On Friday, April 25, New Jersey Department of Community Affairs (DCA) Commissioner Jacquelyn Suárez announced the NJ HOMES Choice Technical Assistance and RFP process for affordable housing funding and professional assistance.
DCA rolled out a beta test of a technical assistance tool to assist municipalities with housing development. The NJ HOMES Choice website would allow municipalities to create hypothetical scenarios of diverse types of housing stock to see how it would impact a municipality’s affordable housing obligation and fit with their master plan. Additionally, the website will provide contacts and data concerning specific types of projects of interest to municipalities. DCA expects to launch the official website after the start of FY2026.
Additionally, the DCA announced that it will be releasing a Request for Proposals on May 1 for municipalities seeking financial and professional assistance in developing affordable housing projects. DCA is seeking 10 to 20 municipalities interested in building lifecycle housing within the next 2 years. They are allocating $8-10 million in funding, along with funding for a staff person to manage the development process. Priority will be given to municipalities looking to supplement funding through their Affordable Housing Trust Fund and willing to work with non-profit stakeholder organizations in their communities.
The League will continue to provide updates as more information is released.
Contact: Erin Knoedler, Legislative Analyst, eknoedler@njlm.org, 609-695-3841 x116.