North Carolina
QAP scoring guide.
North Carolina Housing Finance Agency (NCHFA), as administrative agent for the North Carolina Federal Tax Reform Allocation Committee · 2026 QAP
Competitive scoring
Not stated in the QAP or any companion document reviewed; no historical minimum-winning-score figure is published there.
Select a category to read its scoring criteria.
01Site Evaluation – Neighborhood Characteristics
10 pts
02Site Evaluation – Amenities
46 pts
03Site Evaluation – Site Suitability
12 pts
04Site Evaluation – Site Negative Points
-3 (deduction) pts
05Tenant Rent Levels and RPP
2 pts
06Maximum Project Development Costs
-10 (deduction) pts
07Applicant Bonus Points
2 pts
08Disaster Recovery Bonus (Non-DHHS Priority Counties)
1 pts
09Olmstead Settlement Initiative
4 pts
10Section 1602 Exchange Projects
-40 (deduction) pts
11Unit Mix – Market-Rate Units Penalty
-10 (deduction) pts
12Design Standards – Criteria for Score Evaluation
30 pts
2026 NC QAP (nchfa.com/sites/default/files/page_attachments/2026FinalQAP.pdf), Section IV "Selection Criteria and Threshold Requirements," pp. 12-27 of 37: §IV(A)(1) Site Evaluation (pp.13-17), §IV(B)(2) Tenant Rent Levels and RPP (p.18), §IV(C)(1) Maximum PDC penalty (p.19), §IV(F) Special Criteria and Tiebreakers incl. Applicant Bonus/Olmstead/1602 Exchange/Tiebreaker Criteria (pp.24-25), §IV(E) Unit Mix market-rate penalty (p.23), §IV(G)(2) Design Standards Score Evaluation (p.26). Bond allocation at Section V (pp.28-29) and Appendix M (25% test transition).
Tie-breakers
Review the agency’s tie-breaker rules alongside the scoring criteria.
- County with highest cost-burdened low-income renters per 9% unit funded, last 5 years (Appendix L)
- Highest total unit count as of full application
- Lowest average income targeting as of preliminary application (can't rise >5% by full application)
- Serves tenants with children: ≥25% of units are 3-4 bedroom, only if market study shows demand
- Project intends eventual tenant ownership (detached single-family plan plus conversion business plan)
- If still tied, fewest federal tax credits requested wins
Development strategy
Explore the documented considerations behind a competitive application.
Target high-cost-burden counties -- the credit ask is a last resort
NC's real 9% tiebreaker cascade runs: highest cost-burdened low-income renters per credit dollar funded in that county over the last 5 years, then highest total unit count, then lowest average income targeting, then a tenants-with-children unit mix (at least 25% 3-4BR), then tenant-ownership intent. Trimming the credit request only matters as the final tiebreaker, if all five above still tie -- it is not, on its own, a leading lever.
NC Housing Finance Agency -- 2026 Final Qualified Allocation Plan, Tiebreaker Criteria ↗The Concentration rule, not the old poverty tiebreak, is the real modern threshold
NC's poverty-rate tiebreaker was removed after the 2020 QAP and hasn't returned in any cycle since (confirmed absent across six consecutive years of QAP text, 2021-2026). Its real functional descendant is the Concentration rule -- a DISQUALIFYING threshold, not a scored or ranked factor. A site that fails it is out regardless of how it ranks on the current cost-burden tiebreaker, so check this first.
NC Housing Finance Agency -- 2026 Final Qualified Allocation Plan ↗West region carries a one-cycle disaster-recovery add-on for 2026
On top of the standing regional set-asides (West 16%, Central 23%, Metro 38%, East 23% of ceiling), 2026 adds a 12%-of-ceiling Hurricane Helene disaster-recovery allocation specifically to the West region -- a real, present-cycle-only shift in how much competition a West-region site actually faces versus a typical year.
NC Housing Finance Agency -- 2026 Final Qualified Allocation Plan, Appendix K (Regional Allocation) ↗Underwriting parameters
2026 NC QAP (nchfa.com/sites/default/files/page_attachments/2026FinalQAP.pdf), Section VI(B) "Underwriting Threshold Requirements," pp. 31-34 of 37 (subsections 1-14: Loan Underwriting Standards, Operating Expenses, Equity Pricing, Reserves, Deferred Developer Fees, Financing Commitment, Developer Fees, Consulting Fees, Architects' Fees, Investor Services Fees, Project Contingency Funding, Project Ownership, Section 8 PBRA, Water/Sewer/Tap Fees). Fee schedule at Section III(B), p. 11 of 37. RPP-specific underwriting mirrored/detailed in Appendix G (Rental Production Program Guidelines), incorporated by reference.
Utility allowance
Preferred method: No single default applies across the board. Mandatory overrides trump owner choice: (1) RD-financed/assisted properties must use the RD-approved UA; (2) properties with HUD project-based rental assistance (HUD-reviewed rents/UA) must use the HUD-approved UA. For properties without RD/HUD regulation, the owner may choose freely among PHA schedule, utility company written estimate, NCHFA "Agency Estimate" (actual-consumption or software model), HUD Utility Schedule Model, or an energy consumption model -- and may even mix methods by utility type (e.g., PHA for water/sewer, actual-use for electric). One hard exception within that free choice: any unit occupied by a Section 8 voucher holder must use the PHA utility allowance regardless of what method governs the rest of the building.
NCHFA Utility Allowance Agency Estimate Spreadsheet (the required data-input workbook for the "Agency Estimate" actual-consumption method) ↗NCHFA Utility Allowance Policy (Updated Jan. 22, 2010; currently posted/reaffirmed for the 2026 cycle on NCHFA's Ownership/Management compliance page), "Summary of Allowable Methodologies" and Options 1-7, pp. 1-4. The 2026 QAP itself (2026FinalQAP.pdf) does not contain a dedicated Utility Allowance section -- "utility allowances" appears only once, in passing, at Section IV.A.2(d) (p. 17 of 37), addressing that rents may not be increased after the market-study revision deadline "irrespective of a decrease in utility allowances." All substantive UA methodology is governed by this standalone Compliance/Ownership-Management policy document, not the QAP.