2023 Annual Report

50 Years Strong

50 Years Strong

2023 Annual Report

About PHFA

Celebrating 50 Years of Housing Achievements

At first glance, the 2023 fiscal year might seem like any other at the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency. The staff went about its usual business: providing funding for the construction of affordable rental housing; helping homebuyers with home loan products that fit their budget; educating people about housing topics like mortgages and foreclosure, so they could make smarter housing decisions; and working with homeowners behind on their mortgages so they wouldn’t lose their homes. Yes, to most observers, it might seem like any other year … except it wasn’t.

This year marked the 50^th anniversary of PHFA. The agency was created by the General Assembly at the end of 1972, and by September 1973 it had added more than 40 employees and was fully operational. Since then, it has grown to 315 employees providing critically needed housing programs supporting homeownership, affordable rental housing, foreclosure prevention, consumer education, funding for local housing initiatives, and so much more. As the housing market has evolved and housing needs have grown, PHFA has adapted, too, to meet those needs.

A Time for Reflection and Celebration

To mark its 50^th anniversary, and to educate the public about all the ways it stands ready to help them with housing, the agency has had ongoing events and promotions throughout the year. The month of May was especially festive with three big events. One recognized the role of the state legislature in creating and supporting the agency over the years. One celebrated our many business partners who help PHFA achieve its housing mission. And one recognized the many efforts of our employees over half a century to help people find and keep quality housing they can afford.

It was important for the agency to hold these anniversary events, partly to recognize all the good work it has been able to achieve with its staff and housing partners over five decades. Recognition of work well done provides inspiration for the opportunities ahead. Plus, our 50^th anniversary events offered an important opportunity for reflection. Pausing to contemplate our housing mission and core values has reinvigorated the agency for continued success over the next 50 years.

Some of this year’s events are captured in photographs and a video. Whether someone attended or not, our 50^th anniversary archive of images lets them experience the pride expressed through our celebratory events. Photos can be viewed on our Flickr page, and a video of the gala for our business partners can be found on our YouTube channel. They capture the celebratory mood of the entire year and the positive emotions felt by everyone who’s been a part of our first 50 years.

Key Dates In
Our History

1973

PHFA first becomes operational with 40-50 employees; focus on affordable rental housing 
1982

Begins offering affordable home loans 
1983

Charged by legislature with leading HEMAP foreclosure prevention program
1992

Begins servicing its home loans in-house 
1994

Homeownership counseling services expanded 
2004

Move into current Harrisburg office 
2012

Popular PHARE program begins, funding local housing initiatives 
2019

Employees move into new adjoining tower, providing more space; staff at 315

A more detailed timeline of PHFA’s 50-year history is available on our website, plus you can watch a short video of the agency’s historical highlights on our YouTube channel.

Our Leadership

MEET OUR BOARD OF DIRECTORS

The agency’s 13 board members provide their time and expertise out of their desire to improve the availability of affordable housing throughout the commonwealth. They are appointed to serve by the governor or General Assembly, or they serve as part of the responsibility of their high-level state government position.

Tap on photos for board members’ names.

Pennsylvanians invented the state housing finance agency. Legislators working here in Harrisburg, more than 50 years ago, in fact, were the first in the country to recognize the critical need and fundamental value in a state-level capacity to finance affordable housing.

Stockton Williams

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
National Council of State
Housing Agencies

Hear his insightful comments about PHFA as a national leader.
Watch Video

A Glimpse of Our History from the PHFA Photo Archive

In preparation for this year’s anniversary celebration, PHFA staff digitized more than 400 photos spanning the agency’s history over five decades. The photos triggered fond memories about our early years, coworkers and friends, and the countless customers we’ve helped. This three-minute video montage with music captures some of our favorite images and remembrances.

Our Programs

When the agency first became operational in 1973, it had a singular focus on financing the construction of more affordable rental housing across the commonwealth. Over the years, as people’s housing needs have changed, PHFA has responded with a variety of additional programs and services, always focused on preserving and expanding the availability of affordable housing. Today the agency offers programs like loans to help people make home repairs, financial assistance to avoid foreclosure, consumer education on personal money management, and so much more. Many of these programs would not be available in Pennsylvania if not for the efforts of PHFA.

Tap on the PHFA program areas below to learn more.

