Oregon Centralized Application (ORCA) FAQ

ORCA Application

Affordable housing developments must comply with new cooling-related legislation passed in 2022 that applies to all housing projects where building permits for construction were issued on or after April 1, 2024. In general, the legislation requires that all dwelling units provide cooling in at least one room (cannot be a bathroom). The full content of that legislation (House Bill 1536 (2022)) is available at SB1536 (oregonlegislature.gov). The bill covers cooling requirements for new construction projects in Section 11, (m).

No, LAP applications do not count towards the project limits per ORCA step.

No, ORCA is for developing affordable rental housing. Resources for homeownership development can be found at https://www.oregon.gov/ohcs/homeownership/pages/homeownership-development.aspx

Projects are welcome to work ahead and submit required tasks for Financial Eligibility, however will not be evaluated until that step.

There is no set timeline. At launch in June 2024, we expect about 30 days for evaluation for the Impact Assessment step of the ORCA. Potentially this could be shorter but it depends on project readiness, our capacity, and other factors.

Right now, OHCS plans to only go in front of Housing Stability Council (HSC) at the end of the Impact Assessment step of the ORCA. HSC will approve an "up to" amount of the award, and funding allocation will become more certain as the project moves through the rest of the ORCA steps.

The intent is for projects to share with OHCS information about the commercial space. The Proforma will make it clear if the commercial sources and uses budget do not balance. The commercial piece needs to stand alone, and the residential piece wil not be able to lean on the commercial space which has been a long-standing expectation of OHCS.

If a project is accessing Last Gap funds before a project has closed, then that project must get to closing before any other projects can move through ORCA. That's to make sure that projects further along in the funding process are receiving the appropriate support before other project ideas move forward.

The duration of the purchase option should align with the proposed financial closing date and also include some ability to extend the the purchase option should any unforeseen delay occur. This would be evaluated on a case by case basis with potential OHCS follow up to ensure risks are mitigated. There is no prioritization of projects losing site control. Project are intended have met all evaluation standards and be be ready to financially close by their determined date.

Development Resources

In 2024, LIFT for Homeownership has a rolling NOFA. Funding will be awarded on a first come, first served basis to applicants meeting minimum scoring criteria. The application will be open from Jan. 8, 2024 to Sep. 2, 2024 or until all available funding has been awarded.

The funding for the co-location of early childhood facilities is being administered through a third party collaborative of CDFIs named Build Up Oregon. We are working closely with them on projects looking to secure OHCS resources in addition to co-location funds, but applicants must apply for both funding sources separately through builduporegon.org.

The ORCA disperses funding specifically for multifamily affordable rental housing developments. For information on funding transitional housing projects, please direct questions and inquiries to the Housing Stabilization Resources Division of OHCS at: hsd.homelessservices@hcs.oregon.gov.

OHCS opened the Intake process in April to understand projects throughout the state that are seeking OHCS funding, including projects seeking LIHTC and Private Activity Bonds. 4% and 9% LIHTC and Private Activity Bonds will be available in 2025.

An eligible project, including those seeking LIHTCs in 2025, may request Predevelopment resources in 2024 by first filling an Intake form. The Intake form provides the ability for eligible entities to signal that predevelopment resources are being sought. Additional information about OHCS’s prequalification programs and eligibility will be made available closer to the full ORCA launch.

OHCS will be conducting engagement for the Qualified Allocation Plan (QAP) later in 2024 to update the Plan required for LIHTC. Updating the plan will support the allocation of LIHTC within the new Oregon Centralized Application. LIHTCs cannot be allocated until after the update. Projects seeking LIHTC funding will be held in the ORCA’s early pipeline intake stage until LIHTC resources are available to reserved.

We have not yet started to program LIHTC resources for 2025, but the thinking is that projects with advanced readiness to proceed elements will be able to move through the stages of the ORCA expeditiously. Please keep an eye out, we expect to release a QAP update for feedback in Quarter 3 of 2024.

Based on partner feedback, Housing Stability Council guidance and consulting with the Governors office, Cost evaluation and subsidy limits were shared at May 3 Housing Stability Council and will be finalized before launching ORCA.

