Perspectives

TEN 21, Muskegon, Michigan

The Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act (AHCIA) Introduced to the Senate and the House

By HDJ

A bipartisan effort to strengthen affordable housing In the United States Is making
its way through Congress. The bipartisan effort, the Affordable Housing Credit
Improvement Act (AHCIA), has several key provisions that would expand the Low-
Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC). Since its inception in the 1980s, LIHTC has
created and preserved affordable housing throughout the country.


The AHCIA is an effort to strengthen LIHTC in several key areas:

  • Increase the number of credits available to states by 50 percent for the next two years.
  • Make permanent the temporary 12.5 percent increase in tax credits available for low-income housing secured in 2018.
  • Allow states to maximize affordable housing development by lowering the threshold of private activity bond financing from 50 to 25 percent, required to trigger the maximum amount of 4 percent housing credits available to individual properties.
  • Mitigate NIMBY opposition by removing outdated requirements and leveling the playing field.


The AHCIA was introduced to the Senate as S.1557 and the House as H.R. 3238.


HDJ is a leading national design firm providing architectural and engineering
expertise to support the affordable housing industry throughout the United States.
HDJ’s diverse portfolio includes successful outcomes with adaptive reuse renovation,
acquisition rehab, new construction, historic preservation and RAD.

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