The Massachusetts Certified Housing Development Incentive Program (MA HDIP) Tax Credit program was intended to promote increased residential growth of market-rate housing within certified housing development zones in Massachusetts gateway cities. There are 26 named Gateway Cities; see the list below. Clocktower Tax Credits has helped a good number of Developers sell their HDIP tax credits.
An HDIP housing development project is defined as a multi-unit residential rehabilitation or new construction project that contains at least 80 percent market-rate units that are sold or leased upon completion. It can also contain two or more residential units as part of a mixed-use development that includes commercial uses in addition to the residential units. In addition to HDIP credits, the Developer is also offered a property tax exemption from the municipality where the project is located, which exemption must be approved by the program administrator.
The Department of Housing & Community Development (DHCD) administers the MA HDIP program and may award tax credits of not more than 25% of the cost of qualified project expenditures allocable to the market-rate units in a project, with a maximum of $2 million per project. The annual program cap is currently $10 million per year. A successful Developer receives a Conditional Certification when approved to move forward with the HDIP project development. Upon completion and final approval of all requested documents required by DHCD, the HDIP Tax Credit will be issued as a Final Certification letter to the Developer with a notification sent to the MA Department of Revenue. Once the Final Certification is issued, the MA HDIP Tax Credits can be sold or transferred to a buyer who has a tax liability in Massachusetts.
26 Gateway Cities:
The MA Legislature defines 26 Gateway Cities in the Commonwealth, which are Attleboro, Barnstable, Brockton, Chelsea, Chicopee, Everett, Fall River, Fitchburg, Haverhill, Holyoke, Lawrence, Leominster, Lowell, Lynn, Malden, Methuen, New Bedford, Peabody, Pittsfield, Quincy, Revere, Salem, Springfield, Taunton, Westfield, and Worcester.
Clocktower is the leader in MA HDIP financing. But if you have a project anywhere in the country that needs investor tax credit equity, don’t hesitate to call us. We work with developers with prospective HDIP, Historic Rehabilitation, or Low-Income Housing tax credit projects seeking Federal and/or State tax credit equity, and other unique state incentives such as the Pennsylvania REAP credits. For inquiries, please contact Sue Ellyn Idelson at (978) 793-9574 or SIdelson@ClocktowerTC.com.