Partially Supportive Housing Certification Form: Owner/Sponsor
Instructions: For Partially Supportive Housing applicants electing to take points for High Priority Homeless (HPH) units and/or units for People with Disabilities (PWD) Tier One, this certification form must be completed by either the owner or the sponsor, or the points will not be awarded (refer to the Self-Scoring Worksheet: Greatest Need Tenant Targeting items 1.C. for HPH units and 1.D. for PWD units on pages 10-14). Refer below for the definition of Partially Supportive Housing.

If the ownership entity exists at the time of application submittal, the owner must complete, sign, and submit this certification form with their application, in the Multifamily Customer Portal. If the ownership entity does not exist at the time of application submittal, the sponsor must complete, sign, and submit this certification form with their application, in the Multifamily Customer Portal. 

Project Information	
Project Name	     	Development Number	D     	
 Owner Name 
 Sponsor Name	     	
Total Number of Units	HPH units	PWD Units	Other Homeless Units	
     	     	     	     	

Background
This is a new form and process  for the 2023 Consolidated Request for Proposals (RFP)/2024 Housing Tax Credits (HTC) funding round (Consolidated RFP)  based on the changes made to the 2024-25 Qualified Allocation Plan and Self-Scoring Worksheet. It replaces previously required application forms for applicants with Partially Supportive Housing developments. 

There are two categories of projects that include units designated for households that qualify as HPH and/or PWD units:
•	Partially Supportive Housing: Fewer than 50% of the total units will serve HPH, PWD, or *Other Homeless Households.
•	Primarily Supportive Housing: 50% or more of the total units will serve HPH, PWD, or *Other Homeless Households.
*Other Homeless Households include (i) individuals leaving institutions that do not have a permanent residence or (ii) other homeless populations not referred by the Coordinated Entry System.

Applications that qualify as Partially Supportive Housing have a simplified and streamlined application submission process that removes and replaces many of the documents required in prior consolidated RFPs. This certification form replaces those original documents. 

The purpose of this change is to reduce the up-front time and cost for planning the supportive housing units and preparing application materials. Projects that are selected for funding will then complete the planning process and submission requirements for the supportive housing units post-selection and before closing on funding or prior to carryover for housing tax credits.

For applications that qualify as Primarily Supportive Housing, do not complete this certification form. The required submission forms for Primarily Supportive Housing are listed on the application checklist, which can be found in the Multifamily Customer Portal. 

Application and Post-Selection Process	
Applicants with a property that will be Partially Supportive Housing electing to take points for HPH and/or PWD Units (Tier One) are not required to develop a plan for the units at the time of application. This includes identifying a specific population to be served, having a designated service provider, or identifying committed resources for services or rental assistance (unless the project has secured project-based rental assistance). Planning for the HPH and/or PWD units will be done post-selection, in collaboration with Minnesota Housing and community partners. 

Completing this certification form and the Notification to the Continuum of Care (CoC) and County or Tribal Human Services Form are the only required application forms for the Consolidated RFP for projects that qualify as Partially Supportive Housing, with the exception that applicants for PWD Tier Two for Section 811 Project-based Rental Assistance (PRA) must complete all required checklist forms for Section 811 PRA. 

