New Los Angeles County Agency Centralizes Finance for Housing

Los Angeles County housing developers have a new model to finance affordable projects through the L.A. County Affordable Housing Solutions Agency, or LACAHSA.

The centralized funding entity is designed to streamline what has been a fragmented, bureaucratic process, the Los Angeles Times reported. On Wednesday, the agency approved $100 million for 10 projects under the new model.

Traditionally, affordable housing developers have tried to secure funding from three to five separate local and state agencies, each with its own compliance and approval timelines. The result was long delays and millions in added costs.

A study by Terner Center for Housing Innovation at UC Berkeley found that each additional public funding source typically adds four months of delay and $20,460 per unit in costs — a significant burden in a market where construction costs already exceed $1 million per unit for some projects.

LACAHSA, created by state legislation in 2022 and funded through Measure A’s half‑cent sales tax, aims to consolidate financing under one roof. It offers construction loans, permanent loans, rental subsidies and preservation funding, positioning itself as a “one‑stop shop” for developers.

Two developments that utilized LACAHSA were extended‑stay hotel conversions by Michael Miller of Bold Communities, turning the properties in Harbor Gateway and Stevenson Ranch into low‑income senior housing.

Miller told the Times that by using LACAHSA, he could trim costs between 5 and 10 percent, largely from reduced legal, staffing and holding costs.

LACAHSA reported that projects relying primarily on its funding achieved up to 12 percent lower total development costs compared with those mixing multiple state sources.

The agency’s model also introduces a performance‑based funding approach. Proposals are ranked partly by their ability to minimize development costs, a departure from traditional public‑sector allocation norms. With 127 applications seeking $1.5 billion to build 11,625 units, demand far exceeds available funds — underscoring the scale of Los Angeles County’s housing shortage.

For affordable housing developers, LACAHSA represents a financing hub that could accelerate production timelines, lower per‑unit costs and make adaptive reuse such as hotel‑to‑housing conversions more viable.

– Joel Russell