Smith NMTC Announces Closing of $7M NMTC Allocation to Support Passaic County Habitat for Humanity
The Smith NMTC Associates team is excited to announce the closing of a $7 million New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) transaction in support of the Passaic County Habitat for Humanity. The project was supported by investments from U.S. Bancorp Impact Finance and the Community Loan Fund of New Jersey, Inc.
About Passaic County Habitat for Humanity
Since 1984, Passaic County Habitat for Humanity has served families and individuals in need of housing support in the greater Paterson region of New Jersey.
Driven by the belief that safe and stable homes are the foundation of successful communities, Passaic County Habitat combines affordable homeownership with community redevelopment efforts to revitalize distressed neighborhoods—creating communities people want to call home.
Fueled by this vision, Passaic County Habitat has developed over 285 new homes and renovated an additional 40 homes.
About the Project
With a $7 million NMTC allocation, Passaic County Habitat will develop approximately 14 homes—a continuation of their historic work in two Paterson neighborhoods as well as a new project in the City of Passaic.
4th Ward
Twelve of these homes will be located in Passaic County Habitat’s 4th Ward focus area. This targets the most challenging blocks for concentrated homeownership—and Passaic County Habitat has a goal of having 75 Habitat homes in the area. This initiative first began in 2012 and is expected to be completed with this transaction.
All 12 homes will be single-family homes with three bedrooms, one-and-a-half bathrooms, a kitchen, a living room, and a den.
City of Passaic
The other two homes will be developed in the City of Passaic and will be the first of its kind mixed-use redevelopment effort. These units will merge homeownership with a Veteran and Community Program Center, developed on the site of a former Passaic VFW Hall.
The two homes developed in the City of Passaic will be one- and two-bed condominiums.
The majority of the homes completed by this project are located in a highly distressed census tract:
- Poverty rate: 42.30%
- AMI: 24.80%
- Unemployment rate: 19.80%–2.39x the national average
About Paterson
Paterson is a diverse city with a population that is 60.8% Hispanic, 24.8% Black, 8.46% white, and 4.53% Asian. Historically, Paterson residents have lived in poverty with rates nearly twice that of the national poverty rate.
In addition, the percentage of owner-occupied homes in Paterson is significantly lower than the national average. To combat these inequities and bring new homeownership opportunities to the residents of Paterson, Passaic County Habitat applies a house-by-house, block-by-block strategy to increase the proliferation of energy-efficient, safe, and affordable homes.
To support new homeowners, Passaic County Habitat provides financing for each home with a 0% interest 30-year mortgage. In addition, every new homeowner will work closely with Habitat’s Homeowner Services Department staff, providing referrals to HUD-certified city/state agencies and other nonprofit organizations.
Learn more about Passaic County Habitat for Humanity here.
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