Homeownership
Housing Counseling & Consumer Education
Affordable Rental Housing
Housing Research
Foreclosure Prevention
Funding Local Housing Initiatives
Community Development
Addressing Homelessness
Customer Service & Public Outreach

Hear from our Customers

No one can explain the importance of our housing programs better than the people we’ve helped. We frequently make the claim that affordable housing changes lives. The video testimonials below let you hear firsthand from our customers about how their lives were made better when PHFA helped them find quality, stable housing that fit their family’s budget.

Asia

Jake & Natalie

Ruth

Our Progress

While celebrating our 50^th anniversary was an important part of the year, the work of the agency continued with staff as busy as ever. Key happenings shared below give a small glimpse into the varied programs the agency manages while responding to the ever-changing housing needs of the state’s renters, homebuyers and homeowners.

Q1 1^ST QUARTER 2022 JUL–SEPT

Feedback from two PHFA-led housing conferences in early summer shows strong support for professional development events
Pa. Homeowner Assistance Fund staff alerts public to available mortgage assistance during community events across Pa.
PHFA issues RFP to award funding for new construction or the rehabilitation of mixed-use projects
PHFA-funded report about “Barriers to Homeownership” for people of color continues to get exposure in the media
PHFA joins the Pennsylvania Purchasing Group and begins using bidnet, streamlining the agency’s purchasing process
The highly popular PHARE program issues its annual RFP making funds available to support local housing programs in all 67 counties

Q2 2^ND QUARTER 2022 OCT–DEC

Pa. Homeowner Assistance Fund increases funding cap amounts to maximize assistance made available to homeowners
Agency announces $92.5 million for construction or rehab of apartments, adding another 1,459 affordable rental units
PHFA continues outreach on its home loan programs, including sponsorship of midstate’s Parade of Homes event
PHFA partners with FHLBank Pittsburgh to distribute $1.9 million to fight homelessness in Pennsylvania
Pa. Homeowner Assistance Fund web dashboard tracks progress of mortgage relief disbursements for homeowners hurt by the pandemic
For the first time, PHFA awards two housing policy fellowships funding important housing research while preparing the next generation of housing leaders

Q3 3^RD QUARTER 2023 JAN–MAR

PHFA announces festive events planned for 2023 as part of the agency’s 50th anniversary celebration
Agency and partners announce innovative new program to address barriers to homeownership for Black and Brown homebuyers in Pittsburgh
PHFA brings Pa. Homeowner Assistance Fund program in-house to quicken the distribution of financial assistance to homeowners hurt by the pandemic
PHFA marks America Saves Week with new educational podcasts about personal money management produced by agency staff
Agency leads a media push to remind homeowners that affordable loans are available to help with sewer repair or hook-up
Agency opens application process for $100 million Housing Options Grant Program seeking to create or preserve more affordable rental housing in the state

Q4 4^TH QUARTER 2023 APR–JUN

PHFA announces seven projects awarded $4.8 million for the construction or rehabilitation of mixed-used developments across Pennsylvania
Agency recognizes its top lending partners for 2022 during event honoring top-performing lenders for record-setting year
Extremely popular PHARE program announces recipients of $61.5 million of funding to support 309 housing initiatives in all 67 counties
The agency holds three celebratory events – for legislators, for our business partners, and for our staff – recognizing the vital role of each in the agency’s ongoing success
PHFA opens bidding for the purchase of $4.5 million in tax credits supporting the construction or rehabilitation of mixed-use developments in Pa. communities
PHFA posts profile data from its Comprehensive Housing Study on web for all 67 counties, highlighting the level of housing needs across the state
Pa. Homeowner Assistance Fund provides guidance to help homeowners update their application data to quicken the processing of their request for pandemic-related assistance

Our Staff is a vital part of our history

Our employees have been the foundation of our success during our 50-year history. It’s not unusual to find them working extra hours on projects, not because it’s required, but because they care. PHFA has been called “the housing agency with a heart.” That is true only because of the passion our staff brings to the workplace every day. Meet some of them below.

Roberta Schwalm

Homeownership

Ron Mason

Loan Servicing

Beth Silvick

Multifamily Development

Sonya Clemons

Homeowners’ Emergency Mortgage Assistance Program

Shelby Rexrode

Office of Strategic  Planning & Policy

Melody Santor

Housing Counseling

Beneliz Rodriguez

Customer Solutions Center

Our Performance

This interactive map provides insights into PHFA housing investments statewide for fiscal year 2023. Click on a county to see the agency’s housing assistance there in four key areas: single-family home loans, funding for the construction of affordable rental housing, foreclosure prevention loans, and housing and community development assistance supporting local housing initiatives. Clicking on the icons below the map will provide more comprehensive data.

