Assisting Construction or Rehabilitation of Housing in Communities with Workforce Housing Needs

This program provides tax benefits to developers to provide housing in Iowa communities, focusing especially on those projects using abandoned, empty or dilapidated properties.
A Small Cities set aside for this program is available to eligible projects within the 88-least populous counties in Iowa.

Total program benefits limited to $1 million per project
Tax incentives include a refund of sales, service or use taxes paid during construction
Developers may receive a state investment tax credit of up to 10% of the investment directly related to the construction or rehabilitation of the housing. Developers qualifying under the Small Cities set aside may receive an investment tax credit of up to 20% of the investment directly related to the construction or rehabilitation of the housing. The state investment tax credit is fully transferable.
- Federal, state or local grants, tax credits, forgivable loans or other assistance not requiring repayment cannot be included for the purposes of calculating new investment
Tax credit is based on the new investment used for the first $150,000 of value for each home or unit
Tax credit is earned when the home or unit is certified for occupancy and can be carried forward for up to five additional years or until depleted, whichever occurs first

Projects must meet one of four criteria:
- Housing development located on a grayfield or brownfield site
- Repair or rehabilitation of dilapidated housing stock
- Upper story housing development
- New construction in a greenfield (only communities or a project qualifying under the Small Cities set aside)
Developer must build or rehabilitate at least four single-family homes or at least one multi-family building containing three or more units or at least two upper story units

This program has a per unit cost cap to ensure units created under the program are workforce housing

For FY 2023, project costs may not exceed the following per unit cost caps:

Single family unit in an urban area	$266,320 per unit
Single family unit in a small city	$266,320 per unit
Multi family unit in an urban area	$218,022 per unit
Multi-unit unit in a small city	$218,022 per unit

Historic preservation projects may not exceed 125% of the maximum per unit cost established based on project type and location

The housing project must be completed within three years from the date of award

FY 2023 Workforce Housing Tax Incentive Application Workshop (3/31/2022)
- Presentation Slides [PDF: 733k]
- Presentation Recording [YouTube]
- FY 2023 Workforce Housing Application Manual [PDF: 509k]
Workforce Housing Tax Incentive Program Rules

IEDA is seeking input regarding the application due date. Please complete a short survey to help determine if potential applicants need additional time to complete worthwhile applications.

UPDATE as of 4/25/2022: The FY 2023 application round for Workforce Housing Tax Credit project will open on April 1, 2022. Applications will now be due on July 1, 2022. Applications will be submitted through iowagrants.gov.