A housing finance authority shall constitute a public body corporate and politic, exercising the public and essential governmental functions set forth in this act, and shall exercise its power to borrow only for the purpose as provided herein:

(1) To sue and be sued, to have a seal and to alter the same at pleasure, to have perpetual succession, to make and execute contracts and other instruments necessary or convenient to the exercise of the powers of the housing finance authority, and to make and from time to time amend and repeal bylaws, rules, and regulations, not inconsistent with this act, to carry into effect the powers and purposes of the housing finance authority.
(2) To own real and personal property acquired through the use of surplus funds or through public and private partnerships provided that the obligations of the authority are limited to project revenues and that no less than 50 percent of the units owned by a housing finance authority shall benefit very-low-income families or low-income families. For the purposes of this subsection, a “very-low-income family” means a family whose income does not exceed 50 percent of the median family income for the area, and the term “low-income family” means a family whose income does not exceed 80 percent of the median family income for the area. Family income levels shall be adjusted for family size. Notwithstanding the other provisions of this subsection, a housing finance authority may acquire real and personal property to house and equip its facilities and staff.
(3) To purchase or make commitments to purchase or to make loans for such purpose, and to take assignments of, from lending institutions acting as a principal or as an agent of the housing finance authority, mortgage loans and promissory notes accompanying such mortgage loans, including federally insured mortgage loans or participations with lending institutions in such promissory notes and mortgage loans for the construction, purchase, reconstruction, or rehabilitation of the qualifying housing development or portion thereof; provided, that the proceeds of sale or equivalent moneys shall be reinvested in mortgage loans.
(4) To borrow money through the issuance of bonds for single-family housing and qualified housing developments, to provide for and secure the payment thereof, and to provide for the rights of the holders thereof.
(5) To make loans to lending institutions under terms and conditions requiring the proceeds thereof to be used by such lending institutions for the making of new mortgages for any qualifying housing development, or portion thereof, located wholly or partially within the area of operation of such housing finance authority. Prior to making a loan to a lending institution which makes such loans or provides such financing, the lending institution must agree to use the proceeds of such loan within a reasonable period of time to make loans or to otherwise provide financing for the acquisition, construction, reconstruction, or rehabilitation of a housing development or portion thereof, and the housing finance authority must find that such loan will assist in alleviating the shortage of housing and of capital for investment in housing within its area of operation.
(6) To deposit funds into an account with a lending institution to provide security for the lending institution to make loans to eligible persons for the purchase, construction, reconstruction, or rehabilitation of single-family homes or to developers for the construction, reconstruction, or rehabilitation of qualifying housing developments or portions thereof. No funds may be deposited with a lending institution in which any depositing housing finance authority member, officer, or employee has an ownership interest. The sale price on new or existing single-family homes shall not exceed 90 percent of the median area purchase price in the area wherein the single-family home is located, as established by the United States Department of Treasury in accordance with 1s. 3(b)(2) of the United States Housing Act of 1937.
(7) To invest, at the direction of the lending institution, any fund held in reserves or sinking funds or any funds not required for immediate disbursement in property or securities in which lending institutions may legally invest funds subject to their control.
(8) To make loans directly to eligible persons who otherwise cannot borrow from conventional lending sources. Such loans must be secured by first mortgages or subordinated mortgages and must be used to purchase, construct, rehabilitate, or refinance single-family residences that have purchase prices that do not exceed the purchase price limits of the county where the borrower’s residence is to be located, as mandated by federal law for tax-exempt single-family bond programs.
(9) To own, maintain, operate, control, and capitalize a limited-purpose savings and loan association to provide low-cost loans and related services to eligible persons to obtain affordable housing pursuant to this part. The bank may acquire deposits, which must be federally insured, sell mortgages in the secondary market, and issue mortgage-backed securities. The proceeds from loans and the sale of mortgages or mortgage-backed securities must be reinvested in mortgage loans. However, this subsection does not prohibit the temporary reinvestment of such proceeds in other securities and investments. The bank must have a minimum of $10 million in capital and must comply with all applicable state and federal banking and regulatory requirements and any other requirements imposed by the county.
(10)(a) To make loans or grant surplus funds to corporations that qualify as not-for-profit corporations under s. 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, and under the laws of this state, for the development of affordable housing; and

Terms Used In Florida Statutes 159.608

  • Area of operation: means the area within the territorial boundaries of the county for which the housing finance authority is created, and any area outside the territorial boundaries of such county if the governing body of the county within which such outside area is located approves. See Florida Statutes 159.603
  • Bonds: means any bonds, notes, debentures, interim certificates, or other evidences of financial indebtedness issued by a housing finance authority under and pursuant to this act. See Florida Statutes 159.603
  • Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
  • Eligible persons: means one or more natural persons or a family, irrespective of race, creed, national origin, or sex, determined by the housing finance authority to be of low, moderate, or middle income. See Florida Statutes 159.603
  • Housing development: means any residential building, land, equipment, facility, or other real or personal property which may be necessary, convenient, or desirable in connection therewith, including streets, sewers, water and utility services, parks, gardening, administrative, community, health, recreational, and educational facilities, and other facilities related and subordinate to moderate, middle, or lesser income housing, and also includes site preparation, the planning of housing and improvements, the acquisition of property, the removal or demolition of existing structures, the acquisition, construction, reconstruction, and rehabilitation of housing and improvements, and all other work in connection therewith, and all costs of financing, including without limitation the cost of consultant and legal services, other expenses necessary or incident to determining the feasibility of the housing development, administrative and other expenses necessary or incident to the housing development and the financing thereof (including reimbursement to any municipality, county, or entity for expenditures made with the approval of the housing finance authority for the housing development), and interest accrued during construction and for a reasonable period thereafter. See Florida Statutes 159.603
  • Housing finance authority: means a housing finance authority created pursuant to…. See Florida Statutes 159.603
  • Lending institution: means any bank or trust company, mortgage banker, savings bank, credit union, national banking association, savings and loan association, building and loan association, insurance company, or other financial institution authorized to transact business in this state and which customarily provides service or otherwise aids in the financing of mortgages located in the state. See Florida Statutes 159.603
  • Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
  • Personal property: All property that is not real property.
  • Qualifying housing development: means any work or improvement located or to be located in this state, including real property, buildings, and any other real and personal property, designed or intended for the primary purpose of providing decent, safe, and sanitary residential housing for four or more families, at least 60 percent of whom are eligible persons, whether new construction, the acquisition of existing residential housing, or the remodeling, improvement, rehabilitation, or reconstruction of existing housing, together with such related nonhousing facilities as the authority determines to be necessary, convenient, or desirable. See Florida Statutes 159.603
(b) To do anything necessary or appropriate to further the purpose for which a housing finance authority is established, pursuant to s. 159.602, including, as further described in s. 159.8075, the power to issue mortgage credit certificates to the extent allocation is available for that purpose to qualifying individuals in lieu of issuing qualified mortgage bonds pursuant to ss. 25, 143, and 146 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, or a combination of the two. Mortgage credit certificates may not be issued on December 30 or December 31 of any year.
(11) To invest and reinvest surplus funds of the housing finance authority in accordance with s. 218.415. However, in addition to the investments expressly authorized in s. 218.415(16)(a)-(g) and (17)(a)-(d), a housing finance authority may invest surplus funds in interest-bearing time deposits or savings accounts that are fully insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation regardless of whether the bank or financial institution in which the deposit or investment is made is a qualified public depository as defined in s. 280.02. This subsection is supplementary to and may not be construed as limiting any powers of a housing finance authority or providing or implying a limiting construction of any other statutory provision.
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