Tobi Goldberg

Affordable Housing Development Competition

To generate interest in community development, FHLBank Boston partners with dedicated sponsors to bring together graduate students for the annual competition.

“This competition focuses a new generation of thinkers on affordable housing.”

Tobi Goldberg
Senior Community Investment Manager

Overview

Overview

Learn how the competition works and the benefits of participating, including prizes.

Participants

Participants

See this year's student coordinators and sponsors and learn how to form a team. Also, see which  developers and finance and design mentors previously participated in the competition.  

Requirements

Requirements

Students and housing developers can find out more about submission requirements and judging criteria.

Overhead shot of a series of multi-level buildings with a greenspace with trees, walkways, a playground, and people walking in the middle

High Street Homes Holyoke, MA

High Street Homes, which won the first prize in the 2024 competition, involves the transformation of 10 underutilized parcels in the heart of downtown Holyoke into a mixed-use development of 86 carefully crafted homes, 10,890 square feet of communal green space, and 30,116 square feet of community space which incorporates a daycare, residential amenities, rooftop gathering spaces, and community partnerships. 

A street view of a curved building with awnings above the windows and patio out front with a woman holding a child's hand walking toward the building and people sitting on the front lawn

The Nest Falmouth, MA

The Nest, the 2024 competition second-prize recipient, is an adaptive reuse, mixed-income, mixed-tenure project that offers affordable rental units to seasonal workers and year-round residents in the Cape Cod community of Falmouth. The project creatively utilizes 9% Low Income Housing Tax Credits to fund single-room occupancy units that can be rented month-to-month and utilizes decarbonization soft sources to implement a deep energy retrofit. The site includes a cafe, commercial kitchen, winter garden, and atrium space for community gatherings. 

exterior of a multilevel building with long windows and a tree in front of it

Newcombe Pointe and Campanella Nashua, NH

The 2024 competition third-prize recipient honors Nashua’s rich history by providing affordable rental housing and homeownership options for the city’s future. These two developments leverage modularity, clean energy tax credits, and NeighborWorks’ unique financial capabilities to give diverse renters in the Tree Streets neighborhood dignified housing choices.

woman standing and speaking to two women and a man who are seated

Competition Success

​To learn more about the competition and explore some prior winning submissions, check out the 2023 Annual Report

Read More

female senior community investment manager standing as she reviews a document with a female student coordinator who is seated

Important Dates

The 2024 affordable housing competition is now closed. We will provide updated details later this year about the 2025 competition but view this timeline to get an idea of how the competition operates.

See Timeline

female student speaking to two male students as they stand near a development rendering that's displayed in the background

2024 Competition Results

The 24th Annual Affordable Housing Development Competition drew five entries from groups of graduate students interested in architecture, real estate, planning, finance, and policy who teamed up with local affordable housing organizations.   

Read Press Release