Housing & Workforce Housing Programs in Scotts Bluff County, Nebraska
Housing development and homebuyer programs available county-wide, from the Rural Workforce Housing Fund to down-payment assistance. The map ties each to parcels and development sites.
Community Development Block Grant (CDBG)- Nebraska State-Administered Small Cities Program (state) - Acquisition of real property (an eligible CDBG activity), Demolition / clearance of slum and blight structures, Disposition of acquired property, Owner-occupied housing rehabilitation for LMI households (roofs, HVAC, ele. Amounts: Varies by category. Downtown Revitalization: $250,000 minimum to $435,000 maximum (2025-26 cycle; Scottsbluff received $435,000 in 2025). Pu. Administered by Nebraska Department of Economic Development. Program page.
Site and Building Development Fund (SBDF) (state) - Land and building acquisition, Building construction or rehabilitation (speculative/industrial-ready buildings), Site preparation, Infrastructure development and improvements, Engineering and design costs, Technical assi. Amounts: Typical awards roughly $250,000-$500,000 per project (as grant or, in some structures, a zero-interest loan). Total available varies by appr. Administered by Nebraska Department of Economic Development. Program page.
NIFA Homebuyer Assistance Program (HBA)- down-payment/closing-cost second mortgage, layered on a NIFA First Home or Welcome Home first mortgage (state) - Down payment on an owner-occupied primary residence purchase, Closing costs / prepaid items, Paired with a NIFA first-mortgage (First Home, First Home Targeted, or Welcome Home)- Conventional, FHA, USDA Rural Development. Amounts: Second mortgage = up to 5% of the home's purchase price, capped at $10,000. Buyer must contribute a minimum of $1,000 of their own funds. Fi. Administered by Nebraska Investment Finance Authority. Program page.
Federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC, 9% and 4%) + Nebraska Affordable Housing Tax Credit (AHTC) (state) - New construction of affordable rental housing, Acquisition plus substantial rehabilitation of existing rental housing (incl. distressed/older buildings), Rehabilitation/preservation of existing affordable units, Adaptive. Amounts: No fixed per-project dollar cap published; NIFA awards only the amount of combined federal LIHTC + state AHTC "necessary to make the project. Administered by Nebraska Investment Finance Authority. Program page.
Nebraska Affordable Housing Trust Fund (NAHTF) (state) - Homebuyer new construction (single-family for-sale units), Purchase/Rehab/Resale (PRR) of existing units for resale to income-eligible homebuyers, Homebuyer (down payment / closing cost) assistance, secured by Deed of Tr. Amounts: Housing Development: up to $750,000 total for Primary plus Support Activities (excludes General Administration, Housing Management, and Lead. Administered by Nebraska Department of Economic Development. Program page.
Weatherization Assistance Program (NeWAP) - Nebraska (federal) - Attic, wall, and floor insulation, Air sealing - caulking and weather stripping around windows and doors, Door weatherstripping and sweeps, Duct sealing, Furnace/heating system efficiency inspection, tune-up, and safety. Amounts: No cash to the applicant; services delivered in-kind at no cost. Statewide average value of weatherization services provided is approximatel. Administered by Federally funded. Program page.
City of Scottsbluff- LB840 Local Option Municipal Economic Development Fund (city) - Direct loans or grants to qualifying businesses for fixed assets and/or working capital, Forgivable loans tied to job-creation/performance (committee may split an award part-grant/forgivable, part-repayable non-forgivabl. Amounts: Small Business Assistance: historically capped at $10,000 or 50% of project cost; raised by 2025 amendment to a maximum of $25,000 per busin. Administered by City of Scottsbluff Economic Development Department. Program page.
Opportunity Zone Investment Incentive (Qualified Opportunity Fund capital-gains tax incentive)- OZ 1.0 (2018) and OZ 2.0 (OBBBA 2025) (federal) - Acquisition of real property (land and buildings) inside a designated OZ tract, when bought by/contributed to a QOF, New construction / ground-up development on OZ parcels, Substantial rehabilitation of existing building. Amounts: No fixed dollar amount or award- the benefit scales with the investor's deferred capital gain and the project's appreciation. Value = (a) de. Administered by Federal tax incentive administered by the IRS / U.S. Treasury. Program page.
