Welcome to the AHP blog and FAQ, where FHLB posts questions that applicants have submitted and their answers as they relate to the Affordable Housing Program. Please peruse the list below and refer to the Affordable Housing Program Implementation Plan for information about applying for Affordable Housing Program funds. If you have a question that you would like answered, please email AHPApplication@fhlbcin.com, include your Application ID in the email if your question is application-specific, and allow 24 hours for response by a staff member at FHLB.
What is a "Member" versus a project "Sponsor?"
A "Member" for an AHP application is an owner of FHLB Cincinnati capital stock that is willing to submit an application for AHP funds on behalf of a project owner or developer. A "Sponsor" is the owner of a rental project or the overseer of an ownership project that will put together the application or coordinate the application and project’s completion. Although a "Member" might be said to "sponsor" an application by submitting it, be sure to understand these terms from FHLB’s perspective, because a "Sponsor" and a "Member" play two different roles in an AHP application.
How do I find a member for the project? Can I work with my local bank?
All banks that are members of the FHLB Cincinnati can partner with you for an AHP project. You can find out who is a member of FHLB Cincinnati using our Member Directory. Any member can support your project even if the location where you bank is not listed in the Member Directory .
Are assisted living facilities eligible for AHP?
AHP funds cannot be used in projects that require a Certificate of Need from the state agency regulating health care facilities or that require licensure as an Intermediate Care Facility (ICF) or as an ICF/MR facility. Typically, assisted living facilities require licensure.
Can there be more than one member and or sponsor associated with a project?
Yes, FHLB Cincinnati will allow up to two members and/or two sponsors on a project.
Can I apply to more than one FHLB for the same project?
Yes, you may apply to more than one FHLB, but you must state that you are applying to a different bank in the application to FHLB Cincinnati.
- If you are applying to two different FHLBs for the same gap, the application will be withdrawn from whichever FHLB has yet to announce AHP awards upon an award announcement for the project from another FHLB.
- If you are applying to two different FHLBs for two different gaps, then those gaps must be clearly seen on the development budget. The other FHLB funds will be treated like any other funding source. We must be able to clearly see that the project could not move forward without funds from both FHLBs.
Can my project be under construction when I apply for AHP funds?
Yes, your project can be under construction, but you cannot have received a certificate of occupancy or other documentation showing that the project is complete prior to the award of funds from FHLB Cincinnati.
Can AHP be used for manufactured housing?
Yes, funds can be used. However, the home must be affixed to a permanent foundation and taxed as real estate.
Do I need to have all funding committed at the time of application?
No, it is not required that all funding be committed at the time of AHP application. However, you must know what funding sources will be used for the project. You cannot add “TBD” as a funding source in the AHP application, which must show that funding sources equal uses/project costs.
In a homeless shelter or transitional housing project in which beds are the units, do children's beds count as units or can they be part of a household?
To make its determination, FHLB looks at how frequently the beds will be occupied. For example, if a shelter project has a room that can hold 10 beds, and the 10 beds will be consistently filled, the room contains 10 units/households regardless of the age(s) of the people who occupy the beds. If the property manager will move beds around in the property to accommodate the number of children in a household at any given time, the room only contains as many units/beds as will always occupy the room, in which case the children are part of the unit or household and not stand-alone units in a project.
Will FHLB accept digital signatures on documents prepared by FHLB?
FHLB will accept digital signatures on documents we generate (Terms and Conditions for Members or Sponsors and Memorandums of Understanding). Further details can be found in OASYS. Please note that FHLB will not accept documentation submitted outside of OASYS, which closes to new applications at 5:00 P.M. Eastern on Friday, July 21.