Under Director Serviss’ leadership, the state broke ground on 4,155 affordable housing units in 2023 and 3,875 units in 2024 — the most in any two-year time period in Arizona.
Under Director Serviss’ leadership, the state has implemented historic investments in the Housing Trust Fund to lower the cost of housing for Arizonans, including creating more than 4,500 affordable units and 320 transitional housing units, and connecting 500 first-time homebuyers to down payment assistance.
Housing Trust Funds and Homeless Shelter and Services Funds have enabled:
Housing Production: 3,579 new or rehabilitated affordable rental homes (with another ~1,000 to be approved in the coming weeks); 78 new permanently affordable Habitat for Humanity homes; 327 new transitional housing beds.
Home Ownership: 500 first time home buyers through the Arizona is Home mortgage assistance program (which will reach 1,000 in the coming year thanks to an American Rescue Plan Act allocation in FY25)
Crisis Response: 21,469 individuals assisted in their housing crisis; 8,533 individuals experiencing homelessness helped with expanded shelter capacity and services; 2,050 persons assisted with extreme weather response; 65 homeowners assisted with emergency home repairs to preserve their housing.
Targeted Support: 16 new substance abuse recovery beds created; 9 local governments assisted with grants to perform affordable housing studies.
Swift, deliberate action by ADOH to support housing solutions across the state
Director Serviss is capable and effective at tackling Arizona’s housing challenges. From Day 1, she has brought her expertise in housing policy and programs to lead the agency at a time when housing affordability is a top concern for Arizona residents.
Within months of assuming the role, Director Serviss moved to have ADOH forward-allocate all of its federal Low Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC) for 2024. Between 2023 and 2024 credits, this generated 15 new affordable housing projects for 2023 (including 7 in rural communities which ties the agency record for rural awards set last year), which together translates to 1,049 new housing units throughout Arizona. In some past years, ADOH has forward-allocated a portion of the following year’s tax credits; this is the first time in state history that Arizona put 100% of the following year’s credits to work in the current year to fund development.
When the Legislature allocated much-needed resources to the Housing Trust Fund and Homeless Shelter and Services Fund in 2023, Director Serviss moved swiftly to allocate the funds not only across the state (over 40 of the 102 awards for projects and programs in rural areas) but also across the housing continuum (funding development of affordable housing, homeownership opportunities, and efforts to prevent housing insecurity).
She worked quickly to allocate $20 million in Homeless Shelter and Services Funds to local governments mere weeks after the budget was enacted in preparation for the brutal season of summer heat Arizona had seen. And in less than a year, Director Serviss and her team led 10 listening sessions to make sure these funds were responsive to community needs, and ultimately allocated the remaining $190 within a year—a breakneck pace rarely seen from this relatively small state agency.
Widespread, bipartisan support
Nearly 60 housing partners have expressed strong support for the confirmation for Director Joan Serviss to lead the Arizona Department of Housing.
Support comes from the public, private, and nonprofit sectors and includes Republican leaders, nationally recognized affordable housing developers, manufactured housing industry leaders, and nonprofits focused on improving the housing continuum.
Mayor Jerry Weiers, City of Glendale
Thomas Simplot, former Director of the Arizona Department of Housing
Mike Trailor, former Director of the Arizona Department of Housing
Sheila Harris, former Director of the Arizona Department of Housing
Fred Karnas, former Director of the Arizona Department of Housing
Courtney LeVinus, Arizona Multihousing Association
Rina Rien, Pinal Partnership
Gabe Forsberg, Maricopa County StandDown Executive Committee
Steve Caprobres, Catholic Charities
Suzanne Kinney, NAIOP Commercial Real Estate Development Assn., AZ Chapter
Thomas McCoy, Disabled American Veterans
Pat Schoneck, Arizona Association of Mobile Home Owners
Carole Benedict, U.S. Vets - Prescott
Diana Yazzie-Devine, Native American Connections
Sam Baird, Manufactured Housing Industry of Arizona
Kimberly Merrill, Manufactured Housing Industry of Arizona
Thomas Winkel, Arizona Coalition for Military Families
Connor Larr, Ulysses Development Group
Shelley Marquez, Mercy Housing
Eric Marcus, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona
Sebastian Porchini
David Roe, Clayton Homes
David Adame, Chicanos Por La Causa
Clark Princell, Valley Partnership
Dana Kennedy, AARP Arizona
Darrel Christenson, Ability360
Dan Ranieri, La Frontera Arizona
C. Peter Delgado, Tohono O’odham Ki:Ki Association
Jessica Raymond, Atlantic Development & Investments
Joanna Carr, Arizona Housing Coalition
Brian Swanton, Gorman & Company
Amy Schwabenlender, Human Services Campus
Kelly McGowan, Wildfire
Michael Huges, A New Leaf
Jim McPherson, Phoenix Community Alliance
John Hogeboom, Community Bridges, Inc.
Maggie Amado-Tellez, Pima County Land Trust
Rick Mitchell, Homeless I.D. Project
Michael Shore, HOM Inc.
Jodi Fragnoli, HOM Inc.
Jackson Fonder, UMOM New Day Centers
Candy Espino, Arizona Council of Human Service Providers
Liz Morales, Arizona Housing Authority Directors Association
Irma Hollamby Cain, National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials
Diane Yentel, National Low Income Housing Coalition
Daniel Davis
Allison Hephner
Cyndy Gaughan
Pamela Morrison
Arturo Perez
St. Charles Town Company
Nathan Smith, CASS
Dean Schienert, Justa Center
Tami Bohannon, Foundation for Senior Living
Ted Goltzman, Commonwealth Development Corporation
Darlene Newsom, (formerly) UMOM New Day Centers
Bill Morlan, CASS (board chair)
Benjamin Taylor, Lincoln Avenue Communities
Shelly Marquez, Mercy Housing
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