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Financial strength, outperformance of peer agencies and strong management team among reasons for higher rating

Washington, D.C., May 10, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The District of Columbia Housing Finance Agency’s (DCHFA) credit rating was upgraded by Standard & Poor’s (S&P) on April 21, 2023 from A+ to AA-. As DCHFA continuously strives to increase the supply of affordable housing in the District of Columbia, this upgrade shows the Agency is showing consistent financial results year over year.

“As the District’s population continues to grow and local market-rate housing costs climb, it’s a pivotal time for DCHFA to receive a rating upgrade, as a main financier of affordable housing,” stated Christopher E. Donald, Executive Director/CEO, DCHFA. “DCHFA has worked diligently over the last several years to improve our financial situation by earning stable net income and building the strength of our balance sheet, which has enabled this ratings upgrade. The implications of this rating upgrade are a direct link to our mission of financing affordable housing units in the District of Columbia. The overall economics of the Agency’s transactions improves with higher ratings which is good for the developer, the renter and the District of Columbia as it enables more units to be financed.”  

S&P gave four main reasons for the upgrade, including:

• Financial strength, as measured by nearly $167 million in equity, net equity-to-assets ratio of 27.5 percent in fiscal year 2022 and 25.6 percent on a five-year average.
• Above-average profitability compared with that of peers, measured by a five-year average return on average assets of 2.8 percent, and net interest margin (NIM) of 0.8 percent and low-risk asset base, which consists of mortgages either insured by the government and private mortgage insurance providers or backed by Ginnie Mae, Fannie Mae, or Freddie Mac mortgage-backed securities (MBS).
• Strong liquidity, with a short-term investments-to-total assets ratio of 22.6 percent, and total loans-to-total assets ratio of 37.7 percent in fiscal year 2022; and
• Strong management team and board members, with a track record of adapting the Agency's programs through strategic initiatives that increased the Agency's asset base through difficult circumstances.

S&P’s outlook for the Agency states, “We believe DCHFA's strategic initiatives have and will continue to lead to stabilized financial ratios and will position the Agency well to maintain its credit quality even during a downturn. Therefore, we do not expect to change the rating within the two-year outlook period.”

_The District of Columbia Housing Finance Agency is an S&P AA- rated issuer, serving Washington, D.C.’s residents for more than 40 years. __The Agency’s mission is to advance the District of Columbia’s housing priorities; the Agency invests in affordable housing and neighborhood development, which provides __pathways for D.C. residents to transform their lives. We accomplish our mission by delivering the most efficient __and effective sources of capital available in the market to finance rental housing and to create homeownership _opportunities. The Agency operates from a core set of values:  Leadership*Excellence*Community Focus*Integrity*Collaboration *Innovation

WASHINGTON, DC - The District of Columbia Housing Finance Agency (DCHFA) has issued $23.1 million in tax exempt bonds for the construction of Alabama Avenue Apartments in Ward 8. The Agency underwrote $22 million in federal and local Low Income Housing Tax Credit equity for the development of this 100 percent affordable community.

“As construction continues to increase in Ward 8, DCHFA is committed to ensuring that long-term residents are able to remain in their communities,” stated Christopher E. Donald, Executive Director/CEO, DCHFA. “Alabama Avenue Apartments will make that possible for 86 individuals and families, and ultimately get us closer to Mayor Muriel Bowser’s goal of 12,000 new affordable homes by 2025.”

Alabama Avenue Apartments will help address the need for family-sized units in the District by including 26 three-bedroom apartment homes. There will also be 28 two-bedrooms and 32 one-bedrooms. Nine units will be reserved for residents earning up to 60 percent of the area median income (AMI) and 59 units will be reserved for those earning up to 50 percent AMI. The remaining 18 units are designated Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) reserved for residents earning 30 percent or less AMI, and they will receive Local Rent Supplement Program operating subsidy. 

Enterprise Community Development, Inc. and Durrani Development Corporation are the developers of this community, with a total development cost of $49.2 million. Additional funding for this project came in the form of a $12.9 million Housing Production Trust Fund loan from the D.C. Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD). 

Alabama Avenue Apartments will be constructed in the Garfield Heights neighborhood. This community is located less than two miles from the Congress Heights Metro Station. It is in walking distance to The Crest at Skyland Town Center which includes a grocery store, pharmacy and other retail. Community amenities will include a laundry facility, bike storage, fitness room, a flexible community space on each floor, and on-site property management and PSH offices.

Through its Multifamily Lending and Neighborhood Investment and Capital Markets divisions, DCHFA issues tax-exempt mortgage revenue bonds to lower the developers’ costs of acquiring, constructing and rehabilitating rental housing. The Agency offers private for-profit and non-profit developers low-cost predevelopment, construction and permanent financing that supports the new construction, acquisition, and rehabilitation of affordable rental housing in the District.