SALEM, Ore. – Oregon Housing and Community Services (OHCS) is one of the first housing finance agencies in the country to offer a non-competitive funding process after launching the Oregon Centralized Application (ORCA) a year ago. The affordable housing funding process is an always-open system that accepts applications on a rolling basis. This modern structure enables an ongoing evaluation of projects, allowing those that are ready to move forward without waiting for the next funding opportunity.
Over the past year, 91 affordable housing projects submitted applications—with 42 receiving funding approvals from the Housing Stability Council, totaling 2,797 urgently needed homes.
One of the benefits of the ORCA it that it allows OHCS to track how many affordable housing developments are seeking funding. Currently, more than 15,000 rental homes are in the development pipeline across the state. These homes could potentially get funded and built if OHCS has available resources.
“Being satisfied with the status quo is not enough to address Oregon’s housing needs. Rather than relying on outdated ways of doing business grounded in the past, partners and OHCS came together —under Governor Kotek’s leadership —to build something new and better on different terms,” said OHCS Executive Director Andrea Bell. “This new approach is not for the sake of innovation itself, but a means to deliver outcomes that make everyday life better for the people of Oregon.”
The ORCA process was created to eliminate unnecessary barriers and support developers earlier. By finalizing funding after core due diligence is completed, OHCS ensures that projects are more resilient to setbacks and better positioned to break ground quickly.
Developers like Jessy Ledesma of HomeWork Development and Anna Mackay of Sister City—the team behind Portland’s Shortstack Belmont project—say ORCA has made a real difference. The two women, who are developing apartments for moderate-income households, credit the ORCA process for helping them stay on track and access crucial LIFT funding.
“As developers who’ve worked through years of OHCS funding cycles, we really appreciated the updated ORCA process,” Ledesma and Mackay shared. “It’s clear, flexible, and helped us stay on track. We appreciate how we can move projects forward more organically. OHCS staff were super helpful at every stage.”
Matthew Vorderstrasse, executive director of the North Bend City/Coos-Curry Housing Authorities, also welcomed the roll out of the new funding process. “The ORCA process has been a game-changer for the South Coast. Through our collaboration with OHCS, we’ve advanced two much-needed developments—Phase I of North Bend Family Housing and Ellensburg Housing in Gold Beach. It has been decades since housing at this scale has been produced in our region, and we’re deeply grateful for the partnership and resources OHCS has brought to Coos and Curry Counties through ORCA.”
OHCS is preparing to implement further updates to ORCA in the upcoming 2025–2027 biennium, including strategies to better serve rural communities, ensure a more predictable funding pipeline, and support readiness for new legislative investments.
About Oregon Housing and Community Services (OHCS)
OHCS is Oregon’s housing finance agency. The state agency provides financial and program support to create and preserve opportunities for quality, affordable housing for Oregonians of low and moderate income. OHCS administers programs that provide housing stabilization. OHCS delivers these programs primarily through grants, contracts, and loan agreements with local partners and community-based providers. For more information, please visit: oregon.gov/ohcs.
