Glossary

AHP - the Affordable
Housing Program, a project
of the Federal Home Loan
Banks,(http://www.fhlbsf.com
/ci/grant/ahp/default.asp)
creates grants and loans for
development of affordable
housing to low and moderate
income residents.

AMI - area median income

APR - The "annual
percentage rate," as often
disclosed in a Schumer Box
on a credit card statement or
the Truth in Lending
statement on a mortgage
loan.

CDBG - community
development block grant

CDC - community
development corporation

CHDO - A community
housing development
organization. Pronounced
"cho-dough."

CRA- The Community
Reinvestment Act, a 1977
law that guaranteed the right
of communities to capital
and required banks to serve
the "convenience and needs"
of the communities where
they do business.

Davis Bacon - a law that
requires that employees on
public projects be paid at
least at prevailing wage rates.

RESPA -- Real Estate
Settlement Procedures Act.
Requires lenders to provide
borrowers under Federal loan
or mortgage insurance
programs to receive specific
loan transaction
information.

SBA - Small Business
Administration

Section 8 - a federal rent
subsidy program.

SRI - socially responsible
investor. This describes
investors who seek to
accommodate social goals
with financial returns in their
investment decision making.

SRO - Single Room
Occupancy housing. This is
generally located in big
cities.

TA - technical assistance.

TILA - Truth in Lending
Act, passed in 1968, protects
consumers through full
disclosure of loan terms.

WISH - Workforce
Initiative Subsidy for Home
Ownership provides
matching funds for workers
to buy homes.

LIHTC - Low income
housing tax credits provide
equity for nonprofits to
construct housing, both for
rental and purchase, to
targeted populations.

LMI - low or moderate
income, usually defined as
people with an annual
income that is less than 80
percent of the median
income for an MSA.

MSA - metropolitan
statistical area

NCHFA - The North
Carolina Housing Finance
Agency.

PRI - program-related
investment. This is a special
class of investments made by
operating foundations. These
foundations provide funds to
serve as equity for nonprofit
investment endeavors. The
foundations must
demonstrate that they have
received a below market rate
of return.

QAP - Qualified Action Plan
describes the selection
criteria for an affordable
housing plan.

RAC - Refund Anticipation
Check. A check used to pay
a Refund Anticipation Loan.

RAL - Refund Anticipation
Loan. A short-term advance
on an expected return from a
tax refund.

EITC - earned income tax
credit, a federal poverty
alleviation program that
gives refundable tax credits
to low-income filers based on
their amount of earned
income and the size of their
family.

FFIEC - the Federal
Financial Institutions
Examination Council.

FMR - Fair Market Rents

HMDA - The Home
Mortgage Disclosure Act, a
law that requires lenders to
release specific data on their
mortgage lending to the
government and to the
public. It often refers to the
database published by the
FFIEC.

IDA - An Individual
Development Account
provides incentives to
individuals to save money.
Some provide a match for
money saved by participants.
Many are designed to help
savers achieve a specific
goal, such as a down
payment for a home, a
college education, or a car.

IDEA - Individual
Development and
Empowerment Programs,
another product of the
Federal Home Loan Banks.
IDEA grants allow savers to
accrete money for down
payments and can provide
matching funds as incentives.