# West Virginia

### Summary

West Virginia state is facing challenges to housing affordability. For every 100 low-income renter households, there are 66 units available that are affordable to them. The median household income in the state is $27,889 whereas the median rent in the state is $579. Currently, the state is short over 16,444 low-income housing units, meaning rental units that are affordable to households earning ≤60% of AMI.

26.1% share of renter households  
41.7% share of low-income households  
39.5% share of rent-burdened households

### Renter population data

#### Renters vs homeowners

| Households            | % share  |
|----------------------|----------|
| Renter households     | 185,407  | 26.1%  |
| Homeowner households   | 525,945  | 73.9%  |
| Total households      | 711,352  | 100.0% |

#### Low-income renter households

| Households                 | % share |
|---------------------------|---------|
| Extremely low-income (≤30% AMI) | 26,476 | 14.3% |
| Very low-income (31-50% AMI)   | 21,772 | 11.7% |
| Low-income (51-80% AMI)        | 28,996 | 15.6% |
| All low-income households (<80% AMI) | 77,244 | 41.7% |

#### Rent-burdened households

| Share of income spent on rent | Households  | % share |
|-------------------------------|-------------|---------|
| Moderately rent-burdened     | 34,677      | 18.7%  |
| 30.0–34.9%                   | 13,908      | 7.5%   |
| 35.0–39.9%                   | 8,381       | 4.5%   |
| 40.0-49.9%                   | 12,388      | 6.7%   |
| Severely rent-burdened       | 38,612      | 20.8%  |
| ≥50.0%                       | 38,612      | 20.8%  |
| All rent-burdened households  | 73,289      | 39.5%  |

### Affordable housing shortage

#### Rent vs median household income

| Amount ($)                   | in 2010 | in 2021 | Increase (2010–2021) |
|------------------------------|---------|---------|---------------------|
| Median household income       | 20,506  | 27,889  | 36.0%              |
| Median rent                  | 406     | 579     | 42.6%              |

#### Affordable housing stock

| Units                         | Amount  |
|------------------------------|---------|
| Supply (current stock)       | 31,804  |
| Demand (total units needed)  | 48,248  |
| Shortage                     | 16,444  |
| Supply/demand ratio          | 65.9%   |

### Finance institutions

#### West Virginia Housing Development Fund

West Virginia Housing Development Fund  
5710 MacCorkle Avenue SE  
Charleston, WV 25304-2804

#### List of loan programs
- [Affordable Housing Fund](https://www.wvhdf.com/programs/affordable-housing-fund)
- [Home4Good](https://www.wvhdf.com/programs/home4good)
- [The HOME Program](https://www.wvhdf.com/programs/the-home-investment-partnerships-program)
- [LAMP](https://www.wvhdf.com/programs/lamp-low-income-assisted-mortgage-program)
- [Multifamily Loan Program](https://www.wvhdf.com/programs/multifamily-loan-program)
- [Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Program (LIHTCP)](https://www.wvhdf.com/low-income-housing-tax-credit-program/)
- [National Housing Trust Fund Program](https://www.wvhdf.com/programs/national-housing-trust-fund-program)
- [Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) Multifamily (MF) Rental Housing Program](https://www.wvhdf.com/programs/cdbg-dr-wv-multifamily-mf-rental-housing-program)

### QAP document (Qualified Allocation Plan)

#### QAP

West Virginia

The QAP is a document that states, and a few local agencies, must develop in order to distribute federal Low Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTCs), which can be awarded only to a building that fits the QAP’s priorities and criteria. Each QAP must spell out a housing finance agency’s (HFA’s) priorities and specify the criteria it will use to select projects competing for tax credits. The priorities must be appropriate to local conditions.

### Housing news

#### How Fed Rate Cuts Impact the Housing Market

**Key Takeaways:**
- **Lower Mortgage Rates**: Fed rate cuts have already reduced the average 30-year mortgage rate, which dropped from a peak of 7.79% in late 2023 to around 6.2%. This could ease the burden for homebuyers and those refinancing.
- **Home Sales**: As rates decline, more homeowners might be encouraged to sell, which could help alleviate some of the housing market’s stagnation.
- **Ongoing Supply Issues:** Despite lower rates, housing supply shortages will persist, especially in high-demand areas.

### Shortage statistics for ELI & VLI renters

_S&D ratio = Supply & Demand Ratio_

List of counties

| Name           | Households | % share | Rent-burdened | Affordable housing | Shortage of units | S&D ratio |
|----------------|------------|---------|---------------|--------------------|-------------------|-----------|
| County statistics coming soon... |         |         |               |                    |                   |           |