HUD Housing Grants

HUD is a large source of public funding for housing grants.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) provides housing grants to state and local government, including U.S. territories, as well as private non-profit organizations. The grants for states include annual block grants distributed on a formula basis and competitive grants. Although there are a number of grants available annually for private organizations, the competition for receiving these grants is intense and an organization may have to apply several times before being accepted.

Community Development Block Grant

Started in 1974, the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program provides grants to all states and hundreds of local communities for housing and job creation. The funds are intended to primarily benefit people with low and moderate incomes. The funds can also be used for preventing and eliminating blighted areas, and for fulfilling urgent community development needs. The funds are distributed annually on a formula basis in two categories: "entitlement funds" that are sent directly to urban areas and "small city funds" that are given to states to distribute to rural areas. To qualify for CDBG funds, applicants are required to obtain plans and ideas from local residents and organizations that address an urgent community need, thus giving the grant program a bottom-up approach toward addressing the issues of poverty and blight.

Fair Housing Initiatives Program

HUD's Fair Housing Initiatives Program (FHIP) provides grants to public and private organizations that work to eliminate and prevent discrimination in housing, as mandated by the Fair Housing Act. The grants are used for education and outreach activities to educate the public about fair housing rights. Grants are also used fund local government agencies to handle complaints of housing discrimination.

Competitive Grants

HUD administers a number of competitive grants that are available to eligible government agencies, communities or private non-profit organizations. The best source of information on these grants when they become available is the website Grants.gov, which is a centralized database for over 1,000 federal grant programs, including HUD housing grants. The database can be searched for a specific federal agency like HUD, and information will be provided on current grant opportunities, such as HUD's Assisted Housing Stability and Energy and Green Retrofit. For those organizations or local agencies that become grantees of HUD, a special Web page is maintained by HUD that provides all grantees of HUD funds with helpful information and links regarding HUD grants.

References

• HUD.gov: Community Block Grant Programs
• HUD.gov. Fair Housing Initiatives Program
• Grants.gov: Agency Search: HUD Grants Available
• Assisted Housing Stability and Energy and Green Retrofit
• HUD.gov: Grantees/Non-profits

Resources

• HUD.gov: Working with HUD