Native American Housing Initiatives (Single Family)

Purpose

Native American Housing Initiatives is a broadly defined technical assistance and capacity building program of MFA's Housing Opportunity Fund. It was created in 1993 to promote the development of affordable owner occupied, rental or special needs residential facilities on Native American Trust Lands in New Mexico. Ongoing Tribal commitments to the production of affordable housing serve as the foundation for a highly collaborative process that is essential to the program's success. Priority is placed on projects that serve under served communities, maximize leverage, and achieve commitments from a variety of participants.

The services are provided directly by MFA staff as well as through a partnership arrangement with The Enterprise Foundation. Services include technical assistance, financial packaging for affordable housing developments, training, and on-site collaboration with tribal agencies. Specific services provided to date have included:

NAHASDA plan development;Training programs on community planning, housing management, and other topics as needed by the Tribes; Project-specific planning, financial packaging and application preparation; Ongoing development consulting throughout all phases of project development; Home ownership counseling and home buyer fairs; Consultation on adoption of tribal resolutions to allow for use of federal single-family mortgage programs, and; Other kinds of assistance tailored to Tribes' individual needs.

The program is also intended to leverage other public and private funds, and services are to be provided in a way that will expand the future housing development capacity of New Mexico's tribal housing providers.

Eligible Participants

New Mexico tribes and tribal agencies and nonprofit organizations working on Trust Land programs or projects are all eligible for assistance.

How To Participate

Requests for assistance can be made informally by contacting the MFA. Scheduling will depend on current workload and prior commitments to other participating Tribes.

Program Contact

Linda Bridge
Director, Housing Development
Main: (505) 843-6880
Direct: (505) 767-2262
Toll free in NM (800) 444-6880