The Revitalizing Empty Structures Into Desirable Environments Act (RESIDE Act) establishes a five-year pilot program to convert vacant and abandoned industrial and commercial buildings into attainable housing. The program would award competitive grants to eligible jurisdictions using excess HOME funds, with grant sizes ranging from $1 million to $10 million and a maximum $100 million per eligible year (FY 2027–2031).
Priority goes to distressed communities, opportunity zones, projects aligned with local consolidated plans, or jurisdictions reducing regulatory barriers to conversion. The bill also authorizes waivers of certain federal requirements to accelerate implementation and requires a post-program study on impact.
Grants may cover acquisition, demolition, health hazard remediation, site preparation, construction or rehabilitation, and the setup or expansion of community land trusts. Units created must meet the definition of attainable housing, serving households at specified AMI thresholds.
HOME program requirements remain applicable to these new units, and a required evaluation is due within 180 days of program termination. The structure aims to remove blight while expanding affordable homeownership and rental options.
At a Glance
What It Does
Creates a five-year pilot (FY 2027–2031) using excess HOME funds to award competitive grants of $1–$10 million to convert vacant/abandoned buildings into attainable housing.
Who It Affects
Participating jurisdictions, local housing agencies, nonprofit developers, and contractors involved in acquisition, remediation, and construction; future tenants and buyers of the new units.
Why It Matters
Preserves and repurposes underused properties in distressed areas, expands affordable housing options, and tests federal coordination with existing HOME programs and local plans.
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What This Bill Actually Does
The RESIDE Act sets up a pilot program to transform blighted commercial or industrial properties into affordable housing. It relies on excess HOME Investment Partnerships Program funds to finance grants, distributed through a competitive process to eligible jurisdictions that will convert vacant buildings into housing units considered attainable for households at or below specified income levels.
Grants must be used for a defined set of activities, including acquisition, demolition, remediation, site work, and construction, and may also support community land trusts to maintain long-term affordability.
Grants are capped at $1–$10 million per award, with a ceiling of $100 million in eligible years. If annual funding is lower than $100 million, the program aims to maximize the number of grants rather than the size of each grant.
A key policy priority is directing funds to communities experiencing economic distress, opportunity zones, and those with plans that indicate housing affordability needs. Jurisdictions that have begun to reduce regulatory barriers to converting commercial properties into housing may receive priority funding, provided safety and habitability standards are preserved.The HOME program’s rental, sale, and resale requirements apply to the new units, ensuring existing rules for affordability and stewardship, including the establishment or expansion of community land trusts where appropriate.
The Secretary has waiver authority to streamline requirements (excluding core fair housing, nondiscrimination, labor standards, and environmental rules) if there is a public finding of good cause. A comprehensive study and report to Congress is due within 180 days after the pilot ends, covering effects on local tax bases, affordable housing access for seniors, people with disabilities, and veterans, homeownership rates, and blight removal outcomes.
The Five Things You Need to Know
The pilot will run FY 2027–2031 and use up to $100 million of excess HOME funds each year to finance grants.
Grants must be between $1 million and $10 million; the program will try to maximize the number of grants if funding is tight.
Eligible entities are participating jurisdictions eligible for HOME funding, awarded on a competitive basis to convert vacant/abandoned buildings.
Use of funds includes acquisition, demolition, remediation, site prep, construction/rehabilitation, and support for community land trusts, with HOME rules applying to the units.
A Congress-bound evaluation due within 180 days after the program ends will assess tax-base impact, housing access for seniors/disabled/veterans, homeownership, and blight reduction.
Section-by-Section Breakdown
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Definitions for the program
This section defines key terms that shape what counts as attainable housing, what constitutes a converted housing unit, and what qualifies as a covered grant. It also anchors the program to the existing HOME framework and clarifies what qualifies as a vacant or abandoned building—emphasizing code-enforcement findings, cure periods, and court-ordered actions. The definitions set the eligibility and quality bar for projects that may receive grants.
