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Oregon Housing and Community Services

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.​

​Projects with project-based vouchers are not a specific prioritization of the ORCA. ​

​Yes, that counts. Primary or co-sponsors may not have more than two projects in any one application step at a time (Impact Assessment, Financial Eligibility, and Commitment). ​

​WorkCenters for 4% LIHTC deals will not be available until 2025.

If you decide to pursue a 4% LIHTC deal, the project will be removed from the Impact Assessment, returned to Intake, and placed on hold. The current WorkCenter will not be accessible, and a LIHTC-specific WorkCenter will be assigned once these WorkCenters become available in 2025.

Please be aware that if the project is already in Impact Assessment review, this will result in the project losing its position in the queue for review and Housing Stability Council approval. 


​Being the lead developer is not solely about the responsibilities of the role itself but more about the ownership and structure of the organization. Specifically, in the case of a CSO, the organization needs to be certified based on its ownership and the community it serves.

In most cases, it’s not enough to simply designate the CSO as the Lead Developer in name. The CSO must have real involvement, meaning they should have a tangible stake in the project—this could be financial investment, assets, or decision-making authority. Typically, the organization should be at least 51% led or owned by individuals from Black, Indigenous, or other people of color (BIPOC) communities. This ensures that the CSO isn’t just involved "on paper" but plays a meaningful role in the development and benefits from the project.

So, to demonstrate they are the lead developer, a CSO must show that they are not only leading the project but are also substantially involved and benefiting from it, which is in line with their mission and ownership criteria.​


​Organizations may submit an REO schedule in their own format, however it will need to include which properties are within OHCS' portfolio. ​

​Yes, the tenant survey asks for that information, so no need for additional documentation regarding which tenants receive rental assistance.


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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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​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

​No, any project identifying LIHTC will not move forward in 2024. ​

It depends on the project. In this case, it would be best tracked as a single project so OHCS can confirm which sources are the best fit for acquisition versus rehab. Additionally, this would mean that phase I, or the project's acquisition part, moves forward now. If the project needs LIHTC in the future, it would be sent back to complete Intake and start over again.

​No, the predevelopment loan program was established to assist projects in meeting the increased readiness expectations of the ORCA process. ​



Program definitions

The data is available on the Vulnerable to Gentrification ​map. ​​​