Amazon launches $2B affordable housing fund for Seattle area and 2 other hubs
Amazon on Wednesday announced the Housing Equity Fund, a $2 billion-plus commitment to preserve and create more than 20,000 affordable housing units in the Puget Sound region; Arlington, Virginia; and Nashville, Tennessee.
Amazon's first funding commitment in the Puget Sound region is an initial $161.5 million below-market loan and $24 million in grants to the King County Housing Authority (KCHA). The money will preserve affordability for 1,000 apartment homes. The funds, to start, will allow KCHA to complete acquisition financing on 470 recently acquired units across three properties in Bellevue.
“Amazon has a long-standing commitment to helping people in need, including the Mary’s Place family shelter we built inside our Puget Sound headquarters. The shelter now supports over 200 women and children experiencing homelessness every night,” Jeff Bezos, Amazon founder and CEO, said in a news release.
The Bellevue commitment includes $4 million in grant funds to support the preservation of housing for extremely low-income households at one property.
https://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/news/2021/01/06/amazon-announces-2-billion-housing-fund.html