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The Office of Housing has invested millions of dollars in Seattle's neighborhoods, meeting the needs of first-time homebuyers; homeowners struggling with repair bills; lower-wage workers looking for affordable housing; and those with no home at all.

• Through two funding rounds each year, Office of Housing staff analyze multifamily housing proposals, funding solid projects that best serve the community’s needs – be it affordable rental units or housing for the homeless.
  
  
• The City provides up to $45,000 in low-interest deferred payment loans to first-time home buyers.
  
  
• On-site conservation and construction experts identify energy-use and home repair needs for low-income customers, and then we provide both low-interest loans and grants to help cover energy conservation and home improvement expenses.
  
  
• Our staff advocates for state and local legislation that will help create more affordable housing
  for all.
  
  
• We manage and market a Multifamily Tax Exemption Program in 17 target neighborhoods, requiring a portion of units in new rental projects that receive tax incentives to be affordable to Seattle’s low-to-middle income workforce.
  
  
• We oversee all city funded projects to ensure that they serve the people they are intended to serve, are well-maintained and financially sound.
  
  
• Our staff promotes green building principles, offering training and guidance on creating environmentally sound proposals (in 2002 the Office of Housing created the country’s first single set of comprehensive criteria to develop sustainable rental housing for low-income people).

For more information on Office of Housing, see the detailed information in our complete 2006 Annual Report; in the Housing Levy Impact 2006 Report of Accomplishments; and on this web site, or call us direct at (206) 684-0721.

We’re listening to the community.