to call Florida home. This is one of many reasons why thousands of our friends and family move here every day. Florida is a desirable place to live and work – sunshine, friendly communities, great employment opportunities, the hope of something new. However, in markets like these, lower- and moderate-income households feel the squeeze when it comes to housing demand. As prices go up – in both rental housing and homeownership – it becomes difficult for families to adjust if they are not seeing similar increases in their wages. It also adds additional strain for seniors who are living on a fixed income. These are challenging situations, at best, and our investment in attainable and workforce housing will no doubt be crucial for the longterm outlook of our state. The idea of our children facing housing instability is heartbreaking, which is why Florida Housing is so grateful to partner with teams in Alachua, Bay, Charlotte, Hernando, and Santa Rosa Counties to continue the Housing Stability for Homeless Schoolchildren Initiative. This program provides tenant-based rental assistance to families experiencing homelessness identified by the school district and works closely with the public housing authority and a case management provider to move these families into permanent housing and wrap them with support to address their unique needs. Last year, over 100 families received assistance to help them stabilize in a permanent setting, so the parents could focus on increasing household income and support their children academically. Ensuring that affordable housing remains affordable is a critical component to the mission of Florida Housing. Last year, Florida Housing used a multitude of funding opportunities to collaborate with its developer partners (both for-profit and non-profit developers) to create, rehabilitate, and preserve more than 10,000 affordable rental units. Depending on the resources used in these multifamily developments, the units will remain affordable for up to 50 years – ensuring long-term affordability for our neighbors. Additionally, we were able to help 6,800 low- and moderate-income households achieve the dream of homeownership through our homebuyer loan and down payment assistance programs. Another major project we undertook last year was a research initiative that will help pave the way for future investments in affordable housing for our most vulnerable neighbors. Throughout 2021, Florida Housing staff and an advisory council of stakeholders worked closely with industry experts – the Corporation for Supportive Housing – to conduct a statewide assessment focused on the housing needs of persons experiencing homelessness and persons with special needs2,3. This report will help Florida better understand specific housing needs through an analysis of point-in-time housing (in)stability data and financial modeling to determine the total costs for creating these housing opportunities. As you can tell, we remain committed to fulfilling our mission of providing innovative, measurable, data-driven, and fiscally sustainable solutions to address affordable housing needs throughout our great state. We’re excited to share the work Florida Housing achieved in 2021, and hope you’ll join us in creating meaningful opportunities and solutions in the years to come.

Ron Lieberman Board Chair Trey Price Executive Director

1 S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Index Reports 18.8% Annual Home Price Gain for Calendar 2021: https://www.spglobal.com/spdji/en/documents/indexnews/ announcements/20220222-1450062/1450062_cshomeprice-release-0222.pdf 2 Florida Assessment of Housing for Homeless and Special Needs Populations: https://www.floridahousing.org/programs/special-needs-housing-overview/floridaassessment-of-housing-for-homeless-and-special-needs-populations 3 Person with special needs is defined in s. 420.0004(13), F.S. as “an adult person requiring independent living services in order to maintain housing or develop independent living skills and who has a disabling condition; a young adult formerly in foster care who is eligible for services under s. 409.1451(5); a survivor of domestic violence as defined in s. 741.28; or a person receiving benefits under the Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) program or the Supplemental Security

Income (SSI) program or from veterans’ disability benefits.”