(Washington, DC) On Friday, April 29, 2011, the DC Office of Planning (OP) released a Request for Applications (RFA) for up to $200,000 in matching homeownership grants, to be administered by qualified employer(s) based in the District of Columbia. In partnership with selected DC employers, the Live Near Your Work (LNYW) pilot program will provide grants for down-payment and closing cost assistance to individual employees. OP will match employer contributions (up to $6,000 per participating employee) to attract and retain DC residents, with the primary purpose of encouraging employees to live close to their place of employment and/or transit.
The RFA is currently available on OP’s website, planning.dc.gov, and on the District Grants Clearinghouse page. Employers will be selected via a competitive application process based upon their ability to administer the pilot program, offer homebuyer education, and provide matching grants for their employees. Applications for consideration in the first round of selection are due June 17, 2011. Applications received after this deadline will be considered in the second round of selection, with an October 7, 2011 deadline, if three partners are not selected in the first round. Depending on the success of the pilot program, future funding may become available to expand the LNYW program.
OP will host a pre-application question and answer session with interested employers on May 24, 2011, at 2pm. The meeting will take place at 1100 4th Street SW, Suite E650, in the Large Conference Room.
For information on LNYW, contact Art Rodgers at [email protected] or Kimberly Driggins at [email protected] or call 202.442.7600