Catalyst Training

Real Estate Tips for an Affordable Mortgage: Purchasing a home is often an intimidating process that leaves prospective homebuyers overwhelmed. The reality is most homebuyers rely on their housing partners such as Realtors, lenders, and title companies to get the job done and trust that they are getting the best deal. This is not always […]

One of the main pillars of the 2023 Live Local Act was its land use mandate for affordable housing in commercial, industrial, and mixed-use areas. This training will explore all aspects of this affordable housing tool from the basics of the law, to data, and to implementation. Presenters will take an in-depth look at all […]

This is an engaging and practical webinar designed to help SHIP grantees strengthen and refine their purchase assistance program. This session will explore best practices, common pitfalls, and innovative strategies to ensure your program is efficient, compliant, and market responsive. Whether you’re looking to improve outreach, streamline processes, or enhance long-term affordability measures, this webinar […]

This training will help those interested in building nonprofit organizational capacity and resiliency, such as nonprofit CEOs or executive directors, senior staff, board members, funders, and local government staff working with nonprofits. Presenters will help participants identify factors that can boost nonprofit performance, like tracking performance and building strong staff. Learn how to evaluate a […]

This webinar will provide an overview of the SHIP applicant complaint process, including common types of complaints and practical strategies for responding to them. Participants will learn best practices for documentation, recordkeeping, and communication that can help minimize misunderstandings and reduce the likelihood of complaints escalating. Presenters will walk through the complaint resolution process from […]

This training will address a variety of zoning regulations to increase the supply of affordable housing in Florida and ensure well-designed places to live. Presenters will discuss specific aspects of zoning regulations that impact housing supply and a resident’s experience of their living space. We will also hear from communities who have recently implemented zoning […]

This webinar will assist local government staff in the preparation and implementation of the Local Housing Assistance Plan (LHAP) as required by SHIP. It focuses on using and improving on the LHAP in the three years between when the plan is formally updated. Learn how to write a LHAP that is clear, concise and complies […]

This webinar will provide examples of the nuts and bolts of the plan update. Key topics to be addressed include properly defining terms of assistance and designing housing strategies that work in a changing market. Presenters will discuss not-so-common strategies that can be used to serve both renters and owners. Local governments will be encouraged […]

This is the first of a two-part webinar series that helps SHIP staff and affordable housing developers understand and comply with the upcoming Florida Building Code changes that go into effect in December 2026. The first training focuses on Resilience, Wind, and Structural updates. Learn about wind loads, flood resistance, and durability standards. Presenters will […]

This is the final session of a two-part webinar series on the upcoming Florida Building Code changes in December 2026. This webinar will focus on Energy Systems, Materials, and Project Feasibility changes. Learn about updates affecting energy efficiency, mechanical systems, and material specifications, integrating compliance pathways, funding alignment considerations, and value engineering strategies suitable for […]

This webinar will provide guidance on evaluating effective structures of incentives, including density bonuses and how to coordinate other regulatory incentives, to successfully encourage use of these incentives and produce affordable units. FHC will summarize trends and provide example incentive structures from across the state.

This training will address using SHIP to help special needs households and households experiencing homelessness. Attendees will learn the types of special needs defined by Florida statute and how those households can be prioritized for SHIP assistance, including purchase assistance, rent subsidies, home repair and barrier removal, and other rental housing options. Learn how to […]

The rehabilitation process requires housing administrators and their staff to work with homeowners, contractors, building inspectors, local officials, and funders. Understanding each of these groups and learning to work with them helps to avoid some of the problems that are commonly encountered in rehabilitation programs. The presenters will address weaknesses in rehab programs and best […]

Income determination remains one of the most important and challenging aspects of SHIP compliance. This webinar provides in-depth training on calculating annual household income and evaluating assets using a variety of real-world scenarios. Participants will work through examples involving wages, self-employment, fixed income, assets, and other income sources commonly encountered in SHIP programs. Interactive exercises […]

Participants will learn about HOME Program Regulations (24 CFR Part 92), specifically pertaining to CHDO requirements, including eligible activities, compliance requirements, and key administrative provisions. The session will also cover CHDO qualifications, board composition requirements, and other regulatory thresholds, ensuring organizations understand the criteria for obtaining and maintaining certification and eligibility. Participants will gain the […]

This session provides an overview of rental housing funding along with resources to support people experiencing homelessness. The presenters will discuss how to combine and leverage major funding sources to subsidize the development of affordable rental housing. Learn about state and federal homelessness resources including the Department of Children and Families Challenge Grant, the federal […]

Local funding is one of the most powerful tools a community has to address its housing needs. This webinar covers what cities and counties need to know to put local dollars to work — from establishing housing trust funds to identifying the right funding sources, including general revenue, land sale proceeds, local bonds, CRAs, infrastructure […]

Explore how SHIP funds can be successfully used to support demolition and home replacement activities that improve housing quality and resiliency for low-income households. This webinar will walk participants through eligibility requirements, environmental and procurement considerations, ownership and relocation issues, contractor oversight, and construction timelines. Learn from SHIP administrators who have successfully provided replacement assistance. […]

This webinar offers guidance on converting non-residential properties to permanent affordable housing. The presenters will discuss policy considerations for local governments and development considerations through example projects.

