NLIHC Releases Report on the State of Housing Trust Funds Across the Country

By Tori Bourret, NLIHC State and Local Innovation Manager 

NLIHC released the 2025 State & Local Housing Trust Fund report on June 26. The report summarizes survey responses from 133 state and local housing trust fund administrators in February and March 2025. The report highlights common practices in the Administration, funding, and operation of housing trust funds and describes how they can serve the most marginalized renters in need of safe, decent, affordable, and accessible housing. Additionally, NLIHC updated a virtual hub of information about best practices and key elements of housing trust funds, available here. 

The Housing Trust Fund Project was initiated by Mary Brooks at the Center for Community Change in 1986 and has served as a comprehensive resource on housing trust funds across the country for nearly four decades. In 2024, NLIHC assumed stewardship of the Housing Trust Fund Project to support state and local efforts in advancing housing trust fund initiatives. 

Housing trust funds are established by elected government bodies—at the city, county, or state level—when public revenue sources are dedicated, by ordinance or law, to a distinct fund with the express and limited purpose of providing affordable housing. Housing trust funds can be flexible and used to support innovative approaches to addressing various housing needs. The trust fund model is highly adaptable to a wide range of situations and serves a diverse range of states and localities. Housing trust funds are also efficient, reporting highly successful track records addressing a multitude of critical housing needs.   

 Key findings from the report include: 

• More than 50% of housing trust funds surveyed are managed by one to three staff members, and approximately one-third of these projects reported an annual administrative budget of less than $50,000.
• Many housing trust funds are required to follow accountability measures. More than three-quarters of survey respondents reported that their housing trust fund is guided by an oversight board, an advisory committee, or both. Among these, 71% reported that tenants and individuals with lived experience of housing insecurity are represented on the board and/or committee.
• More than 843 housing trust funds exist across the country, and 90% have dedicated revenue sources, meaning these funds receive dependable funding streams they can rely on to support a variety of affordable housing goals. 
• Housing trust funds support a wide variety of activities, including place-based and tenant-based rental assistance, helping to bridge the gap between incomes and housing costs. 
• More than 57% of housing trust funds surveyed target resources to households with incomes at or below 50% of area median income (AMI) or people experiencing homelessness through specific set-asides, funding mandates, and points awarded during the application process. 

The report is complemented by the Housing Trust Fund Project virtual hub, which provides an overview of current and state-specific efforts to advance the housing trust fund initiative. The Hub offers comprehensive resources related to best practices, including information on the distribution of funds, oversight and reporting, eligible uses and applicants, and more. 

View the complete State & Local Housing Trust Fund report and the Housing Trust Fund Project at: https://nlihc.org/housing-trust-fund-project

For questions, please contact Tori Bourret, at [email protected] or the state and local innovation team at [email protected]