D.C. Affordable Housing Project Secures $114M
Harvard Court Apartments will feature 108 apartments in Columbia Heights at rents affordable to people earning 30% to 50% of the AMI
By Nick Trombola August 1, 2025 12:40 pm
reprints
A $100 million tenant-owned affordable housing project in Washington, D.C., has landed a big chunk of financing to help the development get started.
Once completed, Harvard Court Apartments will feature 108 apartments in the District’s Columbia Heights neighborhood priced at rents affordable to people earning 30 to 50 percent of the area median income. Twenty-two units will also be designated permanent supportive housing units.
The D.C. Housing Finance Agency (DCHFA), a quai-government entity, issued $48.3 million in tax-exempt bonds, and underwrote $34.9 million in federal credit and $6.8 million in D.C. Low-Income Housing Tax Credit equity, toward the project. The bonds were secured by Department of Housing and Urban Development insured loans.
The D.C. Department of Housing and Community Development also provided $24.3 million toward the project, via its Housing Production Trust Fund, according to DCHFA.
A joint venture led by Columbia Heights Village Tenant Association (CHVTA) acquired the property, currently a parking lot at 1425 Harvard Street NW, for $12.5 million in 2022, per property records. The property was acquired via D.C.’s Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act (TOPA), a policy that gives tenants first opportunity to purchase properties marketed for sale by their landlords.
The tenant association chose the NHP Foundation and the nonprofit Change All Souls Housing as the development team for the project.
“Bringing new affordable housing to Columbia Heights is about more than building units — it’s about protecting the diversity and vitality that give this neighborhood its soul,” Christopher E. Donald, DCHFA executive director and CEO, said in a statement. “By guaranteeing long-term affordability we’re ensuring that families across income levels can continue to thrive here for generations.”
News of the DCHFA funding comes about six months after the agency provided a $120.5 million financing package toward the second phase of Barnaby & 7th, a 229-unit project in the District’s Washington Highlands neighborhood.
Nick Trombola can be reached at ntrombola@commercialobserver.com.
