“CareSource believes that access to affordable housing significantly improves health outcomes, positively impacting individual lives and families, as well as the broader community,” said Maura Klein, state housing strategy lead at CareSource Ohio.
Projects like Unison Health’s Whitney Manor, a permanent supportive housing project in Toledo, and Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corporation’s home buyers assistance program, located throughout 14 Appalachian counties, will benefit from these grants.
The Federal Home Loan Bank of Cincinnati allocates at least 10% of its net income annually to the Affordable Housing Program, according to a press release from CareSource, and this allocation makes housing more affordable for households at or below 80% of the area median income.
A total of 30 Federal Home Loan Bank members received nearly $51.9 million in Affordable Housing Program subsidy to help produce 2,990 units of affordable housing for low to moderate income residents, according to CareSource. Of 56 project awards, 28 support owner-occupied housing and 28 support rental housing.
In terms of affordability, the U.S. News & World Report ranked Ohio in the 16th place out of the 50 states. Under cost of living, Ohio also ranked in 18th place, as well as 25th place for fiscal stability.
Even with those rankings, Ohio is still facing an affordable housing shortage for extremely low income households, according to the National Low Income Housing Coalition, which defines extremely low income as households whose incomes are at or below the poverty guideline or 30% of their area median income.
About 27% of renter households fall are considered to be extremely low income in Ohio, according to the housing coalition, which also estimates there is a shortage of 264,083 rental homes affordable and available for extremely low income renters.
“CareSource is committed to fostering partnerships that drive innovative solutions, including expanding homeownership opportunities, to ensure we effectively meet the diverse needs of our members,” Klein said.
CareSource has been a longtime partner with Huntington Bank on the Federal Home Loan Bank Affordable Housing Program Grants, according to health insurer.
“Huntington Bank has a long-standing history of collaborating with CareSource to advance affordable housing initiatives in Ohio, and we are proud that our common goal of improving people’s lives continues to make an impact across the state,” said Eric Stachler, Federal Home Loan Bank program manager for Huntington.
Since 2020, CareSource has provided more than $40 million dollars in loans to 20 affordable housing partners, including $28 million across the state of Ohio, according to the health insurer.
“For more than 30 years, our Affordable Housing Program has been steadily providing funds to make lasting change in our region by addressing the needs for affordable housing,” said Andy Howell, Federal Home Loan Bank of Cincinnati, president and CEO. “CareSource’s continued commitment to using Affordable Housing Program funds to serve that mission has made a tremendous impact.”
The Federal Home Loan Bank of Cincinnati’s Affordable Housing Program has disbursed more than $458 million in funding since 1990, according to CareSource.
CareSource has more than 35 years of experience in Medicaid managed care and is currently serving more than two million people across more than a dozen states. CareSource boasts an annual revenue of $11.1 billion and employs more than 4,700 people nationwide, which includes about 1,000 in the Dayton region.
For more information on specific awards and details of Affordable Housing Program, visit the Federal Home Loan Bank of Cincinnati website at www.fhlbcin.com.
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