With the clock ticking on Richmond’s access to federal dollars meant to help city government workers buy their first home, officials are now looking to expand the program to school employees.

Officials introduced an ordinance to City Council last week recommending that the Homebuyer Assistance Program include first-time homebuyers who are Richmond Public Schools employees. 

The city received nearly $155 million from the federal government’s American Rescue Plan Act during the COVID-19 pandemic, $1.3 million of which was set aside for the program. 

The program was initially reserved for city employees, and provides $25,000 in the form of down payment and closing cost assistance. But only four employees have fully benefitted from the assistance, the ordinance reads, leaving an unspent amount of approximately $1.2 million as of December 2025.

The city now has until Dec. 31, 2026 to spend the money, or else it will go back to the federal government. 

Richmond set aside $1.3M to help city employees buy homes. Only a few people have completed the program

Only three employees have bought a home so far under the program, using only a small fraction of the $1.3 million allocated to it.

The RichmonderGraham Moomaw

In order to qualify under the current conditions, recipients must be full-time city employees with at least one year of service and a gross household income of no more than $120,000 for a two-person household or $138,000 for bigger households. Recipients can purchase a home for no more than $550,000 and cannot have owned or purchased a home within the last three years. 

Of the 127 city employees that applied for the program, only 81 met the minimum requirements, according to the introduced ordinance. Forty-seven completed their homebuyer education, 21 submitted documents and seven had funds reserved. Another 16 employees applied in October 2025, and 13 of those applied for classes.

“The city does not know how many have completed the classes or desire to move to the next step,” the ordinance says. 

In Richmond, what is ‘affordable’ housing?

Some elected officials have long complained that wealthier, more populous counties within the Richmond metro area skew the AMI and put low-income city residents at a disadvantage.

The RichmonderSarah Vogelsong

Richmond officials held multiple meetings with program contractor Housing Opportunities Made Equal of Virginia, also known as HOME, to explore other options to increase the rate of spending for the program. 

“The option to expand eligible recipients to Richmond School Board employees is permitted under the Virginia Code and ARPA Guidance. HOME is supportive of this expansion, which requires a new ordinance and contract amendment to expand the opportunity to all Richmond School Board employees,” the ordinance says. 

The ordinance will be reviewed by councilors at their next Finance and Economic Development Committee meeting on April 16.

Contact Reporter Victoria A. Ifatusin at vifatusin@richmonder.org