Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA): Acquisition, Rehabilitation, and New Construction for Homeownership (ARCH) for FY 2025-2028

Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA): Acquisition, Rehabilitation, and New Construction for Homeownership (ARCH) for FY 2025-2028 Sarasota County expects to receive $1,350,000.00 in State Housing Initiatives Partnership (SHIP) Program funds for Acquisition, Rehabilitation, and New Construction for Homeownership (ARCH) during FY2025-FY2028 (July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2028). The purpose of this new program is to expand the availability of safe and affordable housing in unincorporated Sarasota County. Sarasota County will provide funding for ARCH as a loan to a developer or non-profit organization for property acquisition, demolition, site improvements, rehabilitation, and new construction of single-family housing, specifically for sale to very low- or low-income homebuyers. This strategy promotes infill housing development, green building, and mixed income neighborhoods. Applications for ARCH will tentatively open on June 22, 2026 at noon EST and close on August 3, 2026 at 5:00 PM EST. Public and private developers and not-for-profit organizations will be invited to apply for up to $1,350,000.00. Through a competitive Request for Applications (RFA) process, funds will be awarded to one (1) Sponsor/Developer of affordable single-family housing for construction financing. The location of the property chosen must be within unincorporated Sarasota County. Developers will be required to complete construction and transfer ownership to an income eligible homeowner within 18 months of receiving the award. Newly constructed or rehabilitated houses will be sold to SHIP income eligible buyers. Up to $75,000 of SHIP Purchase Assistance funding will be available to income eligible first-time homebuyers for gap financing, down payment, and closing costs. To qualify for income eligibility for SHIP, home buyers are required to have a total gross household income that does not exceed 80% of the Annual Median Income for Sarasota County. A developer will be selected as outlined in the Board and State approved Local Housing Assistance Plan based on an application process with objective scoring criteria, which will be provided in more detail in the RFA. Categories for the application scoring criteria include: Capacity and capability to carry out project (15 points)Need for project (20 points)Scale of project (20 points)Has a pool of income-eligible homebuyers (10 points)Experience in completing similar projects (25 points)Use of green building techniques to the greatest extent practicable (10 points) The RFA will be available on the Sarasota County Housing Enhancement and Redevelopment website at: www.herosrq.net/arch. Questions regarding this NOFA or the Sarasota County SHIP program may be directed to SHIP@scgov.net or Wendi Bellows, Sr. SHIP Program Coordinator, at (941) 861-5345. May 22 2026 LSAR0521952