The Division of Housing is continuing its coordinated effort with the Colorado Housing and Finance Authority (CHFA), and local municipalities to increase the production of Supportive Housing (SH), also known as Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH), for extremely low-income people experiencing homelessness with complex barriers to housing stability.
PSH is decent, safe, affordable, community-based housing that provides tenants with all the rights and responsibilities of tenancy, tenancy support services, and links to other intensive supportive services using best practices for SH, particularly the Housing First model, as well as Harm Reduction and Trauma-Informed approaches. This approach is designed to allow tenants to live as independently as possible.
Relevant Dates
| Application Response Round | Division of Housing LOI Due | RFA Application Due |
|---|---|---|
- 9% LIHTC Competitive - Any non-Competitive LIHTC - Any non-LIHTC - Tenant-Based Applications | December 13, 2024 | February 3, 2025 |
- Any non-Competitive LIHTC - Any non-LIHTC - Tenant-Based Applications (Pending Availability) | April 1, 2025 | May 2, 2025 |
- 4% & State LIHTC Competitive - Any non-Competitive LIHTC - Any non-LIHTC - Tenant-Based Applications (Pending Availability) | June 2, 2025 | August 1, 2025 |
- Any non-Competitive LIHTC - Any non-LIHTC - Tenant-Based Applications (Pending Availability) | October 1, 2025 | November 3, 2025 |
Application Details
Applicants should respond to this RFA for any Supportive Housing project in the State of Colorado that intends to apply to DOH, Denver Housing Authority (DHA) and/or the City and County of Denver’s Department of Housing Stability (HOST), for any of the following:
- Project-Based Rental Assistance
- HUD-Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH)
- State Housing Vouchers (SHVs)
- Section 811 Project Rental Assistance (811 PRA)
- HOST Funded Rental Assistance
- Tenant-Based Rental Assistance
- State Housing Vouchers
- Tenancy Support Services (TSS) funding from DOH or HOST
- Loan or Grant Assistance for Affordable Housing Development from DOH or HOST and/or DHA's D3 (DHA Delivers for Denver) Bond Program
- New - Through the 2025 PSH RFA 9% Pilot, DOH will make conditional determinations for up to a cumulative $10,000,000 in Affordable Housing Development Funding to projects applying for 9% Tax Credits. Applicants may request up to $60,000 per PSH unit.
The 2025 PSH RFA 9% Pilot is intended to be responsive to feedback from stakeholders on the need for greater alignment between the resources provided through the PSH RFA and DOH’s Grant and Loan application process.
Participating in the 2025 PSH RFA is not required for supportive housing projects applying to the Colorado Housing and Financing Authority (CHFA) for Low-Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC), state Affordable Housing Tax Credit (state AHTC), Permanent Loans, of Private Activity Bonds. However, Supportive housing projects applying to CHFA for Tax Credits are encouraged by CHFA and DOH to submit an application through the PSH RFA. Doing so will provide CHFA and the applicant with DOH’s evaluation of the project’s implementation of the supportive housing program model. This includes key insights relating to the implementation of the supportive housing program model, the quality of supportive housing services, and the strength of the supportive services plan and budget.
All funding decisions for the bulleted list above will use DOH’s review of applicant responses to this RFA as part of their broader application and review process. DOH will award Project-Based Rental Assistance, TSS funding, and resources allocated through the 2025 PSH RFA 9% Pilot directly from this RFA in the form of conditional determinations. All conditional determinations from DOH are dependent upon applicants securing the necessary financing to move forward with the development process.
DOH will summarize its findings for applications in a Project Application Review Report. The report lists the amount and type of resources conditionally determined through the PSH RFA, includes the score determined through a publicly available rubric, and ranks projects between three available tiers. As applicable, DOH will also provide applicants with a Pre-Award Letter detailing conditional Loan or Grant funding determinations.
Applicants not applying for Tax Credits (including Tenant-Based State Housing Voucher applicants) that do not receive a Tier #1 status will be moved for review through subsequent review rounds where they will compete with any new applications that come on the remaining/subsequent rounds for any remaining resources. Applicants whose applications roll forward to subsequent rounds have the ability to modify and/or resubmit application materials.
Tenant-Based State Housing Vouchers and associated TSS funding will be directly awarded through this RFA but will not be considered conditional determinations as these project-types do not rely on development financing and are expected to move directly into the contracting process.
Resources
2024-25 Annual Request for Applications (RFA) for the Creation of Supportive Housing
Webinar #1: Tenant-Based Applicants - November 19, 2024 at 2:00 p.m. MT
Webinar #2: Project-Based Applicants - November 27, 2024 at 1:45 p.m. MT
Questions
For additional information, please contact Zac Schaffner at Zac.Schaffner@state.co.us