Fort Worth secures $5 million boost to tackle affordable housing crisis, grant given by the federal government
Fort Worth, Texas – The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has given Fort Worth a $5 million grant in a major first toward solving the affordable housing crisis. Announced on July 2, this money comes from HUD’s Pathways to Removing Obstacles to Housing program, meant to support local efforts at removing housing obstacles. Fort Worth enjoys the third-largest grant allocation nationally and stands out as the only Texas city to get money under this program.
At a city press conference, Mayor Mattie Parker emphasized the seriousness of the Fort Worth housing affordability problem, pointing out that third of the city’s households are negatively impacted by skyrocketing costs.
“Today is a huge opportunity for us,” Mayor Mattie Parker said. “We know that in Fort Worth, over one-third of our households in our city are burdened by high housing costs. One-third. And it’s a challenge that we’ve committed to as a city.”
Candace Valenzuela, the southwest regional administrator for HUD, clarified that the funding will support “boring, unsexy things that are difficult to fund” such creation and preservation of affordable homes. Emphasizing the city’s attempts to incorporate not just elected officials and business owners but also the citizens of the areas being developed, Valenzuela commended Fort Worth for its inclusive approach to stakeholder participation.
The grant funds will support many approaches from the approved last October affordable housing plan of the city. Among the specific initiatives under review are the creation of a capital pool for affordable housing projects, production of a pattern book of pre-approved house designs to enable infill housing, and official land bank setup. The assistant director of neighborhood services for Fort Worth, Amy Connolly, said the city will negotiate with HUD over the next month to choose which projects from the first application should be given top priority for the $5 million grant.
The city also intends to use the money to hasten planning and building of new homes. Projects like the pattern book are meant to help developers of affordable homes cut building expenses. A legal land bank is another idea under review that would let the city purchase, preserve, and market underused land at reasonable rates to approved developers.
Fort Worth’s initiatives include the recent approval of its first land trust, run by a private nonprofit, therefore underlining the value of ongoing public-private cooperation.
“This funding is going to have to be used similarly, it’s going to be a public-private partnership to get this funding expended and get the implementation steps down,” Connolly said.
Looking ahead, Fort Worth is also considering to include housing projects in its bond program for the first time in 2026, maybe financing single-family homes and lodging for the homeless.
Mayor Parker highlighted the city’s urgency and will to overcome housing obstacles including problems with bureaucratic delays and permission prices.
“All of these things really will integrate within our departments so we can use this $5 million to break down those barriers,” she concluded.
With applications coming in from across 47 states and territories, this program is part of a larger HUD effort whereby 21 grantees get approximately $85 million in total. Later this summer, a second financing round totaling $100 million will be accessible, offering communities committed to solving the affordable housing challenge further support.