For illustration purposes, the chart below summarizes the materials that are due with the Consolidated RFP application, the steps that occur during feasibility review, and the work that is completed if the project is selected for funding.
Phase	Partially Supportive Housing Requirements for HPH and PWD Tier One Units	
Application	Applicants are not required to have a plan or secured resources for the HPH and PWD units (Tier One) at the time of application. EXCEPTION: Applicants applying for Section 811 PRA units under Tier Two must submit the required pre-application and application materials as show on the application checklist in the Multifamily Customer Portal.
Required Forms:
•	Partially Supportive Housing Certification Form (this form) submitted in the Multifamily Customer Portal
•	Notification to the CoC and County or Tribal Human Services Form submitted in the Multifamily Customer Portal 
Optional Forms and submissions:
•	Service Provider Qualification Form (submitted using the secured upload process): Applicants may choose to submit this form, if needed, for points under Black, Indigenous, People of Color, and Women-owned Business Enterprises category (page 31-32 of the Self-Scoring Worksheet)
•	Housing Support Commitment Form submitted in the Multifamily Customer Portal: Applicants may choose to submit this form under the Rental Assistance checklist item, if needed for rental assistance points
Follow the underwriting assumptions for Partially Supportive Housing for setting rent levels and unique operating expenses for supportive housing (refer below) 	
Feasibility Review 	The feasibility review is conducted by Minnesota Housing after applications are submitted. During feasibility review, Minnesota Housing will:
•	Consult with the local CoC and/or county or Tribal human services department to determine if there is a market need for HPH units based upon several factors, including location, household type, Coordinated Entry waiting list and flow, current inventory of HPH units, planned resources, etc. 
o	If Minnesota Housing determines that there is not a need for additional HPH units within the local market, the proposed HPH units will be converted to units with rent restricted to 30% Multifamily Tax Subsidy Projects (MTSP), with a priority to serve homeless households. The applicant does not lose the HPH points.
•	For PWD units, if the applicant is proposing to use Housing Support that requires long-term homelessness (LTH), Minnesota Housing will consult with the local CoC and county or Tribal human services department to determine if there is a market need for LTH units. 
o	If there is not a market, or the county or Tribal human services department would prefer a different population to be served, the unit will use regular Housing Support without the LTH requirement. Service coordination costs will be added to the unique operating costs line item in the operating budget, as needed.
•	The workbook may be adjusted to change the rent levels and/or unique operating expenses for tenant service coordination for HPH and/or PWD units.	
Post-selection	If an application is selected for funding:
•	The applicant will work with Minnesota Housing and community partners to plan the supportive housing (HPH, PWD, and Other Homeless Households) units, including but not limited to:
o	Determining the population(s) to be served
o	Adjusting the unit size type, if needed, to serve the population
o	Selecting a service provider partner(s)
o	Determining the referral source(s) and process to select eligible households (for 30% MTSP rent units with a priority to serve homeless households or HPH units using an alternative** to Coordinated Entry for the referral and prioritization process)
o	Determining and securing resources for rental assistance and services
o	Adjusting the workbook as needed
•	The applicant will complete all due diligence materials, including but not limited to:
o	Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between development partners
o	Service plan and budget
o	Verification of service and rental assistance funding
o	Homeless Management Information System Form (as applicable)	
**Minnesota Housing, at its sole discretion, in consultation with the owner of a selected project and the local community, will consider alternative referral and prioritization processes for populations that have a demonstrated need for supportive housing but are not included in the Coordinated Entry System.

Underwriting Assumptions for Application Phase
Rents: Applicants are not required to submit a commitment for Housing Support for the HPH or PWD units with the initial application. If project based rental assistance is not secured for the supportive housing units, applicants should assume that Housing Support can be secured for rent and set the rents at the Housing Support levels described in Minnesota Housing’s Underwriting Standards.  Rent levels may be adjusted during the feasibility review and will be determined post-selection, dependent on unit types and the resources to be used for rental assistance.

Unique Operating Expenses: To ensure basic tenant service coordination can be provided and not be dependent on other funding sources, applicants must include expenses for basic service coordination in the operating budget on the Unique Operating Expenses line. The expenses should be calculated per supportive housing unit and based on the anticipated types of other funding for services as follows:
•	$100/unit/month if the project will likely have the Housing Support LTH service rate or another reliable funding source (Medicaid billable services, secured grant funding, etc.)
•	$400/unit/month if the project is not likely to have a reliable funding source

The unique operating expenses may be adjusted during Minnesota Housing’s feasibility review and will be determined post-selection in collaboration with the applicant. Adjustments will be dependent on unit types and resources to be used for rental assistance and the available resources for services.