OHCS is developing a dashboard so that developers and the public will have a clear view of resources allocated to projects and remaining resources. Progress about achieving the set asides will be transparent. Decisions about reallocating unspent dollars will be presented at Housing Stability Council.

OHCS has substantial resources from the Legislature, more resources than in years past. Tax Credits are unable to be leveraged with all those resources and that is a constraint. The ORCA process opens the intake where you are asked to provide information on all the deals on your desk, in whatever stage they are, so that good information is collected.

The intention is to incentivize projects moving forward through the development process. A developer will be unable to submit multiple applications to hold resources if they are unable to move those projects forward quickly.

Yes, the ORCA Capacity Building (ORCA CB) grant application will be available through the ORCA Intake Form. The resource is not yet open for applications. There is a section towards the end of the ORCA Intake Form to indicate your organization's interest in capacity building grants. Some information is currently available on the GHAP Capacity Building webpage.

We are currently working through the final details of the application pathway. More specific ORCA CB application information and guidance will be available soon.

The Oregon Multifamily Energy Program will remain it's own application and allocation process. For more information, please visit: https://www.oregon.gov/ohcs/development/pages/oregon-multifamily-energy-program.aspx.

No, OAHTC refinances are not counted toward the overall limits of projects in the ORCA steps.

Yes

BOLI determination is always required.

For OAHTC-only requests, you should still start with the intake form. There's a more limited range of required documents that will be outlined in the workcenter

Program definitions

The data is available on the Vulnerable to Gentrification map.

Oregon Centralized Application (ORCA) FAQ

ORCA Application

​Will air conditioning be required for all ORCA projects?

​Does a Land Acquisition Program (LAP) application count towards the 2-project limit per ORCA step?

​Is ORCA and the ORCA Manual applicable to homeownership programs as well?

​If the key components of Financial Eligibility are available at Impact Assessment, can they be submitted then as a way to shorten the review timeline?

​How long can applicants expect for the review process for each stage of the application?

​Do projects go back to Housing Stability Council before the final reservation letter is issued?

​For projects that include mixed Commercial/Residential, is ORCA looking at the entire project as a whole or is it intended that the residential components for ORCA are broken out between commercial and residential?

​Why is my ORCA intake for a project on hold because another project is receiving Last Gap funds?

​Is there any guidance on duration / length of purchase options? Is there any prioritization of projects that or at risk of losing site control?

​Is LIFT for Homeownership being wrapped into ORCA, or will (for this year at least), it stay in the current NOFA first come first serve process?

​Will funding be available simultaneously for co-location of early childhood facilities with affordable housing?

Does the ORCA fund transitional housing projects?​

What about projects that seek Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) and Private Activity Bonds (PAB) in 2024? When will 4% and PAB be available?​

​A project that is anticipating future LIHTC funding will still need access to Predevelopment loans to meet threshold readiness requirements. How will OHCS navigate these kinds of concerns?

Some projects already applied for the 4% LIHTC round, and were not successful, will there be any prioritization, land will be potentially lost without movement?

When will more information about cost controls be available?

What does the process for reallocating unspent set-aside dollars look like? How much transparency should be expected around this - both in timeline and decision-making?​

Do you worry about having a long line of projects ready to fund without sufficient funding in the next couple of years?

Is the GHAP Capacity Building grant available through the ORCA? If so, would it be to select Affordable Rental Housing and the GHAP as the source?

​Will the Oregon Multifamily Energy Program stay with the current enrollment process or will it be wrapped into ORCA?

​Will OAHTC refinances be counted toward the overall # of projects in the ORCA pipeline?

​Since there are no tax credits, will utility allowances be required?

​Will a BOLI determination be required for projects without Project Based Vouchers and no HOME funds?

What would be expected to be submitted if only requesting Oregon Affordable Housing Tax Credits (OAHTC)? ​

Program definitions

Can a link be provided to where we can identify if our site is classified as “high risk” on OHCS’ Anti-Displacement Index?