Select a category to read its scoring criteria.
01Project Readiness and Past Performance
-30 pts+
Penalty-only category (QAP states max -30; the four listed sub-items as individually itemized in the QAP and RFP scoring appendix actually sum to -33). Deductions for: Error-Free Submission (up to -10, -2 per non-material error up to 5 errors); Readiness to Proceed (up to -4, -1 per each additional 3 months beyond a 12-month closing timeline, or -2 if permit-level 75%-complete architectural plans/permit numbers are not yet in DOB review); Compliance with DHCD Cost and Funding Guidelines (up to -5, -1 per each 5% increment over the maximum construction, soft-cost, or operating-cost guideline); Past Performance (up to -14, -2 to -5 per prior development-team project with delays, missed closing deadlines, DOL wage complaints, or missed DHCD annual reporting).
02Designated Housing Targets
40 pts+
Sub-items: Permanent Supportive Housing beyond the 5% threshold minimum (up to 10 pts, max at ≥20% PSH); Family-Oriented Units, 3+ bedroom share (up to 5 pts); Programs to Address Additional Barriers to Housing — returning citizens, developmental/intellectual disabilities, foster-care youth, HIV/AIDS housing, or other underserved populations (up to 5 pts); Housing for Older Adults — assisted living, independent living, or 55+/62+ age-restricted (up to 5 pts); Accessible Housing — Kelsey/Universal Design standards or enhanced Section 504 unit counts (up to 5 pts); Faith-Based Development Initiative (up to 5 pts); Homeownership and Wealth-Building (up to 10 pts); Income Levels Served — weighted-average MFI, max at ≤40% MFI (up to 6 pts); Section 8 and Public Housing Waiting List leasing/sales preference (up to 1 pt).
03Place-Based Priorities
30 pts+
Sub-items: Affordable Housing Opportunities Across Planning Areas — up to 25 pts for Rock Creek West/Near Northwest/Capitol Hill, 15 pts for Rock Creek East/Upper Northeast/Central Washington/Lower Anacostia Waterfront & Near Southwest; Proximity to Transit — up to 10 pts (10 pts within 1/4 mile of Metrorail, 7 pts within 1/2 mile, 3 pts near a high-frequency/24-hr bus stop); Proximity to Neighborhood Amenities — up to 5 pts (1 pt each for grocery, library, school, aging services, recreation, primary care within 1/4 mile); Preference for Projects with District Land — up to 10 pts (10 pts for a competitively-disposed District-owned site, 5 pts for a DHCD ground lease/land trust).
04Maximizing the Impact of DHCD Resources
60 pts+
Sub-items: Creation of Net New Units (up to 5 pts, ≥50% of units are Net New); Risk of Loss of Affordability in the Near Term/NOAH or Covenanted (up to 10 pts, max if unprotected or covenant expiring within 2 years); Mixed-Income (up to 10 pts: inclusion of market-rate units up to 5 pts, providing a range of MFI levels up to 5 pts); Affordability Period Restriction (up to 10 pts, max for a permanent/perpetual covenant, scaling down for 60-year and 50-year commitments); Non-Profit Participation and Right of First Refusal (up to 3 pts); Maximizing Density via PUD/Map Amendment (up to 5 pts); Leverage (up to 40 pts total: Overall Leverage up to 20 pts, scaling with DHCD participation share as low as <30%; Subsidy Leverage up to 20 pts, scaling with non-DHCD subordinate financing share as high as ≤25% of total sources).
05Innovative and Community-Oriented Features or Programming
30 pts+
Sub-items: Resilient Buildings and Innovative Design — EGC Certification Plus/EGC certification, True Zero Waste, all-electric/no on-site combustion, low-embodied-carbon LCA, mass-timber/modular/office-to-residential conversion, DOEE Resilience & Solar Assessment Tool completion (up to 20 pts, QAP text); Property Management and Resident Services — outside-funded core services and specific training/education/capacity-building program elements (up to 10 pts, QAP text); Community-Oriented Amenities — in-unit high-speed internet, child-focused amenity, fresh-food access, healthcare/wellness access, communal space (up to 6 pts per QAP narrative table, though the companion RFP scoring appendix lists this sub-item as up to 20 pts); Workforce Development — DBE/ROB/SBA-disadvantaged team members, local apprenticeship program, First Source Hiring exceedance, CBE participation (up to 8 pts); Developer Capacity Building — first-time DHCD developer partnered with an experienced partner, accelerator-program participation, majority DBE/ROB/SBA-disadvantaged managing members (up to 5 pts).
06Lowest Construction Cost Bonus
10 pts+
One project in each of the Production and Preservation pools with the lowest per-unit construction cost (meeting DHCD's housing-quality standards) receives this bonus. The QAP's own summary table (p.29) labels it a flat '20 Points' bonus; the companion 2026 Consolidated RFP's detailed scoring appendix (p.144) instead lists it as 10 points from the Production pool and 10 points from the Preservation pool (i.e., 10 points to the one winning project in whichever pool it competes in). Projects receiving the bonus forfeit eligibility for cost-overrun funding beyond DHCD's standard 10% allowable deviation.
Scoring sourceDC 2025 QAP 'Evaluation Criteria' section, pp.29-39 (category summary table + narrative descriptions of each sub-criterion). The fully itemized, point-by-point scoring matrix — matching the QAP's category structure but with more granular point breakdowns and explicit 'Maximum Score' per category plus a 'TOTAL MAX POINTS PER PROJECT' line — is published in the companion document '2026 DHCD Consolidated Request for Proposals for Affordable Housing Financing,' Section XIV 'Appendix 2: Development Financing – Evaluation Criteria Scoring Matrix,' pp.136-144. Threshold pool structure (Production vs. Preservation) is described at QAP p.29 and RFP p.~35 ('Evaluation Criteria' intro).
