Affordable Housing Resources

​The affordable housing resource list is a centralized place to find the best and most applicable funding sources for your jurisdiction’s housing needs. As a part of the Models and Guidelines (M&G) website, the resource list is divided into the following funding and assistance categories; Federal, State, Local/County, Foundational, and Technical Assistance. To add or suggest another housing resource, please contact Joe Griffiths at joseph.griffiths@maryland.gov.

The resource list not only demonstrates how funds can be utilized in the implementation phase but can also aid as planning strategies are being developed. If so desired, goals, objectives, policies, and strategies can be pulled directly from the resources. Many grant funders also look for specific references to the type of funding a jurisdiction will leverage while considering the grant being pursued. As a jurisdiction develops specific ideas and concepts for improvements to help elevate the importance of housing, their comprehensive plan will be more relevant to more grant opportunities.

Additonal External Resources​

The Maryland Department of Planning (Planning) aims to build upon existing resources and the work of established agencies and organizations in the fields of housing planning, affordable housing development, and project funding. Department staff are not housing planning experts but do have specific insights on how successful strategies used elsewhere can be applied to the unique comprehensive planning structure and requirements of Maryland. Where applicable, the M&G suggest that Maryland jurisdictions consider outside resources while developing their housing elements and implementation strategies.

Note: Planning is sharing these resources to provide Maryland’s jurisdictions with as many different sources of information as possible to address housing planning needs. By including them in this M&G does not, however, indicate the department’s approval of all the suggestions they contain, nor mean that Planning is aligned with an organization in any way.

Some examples include:

• U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Removal of Regulatory Barriers: Self-assessment questionnaire that jurisdictions can use to evaluate any local regulatory impediments to housing development.
• Local Housing Solutions: Provides resources to help cities, towns and counties develop comprehensive and balanced local housing strategies that enhance affordability, protect low-income residents from displacement, and foster inclusive neighborhoods. Launched in October of 2018, the non-partisan site was developed through the National Community of Practice on Local Housing Policy.
• National Low Income Housing Coalition: Organization dedicated to providing research, data, and guidance for the preservation and development of affordable housing. Includes information on federal housing spending, fair housing, disaster housing recovery, housing and criminal justice, Native American housing, rural housing, and housing tax credits, among other topics.
• National Housing Preservation Database: An address-level inventory of federally assisted rental housing in the U.S. Intended as a central depository data that is otherwise housed by individual agencies and departments. It is intended as a resource for those interested in preserving public and affordable housing in their community. Users can aggregate the data to any level of geography that they would like to without a data license free of cost.
• H + T Affordability Index: Index and maps, available down to the Census Block Group level, that account for the combined costs of housing and transportation. Transportation is often the second-highest household expenditure. This resource helps a user understand the full picture of affordability for a chosen location.