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57 February 2025 J O U R N A L February 2025 » as the number of unhoused older Americans grows, providing affordable and supportive housing for our nation's seniors is more important than ever," said Assistant Secretary for Housing and Federal Housing Commissioner Ju- lia Gordon. "The Section 202 program is a cornerstone of our efforts to address this critical need." Through the development of 1,887 units nationwide, nonprofits were able to empower and uplift the elderly and the children under their care thanks to funding from the Fiscal Years 2022 and 2023 grants. Service Coordinators in Multifam- ily Housing Program Awards Nearly $40 million in funding will be distributed to 104 grantees through the Service Coordinator in Multifamily Housing (SCMF) program to cover the salaries and related benefits of service coordinator professionals at 107 afford- able multifamily residences. Service coordinators provide services to enable people with impairments and residents 62 years of age and older age in place and live independently. These resources include programs for health and well-being, chances for social interaction, and help with money management. Tenants are free to select the services that best suit their needs. Additionally, service coordinators assist property management in better com- prehending the requirements of their resident base. "These funds help enhance the quality of life for these residents by bringing appropriate community-based services within reach, enabling residents to live independently with dignity," said Ethan Handelman, Dep- uty Assistant Secretary of Multifamily Housing Programs. FHFA RELEASES FINAL RULE ON AFFORDABLE HOUSING GOALS T he Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) released a final rule that updates the procedure for requiring an action plan in the event that an Enterprise fails to meet specific goals and sets new affordable housing targets for the loan purchases of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the Enterprises) over the next three years. The housing goals, which are typically established by FHFA reg- ulations every three years, establish yearly benchmarks for the Enterprises' acquisitions in 2025–2027 to promote fair housing access for low-income families and families in low-income communities. "The affordable housing goals bet- ter enable the Enterprises to effectively advance their missions and support housing finance markets in a safe and sound manner," said Sandra L. Thomp- son, FHFA Director. "It is critical that the Enterprises meet these goals, as required by law and regulation." The benchmark level or real market level of loans for each category shown in the table below must be met by the Enterprises in order to accomplish the single-family housing goals. Using data from the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA), the real market level is calculated retroactively for the year. To assist evaluate whether an En- terprise must create a housing strate- gy—an action plan that outlines how it will improve its performance—if it fails to meet specific single-family housing targets during the 2025–2027 cycle, the final rule also creates additional "mea- surement buffers." If the Enterprise doesn't reach a target and the difference between the Enterprise's performance and the market level is more than the buffer specified in the final rule, a housing plan might be necessary. To achieve the multifamily housing targets, the Enterprises must reach benchmark levels. The percentage of units in multifamily buildings with loans that the enterprise has acquired that are affordable to renters in the cor- responding income categories serves as the benchmark for the low-income and extremely low-income targets. The percentage of units in small (5–50 unit) multifamily properties that are affordable for low-income families is measured by a different subgoal. Three single-family home purchase goals and one refinance target must be set by the FHFA. Two more single-fam- ily home purchase subgoals have been created by FHFA specifically for low-in- come and minority census tracts. The following are the definitions of the single-family refinance goal and the single-family home purchase goals and subgoals: Single-Family Goals (percentage of overall qualified single-family loan purchases) Single-Family Goals Benchmark Level 2025–2027 Low-Income Home Purchase Goal 25% Very Low-Income Home Purchase Goal 6% Minority Census Tracts Home Purchase Subgoal 12% Low-Income Census Tracts Home Purchase Subgoal 4% Low-Income Refinance Goal 26% Multifamily Goals (percentage of overall qualified units) Multifamily Goals Benchmark Level 2025–2027 Low-Income Goal 61% Very Low-Income Goal 14% Low-Income Small (5–50 unit) Subgoal 2%