MS Affordable Housing Earns $350M HUD Nod

HATTIESBURG, MS-A $350-million affordable housing plan, awaiting HUD’s OK since May 30, has been approved. The go-ahead opens the door for the state to bid construction of about 12,000 affordable housing units in a mix of single- and multifamily developments.

The funding is coming from the $5.4-billion Community Development Block Grant assistance that HUD allocated to Mississippi following Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The money is geared toward building affordable housing to replace what was damaged or destroyed during Hurricane Katrina. Because the majority of destroyed homes belonged to residents earning less than 120% of the area media income, the grant is dedicated to rebuilding and repairing units in mixed-income neighborhoods.

The state intends to create mixed-income communities through market-rate rental units and affordable rates, aimed at a range of income levels for multifamily and single-family dwellings.