Since the HOME Program is designed to provide affordable housing to low-income and very-low-income families and individuals, requirements were put in place to target program resources towards eligible applicants.

Applicant income eligibility. All beneficiaries of HOME funds -- homebuyers, homeowners, or tenants must be low-income or very low income.

• An applicant's eligibility to participate in a HOME-funded program is determined bythe PJ based on the household's annual ncome. PJs must verify the income of all program applicants prior to providing them with HOME assistance.

• See the HOME Front's module "Calculating Income Eligibility" module for specific information and useful tools related to establishing income eligibility.

Program targeting. While PJs must use 100 percent of their HOME funds to assist low-income and very-low-income families, additional targeting requirements also apply when HOME funds are used for rental housing or tenant-based rental assistance.

• For each annual HOME allocation, 90 percent of the occupants of HOME-assisted rental units and households assisted with HOME-funded TBRA must have incomes that are 60 percent or less of the area median.
  
  
• 20 percent of the units in each rental housing project containing five or more units must be occupied by tenant families with incomes at or below 50 percent of median income.