Grant program authorization
For FY 2027–2031, the Secretary may allocate up to $100 million of excess HOME funds to a new Blighted Building to Housing Conversion Program. Grants will be awarded competitively to eligible entities (participating jurisdictions) to convert vacant or abandoned buildings into attainable housing. This subsection operationalizes the pilot and links it to HOME funding dynamics.
Amount of grant
When $100 million is available for the Pilot Program in a given year, each grant must be at least $1 million and no more than $10 million. If less than $100 million is available, the Secretary must maximize the number of grants, balancing scale with reach to broaden impact.
Relation to HOME formula allocation
Grants awarded under the Pilot Program are additive to, and do not affect, each eligible entity’s HOME formula allocation. The program is designed to complement, not substitute, existing HOME activity.
Priority criteria
Priority is given to eligible entities that will deploy funds in distressed communities, within qualified opportunity zones, align with consolidated plan housing strategies, or have enacted ordinances that reduce regulatory barriers to converting commercial properties to housing (without altering safety and habitability protections). These criteria guide grant scoring and award decisions.
Use of funds
Allowable uses include property acquisition, demolition, health hazard remediation, site preparation, construction/rehabilitation, and establishing or expanding community land trusts. The scope ensures that funds support both the physical conversion and long-term affordability infrastructure.
Applicability of HOME requirements
The rental, sale, and resale requirements that apply to units under the HOME program also apply to the converting housing units under the Pilot Program. This preserves affordability standards and stewardship expectations for the new units.
Waiver authority
The Secretary may waive or substitute alternative requirements for statutes or regulations the Secretary administers in relation to grant obligations or fund use, provided the secretary publicly finds good cause. Waivers exclude core protections for fair housing, nondiscrimination, labor standards, or environmental requirements.
Study; report
Not later than 180 days after the Pilot Program ends, the Secretary must study and report to Congress on the program’s impact on local tax bases, access to affordable housing (notably for elders, disabled, and veterans), homeownership, and blight reduction. This creates an accountability checkpoint for program outcomes.
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Who Benefits
- Participating jurisdictions (cities/counties) that receive competitive grants and can redevelop blighted properties into attainable housing, helping local economies and tax bases.
- Local housing authorities and nonprofit developers with access to HOME-derived mechanisms to finance conversions and manage new affordable units.
- Community land trusts and affiliated partners that can acquire or maintain long-term ownership and affordability for housing units.
- Elderly individuals, people with disabilities, and military veterans who gain access to affordable, stable housing in revitalized neighborhoods.
Who Bears the Cost
- Federal taxpayers funding the RESIDE Act grants through the HOME program (future appropriations and grant allocations).
- Eligible jurisdictions and local agencies that shoulder implementation costs beyond the grant (planning, regulatory adjustments, oversight).
- Construction contractors, developers, and workers engaged in acquisition, remediation, and building work, including potential ongoing maintenance by land trusts.
Key Issues
The Core Tension
The central dilemma is whether you should prioritize speed and scale of blight removal through flexible waivers and HOME-backed grants, potentially at the cost of deep affordability and predictable safeguards, or preserve rigid protections and slower processing to ensure long-term stability and equitable outcomes.
The RESIDE Act embodies a pragmatic push to unlock underused properties, yet it raises policy tensions that deserve attention. The waiver authority could accelerate projects, but it risks undermining established protections if not carefully bounded, particularly around fair housing, nondiscrimination, labor standards, or environmental safeguards.
The definitions of attainable housing—tied to AMI benchmarks of up to 120% for certain units—may not align with the goal of deeply affordable housing for the lowest-income renters, potentially yielding a mix of units that don’t fully address affordability needs.
A further tension lies in the reliance on excess HOME funds. While the pilot can scale through a competitive process, the availability of excess funds is not guaranteed year to year, which could affect program continuity and long-term planning for communities.
The program’s focus on converting existing blight raises questions about displacement, neighborhood change, and the integration of these new units with existing community infrastructure and services. These concerns suggest the need for robust local implementation plans, ongoing affordable-housing commitments, and clear performance metrics.
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