$20 Million National Grant Competition

The national housing shortage continues to make headlines. Estimates on the number of homes needed to close the gap run in the millions. But one thing is clear: without a stable, affordable place to call home, it’s impossible to thrive.

In an effort to scale needed housing solutions, Enterprise and the Wells Fargo Foundation have teamed up to launch a new $20 million competition. The Housing Affordability Breakthrough Challenge will identify and propel implementation-ready innovations that transform current practices and reimagine access to affordable homes.

Eligible applicants will compete for individual grants of $1 million, $2 million and $3 million to scale ideas that lay the groundwork for system-wide change. Winners also will receive two years of technical assistance to turn their ideas into real-world programs.

Applications will open on January 31, 2023, via a link from this webpage. Submissions will be accepted until March 3, 2023.

Register for the upcoming web session

Competition & Application Overview
February 2, 2023, 11 a.m. PT

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Cornerstone Blue

Focus Areas

This second cycle of the Housing Affordability Breakthrough Challenge aims to meet the nation’s affordable housing challenges across Native, rural, suburban, Tribal and urban communities.

Proposals must encompass one or more of three focus areas:

Financing
Construction
Access and Resident Support

Innovations across all three focus areas must demonstrate how they center racial equity and, where applicable, integrate environmental sustainability.

Wells Fargo’s support of the 2023 Housing Affordability Breakthrough Challenge is another opportunity to engage entrepreneurs and social innovators and advance ideas that can improve housing opportunities for millions.

We urgently need to reimagine access to quality affordable places to live in the U.S., which is so tightly linked to economic stability, physical and mental health, and ultimately generational wealth.

– Otis Rolley, President of Wells Fargo Foundation and Head of Philanthropy and Community Impact

Eligibility

The competition will cast a wide net and be open to a range of organizations:

Organizations with a 501(c)(3) status
Mission-oriented for-profits
Government-affiliated organizations, housing authorities and housing finance agencies with a 501(c)(3) entity
Tribally Designated Housing Entities (TDHEs)
Tribal Housing Authorities
Public agencies, municipalities and government-affiliated organizations (limited eligibility)

Markets Eligible to Apply

US map of states for Breakthrough Challenge

See the list of eligible markets

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The Housing Affordability Breakthrough Challenge has proven that investing in pathbreaking innovations at the local level is a powerful way to build more equity and affordability in our communities nationwide.

Jacqueline Waggoner, President, Solutions Division, Enterprise

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Community Green

Application Process

Through a three-round competition, winning innovations will be selected by a panel of judges, including leaders from Enterprise, Wells Fargo, and nationally recognized community development and housing experts.

The cohort of winners will be announced in fall 2023 and take part in a multi-year initiative to share ideas and cultivate their innovations into solutions that can be applied in communities across the U.S.

Competition Timeline

Round 1
January 31 - March 3

Informational Webinar
February 2

Round 2
May 9 - June 6

Round 3
August 7 - September 1

Pitch Competition
October 9 - 11

Winners Announced
Week of October 23

The Housing Affordability Breakthrough Challenge Exhibit at the National Museum

Celebrating Housing Innovations

Launched in 2020, the inaugural Housing Affordability Breakthrough Challenge named six winners whose innovations have made an impact in communities across the United States. The winners and their housing solutions are currently on display in “A Better Way Home,” a free exhibition at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C., open through May 8, 2023.

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See how we invest in solutions

Watch Video

Seeding Innovation

A Look at the First Challenge

Winners of the 2020 Housing Affordability Breakthrough Challenge are moving forward in exciting ways: breaking ground, setting down homes, and scaling to new geographies. See the breadth, reach and impact of their ideas – and how an engaged cohort made a pivotal difference for these housing innovators.

The support, encouragement and expectations allowed us to develop something very innovative in a short period of time.

Natasha Pallan, Center for NYC Neighborhoods