(The Center Square) – Oklahoma is spending $215 million to increase the supply of affordable housing after the state experienced the tenth-highest net domestic migration in the U.S. between 2021 and 2022, according to a draft report on the Oklahoma Housing Finance Authority.
The Oversight Committee for the Legislative Office of Fiscal Transparency reviewed the report Wednesday, which found that the housing market conditions are limiting the impact of OHFA’s housing assistance programs.
The legislature appropriated $215 million for new housing programs in 2023.
“The top line is that rising housing costs mean we can’t help as many people,” said Sen. Julia Kirt, D-Oklahoma City, who sits on the LOFT Oversight Committee. “We know the waitlist for housing vouchers is too long and people are needing to use these vouchers for longer and longer periods of time because there are no other options in their price range. We have a clear need for more housing for individuals and families with very low incomes and those who work anywhere near the minimum wage.”
More than 25,000 Oklahoma residents received housing choice vouchers in 2022, the report said. OHFA distributed just under $60 million in federal funds for the approximately 9,847 vouchers.
The average waiting list time for rental assistance last year was 18 months. The national average was 26 months, according to the report. The report said an estimated 26,291 Oklahomans are on the waiting list for rental assistance.
OHFA proposed three new programs under the Oklahoma Housing Stability Program: The Homebuilder Subsidy for Homeownership, which would provide a zero-interest loan to encourage development of single-family owner-occupied homes, a Consumer Downpayment and Closing Cost Assistance Program to offer forgivable loans directly to homebuyers and a Developer Subsidy for Rental Housing, a zero-interest loan to develop rental units, according to the report.
“Historically, OHFA has focused primarily on improving the supply of – and access to – low-income housing,” the report said. “This includes a focus on financing the development of low-income housing. However, Oklahoma is also in need of housing that is affordable for its workforce population, whose income exceeds Section 8 income limits but is not sufficient to afford market rate housing.”
Oklahoma has approximately 4,700 move-in ready houses available to purchase listed between $50,000 and $300,000, according to LOFT’s review of public housing stock.
“Oklahoma is feeling the effects of a nationwide decline in housing construction, resulting in the demand for affordable housing outpacing the available stock. Oklahoma needs additional housing stock for both rental and owner-occupied residences,” the report said.
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