BOSTON – July 20, 2023 – MassHousing is providing $5.2 million in affordable housing financing to the non-profit Way Finders, for the development of the 62-unit Rosewood Way Townhomes for families with a range of incomes in Agawam.
Located in Agawam's Feeding Hills neighborhood, the project will create 62 new apartment homes in 10 townhome-style buildings and a community building on a vacant parcel.
"MassHousing is excited to partner with Way Finders to create 62 new apartment homes on a vacant space in Agawam that will offer its residents quality housing affordability and economic opportunity," said MassHousing Executive Director Chrystal Kornegay.
"Affordable housing is critically needed throughout Massachusetts," said Keith Fairey, President and CEO of Way Finders. "Rosewood Way will provide greater housing choice and opportunity for families in Agawam and our region."
MassHousing is providing Way Finders with a $3.7 million permanent loan, $1 million from the Agency's Workforce Housing Initiative and $500,000 in Capital Magnet Fund financing.
Other funding sources include $17 million from the allocation of Low-Income Housing Tax Credits by the Massachusetts Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC), $3.4 million in direct support from EOHLC, $1 million from the Affordable Housing Trust Fund, which MassHousing manages on behalf of EOHLC, and $749,000 from the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health. TD Bank is providing construction financing and the Massachusetts Housing Investment Corporation (MHIC) is the tax credit syndicator and investor.
Rosewood Way will feature 20 one-bedroom apartments, 29 two-bedroom apartments, and 13 three-bedroom apartments, designed and built by local companies, Dietz & Company Architects of Springfield, and Allegrone Construction of Pittsfield. The property management agent is Way Finders and construction is expected to be complete in August 2024.
Eight of the units will be supported by federal Section 8 subsidy for households earning up to 30 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI), 12 units will be supported by the Massachusetts Rental Voucher Program for households earning up to 50 percent of AMI, 27 of the units will be restricted to households earning up to 60 percent of AMI, 10 will be workforce housing units for households earning up to 80 percent of AMI and five of the units will be unrestricted. The AMI for Agawam is $93,700 for a household of four.
MassHousing has financed three rental housing communities in Agawam involving 462 housing units and $26.3 million in financing and provided $73 million in financing to 671 homebuyers and homeowners in Agawam.
About Way Finders
Way Finders is a nonprofit community development corporation, headquartered in Springfield, MA, working to strengthen housing stability and economic mobility and build thriving neighborhoods throughout western Massachusetts. Way Finders is the largest nonprofit housing developer in the region and has created over 800 units of affordable housing in Hampden and Hampshire Counties. Way Finders also offers first time homebuyer classes, resident leadership training, family homeless shelters, and much more. Visit www.wayfinders.org to learn more.
About MassHousing
MassHousing (The Massachusetts Housing Finance Agency) is an independent, quasi-public agency created in 1966 and charged with providing financing for affordable housing in Massachusetts. The Agency raises capital by selling bonds and lends the proceeds to low- and moderate-income homebuyers and homeowners, and to developers who build or preserve affordable and/or mixed-income rental housing. MassHousing does not use taxpayer dollars to sustain its operations, although it administers some publicly funded programs on behalf of the Commonwealth. Since its inception, MassHousing has provided more than $28 billion for affordable housing. For more information, follow us on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.
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