This map and the supporting data confirm the many ways in which PHFA programs are addressing affordable housing needs across Pennsylvania.

LEGEND

MF funding = PennHOMES, National Housing Trust Fund and PA Housing Tax Credits

LIHTCs = Low Income Housing Tax Credits

HEMAP = Homeowners’ Emergency Mortgage Assistance Program

PHARE = Pennsylvania Housing Affordability and Rehabilitation Enhancement Fund; total disbursement includes $5,914,304 regional and $500,000 statewide funding

$$$* = Receives funding shared with another county

Our Financials

During its first half-century, PHFA’s status as an independent state-affiliated agency has been key to its effective operation. The agency has relied on its organizational flexibility to respond to changing housing and investment markets in the trailing wake of the pandemic. Sound leadership of the agency has kept it strong financially so that all its housing programs have continued uninterrupted during the past fiscal year. Since the agency is largely self-funded, and receives only occasional public tax dollars, the careful management of its finances is essential to support the many housing programs and services it’s made available during its first 50 years.

Tap or hover over the charts to see dollar amounts.

NET POSITION

Beginning of year:
$755,818

End of year:
$779,019

(in thousands)

PHFA’s complete financial report for the
2023 fiscal year is conveniently available
on our website.

FULL FINANCIAL REPORT

Our Director’s Message: 50 Years Strong

On this year’s fiftieth anniversary of the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency, we took some time to celebrate the many successes we’ve achieve during the last half century.

Hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvanians have been helped by the agency to find stable, quality housing, and more than 100,000 affordable rental units that otherwise would not have been constructed have been built thanks to PHFA funding. These, and other achievements, have literally changed the life trajectory for some of our customers.

It was especially important this year to recognize the role of the General Assembly and of our employees who have made us what we are today. Photos from our various anniversary events are available on our Flickr page so that you can virtually share in the past year’s celebration.

Looking back, moving forward

Just as important as these events, however, was the time for reflection on our history.

PHFA isn’t like other state agencies. Many aspects of PHFA are unique and special. They deserve recognition so that they aren’t overlooked in the hustle and bustle of our workdays, and so we accentuate them moving forward.

First, PHFA is largely self-funded. Most people don’t realize that, and when they learn it, they are usually a bit startled. That’s right, we are responsible for raising our own funding for salaries, our offices, and all our other associated costs.

When the General Assembly and Governor Milton Shapp created PHFA with seed money 50 years ago, they did so with the direction that future operating revenue would need to come from the agency’s own investments and program or administrative fees. There would be no yearly infusion of public tax dollars.

A public corporation with a private sector mindset

This is important to understand for a number of reasons. For starters, our financial freedom gives us a measure of programmatic independence to pursue innovative ideas – also to change direction more easily when an idea doesn’t produce results as expected. This gives us a private sector mindset that helps us perform our best.

Keep in mind that housing finance agencies in the late 1960s and early 1970s were a novel concept. No one knew for sure that the creation of a state-affiliated agency to expand affordable housing options would work, especially one that would be self-funded. But it did, and it has worked well to this day.

Because much of our funding comes from the sale of mortgage revenue bonds, it’s imperative that we stay in tune with market conditions and consumer needs and wants. The funding raised from these bonds is critical for financing the affordable home loans we then make available to homebuyers wanting to become homeowners. Therefore, it’s vital we listen to our investors and our customers. We need to stay nimble and open to change.

The agency with a heart

Another key defining feature of the agency is its culture. Some of the long-time employees here refer to PHFA as “the agency with a heart.” There is a caring spirit at our core, and it has motivated our staff for more than five decades. This characteristic of the agency produces customers who quite often reach out to us with heartfelt gratitude.

During 2022, our home loan programs set records for the number of home loans closed (5,460) and the value of those loans (more than $1 billion). We achieved this success because so much of our business comes from prior happy customers. Those customers are, in essence, our sales force, telling friends and family about the good experiences they’ve had working with us.

Remembering these qualities that make PHFA special and which have brought us 50 years of considerable housing accomplishments is important for guiding our next 50 years. Days can get busy. On some days the tasks at hand can seem insurmountable. But staying grounded in the values that made us successful will not only keep us “the agency with a heart” but will help us maintain a laser focus on our housing mission for the next 50 years.

50 Years Strong