Affordable Housing Production Grant Program

The Affordable Housing Production Program is administered by the County of Hawaii Office of Housing and Community Development. The program supports the county's priority of increasing the availability and accessibility of affordable housing. The program was established through County Ordinance 22-77, passed by the County Council and signed by the Mayor in June 2022. The ordinance appropriates at least $5,000,000 per year to the Office of Housing and Community Development to facilitate programs supporting affordable housing production. The program operates within an administrative framework established by Affordable Housing Production Program Administrative Rules. The program supports affordable housing activities in Hawaii County. Based on the Fiscal Year 2025-26 awards described by the Office of Housing and Community Development, funded activities may include acquisition, preservation, new construction, renovation, and financial assistance programs. The funded portfolio includes rental, for-sale, rent-to-own, and homeownership activities. Financial programs represented in the awards include cesspool conversion, rehabilitation, down payment assistance, and other homeownership assistance. The source states that the Fiscal Year 2025-26 round will provide $11,887,446.51 across six projects and affect more than 306 housing units. Two County-administered projects received funding through a set-aside, while four projects were awarded through the request for proposals process. The Fiscal Year 2025-26 awards demonstrate that affordability requirements vary by funded project. Examples include rental housing serving households at or below 100 percent of area median income, rent-to-own housing serving households at or below 120 percent of area median income, and ownership projects serving households within the 81 percent to 140 percent area median income range. The Hawaii County Housing Protection Program lists limits of up to 120 percent of area median income for rental housing and up to 140 percent for for-sale housing. Affordability periods also vary by project, including 15 years, 66 years, and perpetuity. The supplied program page does not state a universal applicant eligibility standard, required applicant organization type, matching requirement, minimum request, maximum request, or standardized award size for a future application round. The source documents recurring program activity across Fiscal Years 2023-24, 2024-25, and 2025-26. For Fiscal Year 2025-26, a May 5, 2025 media release announced the request for proposals, and a December 9, 2025 media release announced grant awards. The current program page does not provide a new application opening date or closing deadline for a subsequent request for proposals. It also does not identify a letter of intent, concept paper, pre-proposal, notice of intent, or other pre-application gate. Application questions, required uploads, submission portal instructions, evaluation criteria, and a stated notification schedule for the next funding round are likewise not provided in the supplied material. Applicants should therefore rely on a future request for proposals and associated program materials for requirements that are not stated on this program overview page. The program's Fiscal Year 2025-26 funding included $3,697,346.51 for two set-aside projects and $8,190,100 for four projects funded through the request for proposals process. Individual awards shown for the four request for proposals projects were $3,000,000 for Hoomalu at Waikoloa, $300,000 for Laula Road, $4,100,000 for Ua Hale Aela Hawaii County, and $790,100 for the Deferred Payment Loan Program. The set-aside awards were $1,697,346.51 for the Hawaii County Housing Protection Program and $2,000,000 for the Home Improvement Loan Program. These figures describe completed Fiscal Year 2025-26 funding decisions and should not be interpreted as minimum or maximum award amounts for a future competition. The Office of Housing and Community Development provides the program email ohcd.ahp@hawaiicounty.gov for additional information or requests to join the program mailing list. The Hilo Office can be reached at 808-961-8379, and the Kona Office can be reached at 808-323-4300. The program is recurring based on documented funding activity and request for proposals activity across three consecutive fiscal years, but the supplied page does not announce the opening or closing dates for the next competitive round. Separately, proposed amendments to the program Administrative Rules are available for public review and comment from August 12, 2026 through September 14, 2026 at 4:30 p.m. HST, with a public hearing scheduled for August 31, 2026 at 1:00 p.m. HST. Those dates concern the administrative rulemaking process rather than an application deadline for program funding.