This webinar puts a spotlight on the formation of a consistent and compliant process to work with developers so proposed projects can be evaluated and selected for preference and allocation of support. A prime example is the “Local Government Contribution” required for some Florida Housing Finance Corporation Requests for Applications. Competing projects vie for this […]

Affordable housing financed with government subsidy must be affordable for a set period of time. This training will address best practices for ensuring that these housing units are affordable in the long term. Presenters will discuss Community Land Trusts, Land Use Restriction Agreements (LURA), and how to determine which legal mechanism to use in differing […]

This training will focus on a six-step planning process and will feature new information from the recently updated “Creating a Local Disaster Housing Strategy” publication. The webinar will provide guidance on coordinating across local government departments, working with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), using data for planning and outreach, and improving collaboration with long-term […]

This training will focus on reducing risks through disaster preparedness and strengthening local plans. A substantial body of research shows that disaster recovery aid favors homeowners, often neglecting the immediate and long-term needs of renters. This webinar will share insights from a new HUD-funded disaster recovery research initiative implemented by UCF, UF, BDO (formerly HORNE), […]

Fixing the Gap in Affordable Housing: While rental assistance vouchers are intended to help low-income families afford housing, they are often rendered ineffective due to a lack of available, affordable units in the housing market. This webinar will explore this growing challenge of housing choice vouchers that go unused and examine the disconnect between voucher […]

Recent Florida legislation expands development opportunities on properties owned by faith organizations and school boards. This webinar will take a deep dive into development examples on each type of property demonstrating how legislation works in practice. Information will cover how developments were visioned, financed, and navigated through local approval processes. Presenters will discuss partnerships formed […]

Local governments have various means through which to solicit and procure services from private sector partners in the development of affordable housing. This webinar will provide an overview of these means: requests for proposals/applications, requests for qualifications, requests for information, invitations to negotiate and unsolicited offers. Presenters will provide a definition of each, discuss statutory […]

This webinar would cover what form-based codes are, how they are different from typical Euclidean zoning, and considerations for gearing them to support more homes and more types of homes for relative affordability. Presenters will discuss examples from communities implementing a form-based code.

The training addresses how to create disaster resistant single- and multi-family housing stock. Learn about resiliency in affordable multifamily residential design, which incorporates advanced stormwater infrastructure and building mitigation strategies to proactively reduce the impacts from increased heat and extreme rain to better protect residents. Also learn about programs to enhance low-income single family home […]

This session demystifies how 4 percent tax credits and tax-exempt bonds can be used to finance affordable rental housing. Learn how to layer FHFC funding sources and structure your capital stack effectively. The webinar will examine how developers combine tax exempt bonds with other FHFC and local funding to develop affordable housing. The webinar will […]

This training is intended for SHIP rehabilitation assistance staff. The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) updated its Uniform Mitigation Verification Inspection Form (OIR-B1-1802) in April 2026. The form incorporates new features such as secondary water resistance and modern construction standards which can offer homeowners greater insurance savings. This training will assist local governments and […]

This webinar examines how Florida local governments can use a voter-approved 1-cent local infrastructure surtax or “penny tax” to support permanently affordable housing. Counties like Pinellas, Collier, and Alachua have already leveraged this sales tax to fund land acquisition, infrastructure development, and the construction or rehabilitation of units for low-to-moderate income households. Because land is […]

Property tax policy can have a major impact on housing affordability. Whether you are looking at project feasibility for an affordable multifamily rental project, the monthly mortgage payment for a low-income homeowner, or trying to encourage market rate properties to lower their rents in exchange for an incentive or two, property tax policy can play […]

This webinar focuses on the upfront work needed to ensure that SHIP funds are expended in a manner that fully complies with SHIP rules. The training details all that is involved with collecting the data needed to create annual reports. The presenters will discuss a timeline to help you keep up with the expenditure and […]

This session explores practical strategies to accelerate the delivery of essential housing repairs, as well as demolition and home replacement projects. Participants will learn how to streamline procurement, inspections, and project management to reduce delays and administrative burdens. The training will also highlight how demolition/reconstruction can be an effective strategy to better serve households in […]

This webinar examines the process of developing a housing preservation plan aimed at ensuring the continuity of the affordability of subsidized rental housing units as they approach the expiration of their mandated affordability periods. The session will address how local housing stakeholders can coordinate across public, nonprofit, and private sectors to prevent the loss of […]

Federal and state laws require that conflicts of interest be avoided in the deployment of public funds. Local governments should address potential conflict of interest issues with applicants, contractors, and local elected officials. This training will help define what is considered a conflict of interest and how local government address potential conflict of interest issues […]