High Priority Homeless (HPH) Units – Summary of Process
During the feasibility review, Minnesota Housing, at its sole discretion, will determine if there is a market need for HPH units based upon several factors including location, household type, The CoC Coordinated Entry waiting list and flow, current inventory, pending projects, etc. Minnesota Housing will verify the market need with the local CoC during the application review process. If Minnesota Housing determines that there is not a need for additional HPH units within the local market during the feasibility review, the applicant agrees that Minnesota Housing may remove the proposed HPH units from the project and convert the proposed units to units with rent restricted to 30% MTSP and maintain a priority to serve homeless households. 

A proposal that claims this criterion and is selected will be required to comply with any due diligence/ reporting requirements after selection and throughout the term of the declaration. The plan for the HPH units will be completed post-selection in collaboration between the owner, Minnesota Housing, and the local community partners, including the CoC, county or Tribal human services department, and local housing service providers. 

All necessary due diligence materials on the pre-construction checklist must be completed prior to closing or carryover for housing tax credits. 

Units for People with Disabilities (PWD) – Summary of Process
The population, market need, and resource plan for the PWD units will be determined after selection in consultation with the county or Tribal human services department, Minnesota Housing, and the CoC and community partners, as needed. If homeless eligibility is required, the market need must be verified by the CoC. Minnesota Housing, at its sole discretion, will determine if there is market need. 

A proposal that claims this criterion and is selected will be required to comply with any due diligence/ reporting requirements after selection, and with the terms of the declaration. 

All the necessary due diligence materials on the pre-construction checklist must be completed prior to closing or carryover for housing tax credits. 

Supportive Housing Standards
The Supportive Housing Alliance (SHA), formerly known as the Stewardship Council, is an interagency work group of designees from organizations that fund the development and operation of supportive housing throughout the state. SHA’s purpose is to directly impact the creation, preservation, and stabilization of supportive housing as a key component in Minnesota’s work to prevent and end homelessness. 

SHA has initiated a funding alignment project aimed at strengthening the supportive housing infrastructure statewide. The goal is to align funding for capital, operating expenses and services for supportive housing and secure additional resources. As a first step in this process, SHA has developed supportive housing standards so that housing providers and funders have a clear understanding of what is needed for quality supportive housing to serve the needs of the intended populations. 

To develop the supportive housing standards, SHA contracted with North Star Policy Consulting in 2021 to engage stakeholders to develop recommendations for the standards. In 2022, SHA then used those recommendations to draft the standards and again conducted stakeholder engagement sessions for feedback on the final standards. SHA approved the final draft of the Supportive Housing Standards in November 2022. SHA recommends that funders of site-based supportive housing adopt these standards for organizations and developments they fund that provide supportive housing.

The supportive housing standards are considered best practices, and Minnesota Housing encourages owners, sponsors and project partners to incorporate the standards into their operations, as funding allows. 

To learn more about SHA and the supportive housing standards, refer to http://supportivehousingalliance.org/ 

Certification
The owner/sponsor hereby certifies the following:
A.	Applicant acknowledges the requirements for HPH and PWD units and associated points as described on the Self Scoring Worksheet and this Partially Supportive Housing Certification Form.
B.	Applicant has notified the CoC and the county or Tribal human services department about the proposed number of HPH, PWD and/or Other Homeless Household units included in the application for this project. 
C.	If the application is selected for funding, the applicant agrees to work in good faith to collaboratively plan the supportive housing units, secure the necessary resources, including rental assistance and service funding, and complete all due diligence materials for the supportive housing units. Failure to comply could result in the loss of the funding award and/or allocation, as well as the assessment of penalty points.

This Partially Supportive Housing Certification Form is being signed by (check one):	
 Owner   Sponsor

     	     	     	
Printed Name	Title	Date	
	
Signature	

If the application has multiple signers:
     	     	     	
Printed Name	Title	Date	
	
Signature