The Greenville Housing Fund continues to be a champion for the creation and preservation of affordable housing in Greenville County.
In 2025, the nonprofit organization opened two new affordable housing complexes and broke ground on Southernside East, a $24.5 million senior affordable housing project near Greenville’s Unity Park. The Greenville Housing Fund also became an affiliate of NeighborWorks America, a congressionally chartered nonprofit, this past year.
The Greenville Housing Fund celebrated these accomplishments and outlined its priorities for 2026 during its annual meeting held Dec. 11. Jimmy Kimbell, board chair of the Greenville Housing Fund, said organization members feel optimistic about the upcoming year.
“We think that there are going to be a lot of affordable housing opportunities,” Kimbell said. “We pledge to continue to give you 100% of our effort, both from a board and staff standpoint, to increase the number of units that we have in Greenville County so that everyone can have a safe, comfortable place to live.”
Development pipeline
In 2026, the Greenville Housing Fund will continue to focus on securing financing for local affordable housing developments. Libba King, the organization’s vice president of real estate and capital markets, said the organization plans to submit at least one preliminary application for the 9% Low Income Housing Tax Credit program next year.
The nonprofit organization also intends to close on Southernside West, the sister project to Southernside East, in the first quarter of 2026. The $21.1 million project will create 54 affordable units for senior citizens earning 20 to 30 percent of the area’s median income. It will be located at 825 W. Washington St. in Greenville.
In addition, the Greenville Housing Fund will serve as a community consultant for two local organizations working to preserve existing low-income housing. For example, the Greenville Housing Fund will help the Gateway House apply for SC Housing’s Supportive Housing Program for the renovation of 17 units at Earle Street Apartments in Greenville.
King explained that the Greenville Housing Fund is also a consultant for the Greer Housing Authority. The housing authority is working to convert public housing at the Victoria Arms Apartments in Greer through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Rental Assistance Demonstration program.
Another priority for the Greenville Housing Fund will be closing on the finances for two neighborhood infill projects in Greenville. These projects include:
- The Huddle at Sterling: A $2.6 million project that will be developed in partnership with The Sterling Land Trust. It will consist of 10 long-term rental homes in the Sterling neighborhood for individuals earning between 30 to 100 percent of the area median income.
- West Washington Townhomes: A $3.25 million project that will be developed in partnership with Homes of Hope. The project will create 11 townhomes for sale at the corner of Antley and West Washington streets for individuals earning 50 to 100 percent of the AMI.
Organizational priorities
Next year, the Greenville Housing Fund plans to launch the strategic planning process for 2026-2029. Tiffany Santagati, the organization’s vice president of operations, said the process will ensure the Greenville Housing Fund has a strong foundation for its work years ahead.
The organization’s additional goals for 2026 include:
- Advancing its Homeownership Preservation Program 2.0
- Reestablishing the Real Estate Developer Incubator program in partnership with CommunityWorks Carolina and the Urban Land Institute
- Enhancing the Greenville Housing Fund’s resident services
The Greenville Housing Fund’s annual meeting on Thursday morning was attended by local elected officials, community stockholders and industry partners. Attendees heard remarks from Greenville City Councilmember Dorothy Dowe, Greenville County Councilman Alan Mitchell, and Todd Latiff, board chair of South Carolina Housing.
An expert panel was also held during the meeting to discuss community land trusts and how shared equity homeownership models can increase affordable homeownership. The panelists included F.A. Johnson, CEO of Charleston Redevelopment Authority, and Henrietta Woodward, executive director of Community First Land Trust.
The Greenville Housing Fund is exploring the idea of creating a local community land trust to practice the shared equity homeownership model. This model separates the ownership of a home from the land it sits on to facilitate long-term, permanent affordability for the homeowner. King said the organization is currently incubating this program with the help of a consultant from the Champlain Housing Trust in Vermont.
“The vision that we have is to be a spearhead for thought incubation and really providing a proof of pilot that we can do this in the Upstate,” King said.
Five-year update
The Greenville Housing Fund convenes the Greenville Affordable Housing Coalition, which launched in 2020. The coalition aims to cut the affordable housing deficit in half by creating 10,000 affordable units and preserving 3,000 existing affordable homes by 2030.
An update on the coalition effort was presented during the Greenville Housing Fund’s annual meeting. In five years, a total of:
- 2,763 units have been produced
- 2,739 units have been preserved