USDA Single Family Housing Direct Home Loan (Section 502 Direct) (federal) - Purchase of an existing modest single-family home (owner-occupied), New construction of a home, Repair, renovation, or rehabilitation of a home being purchased, Relocation of a home, Purchase and preparation of a site, i. Amounts: No fixed program cap; the maximum loan equals the lesser of the applicant's repayment ability and the USDA area loan limit for the county wh. Administered by USDA Rural Development, Rural Housing Service. Program page.
USDA Single Family Housing Repair Loans & Grants (Section 504) (federal) - Roof, foundation, and structural repairs, Health and safety hazard removal (electrical wiring, plumbing, heating/HVAC), Accessibility improvements for elderly/disabled (ramps, grab bars, widened doors), Modernization of. Amounts: Loan: up to $40,000 maximum outstanding balance. Grant: up to $10,000 lifetime (raised to $15,000 in presidentially declared disaster areas). Administered by USDA Rural Development. Program page.
USDA Water and Waste Disposal Loan and Grant Program (Water & Environmental Programs / WEP) (federal) - Drinking water systems: source, treatment, storage, distribution, Sanitary sewer collection, transmission, treatment, and disposal, Solid waste collection, disposal, and landfill closure, Storm water collection, transmis. Amounts: No fixed cap on the core loan/grant- amount is set by project need and financial feasibility. Direct loans repaid over the useful life of th. Administered by USDA Rural Development, Rural Utilities Service. Program page.
USDA Community Facilities Direct Loan and Grant Program (CF Direct) (federal) - Acquisition (purchase) of real estate/sites and existing buildings for an essential community facility, New construction of essential community facilities, Rehabilitation/improvement and expansion of existing community f. Amounts: No statutory per-project cap on direct loans; loans commonly range from roughly $50,000 to $10,000,000+ subject to annual appropriations and. Administered by USDA Rural Development. Program page.
HOME Investment Partnerships Program (HOME)- Nebraska State-Administered (DED) (federal) - Acquisition of property/land for affordable housing, Rehabilitation of owner-occupied and rental housing, New construction of affordable single-family and rental units, Homebuyer down-payment/purchase assistance (purchas. Amounts: Varies by project and annual allocation; typically tens of thousands to several hundred thousand dollars per project (CHDO set-aside is 15%. Administered by U.S. HUD. Program page.
HOME-ARP (HOME Investment Partnerships- American Rescue Plan)- Nebraska (federal) - Acquisition of property for affordable/supportive rental housing, New construction and rehabilitation of affordable rental housing, Tenant-based rental assistance, Supportive services and non-congregate shelter (program-. Amounts: Project-scale; typically hundreds of thousands per development.. Administered by U.S. HUD. Program page.
HUD Section 108 Loan Guarantee Program (via Nebraska DED for non-entitlement communities) (federal) - Acquisition of real property / site assembly, Clearance, demolition, and site improvements, Rehabilitation of publicly or privately owned buildings, Construction of public facilities and infrastructure tied to redevelopm. Amounts: Typically $500,000 to $140,000,000 (project scale); for small Nebraska communities, capped by ~5x the available CDBG pledge.. Administered by U.S. HUD. Program page.
Section 4 Capacity Building for Community Development and Affordable Housing (LISC / Enterprise / Habitat) (federal) - Organizational capacity building, staffing and training for CDCs/CHDOs, Predevelopment and development assistance (site analysis, feasibility, deal structuring), Grants and low-cost loans to CDCs/CHDOs for project predev. Amounts: Typically small-to-moderate capacity grants (often $10,000s to low six figures) plus predevelopment loans.. Administered by U.S. HUD funds three national intermediaries. Program page.
USDA Single Family Housing Guaranteed Loan Program (Section 502 Guaranteed) (federal) - Purchase of an existing eligible rural home (100% financing, no down payment), Purchase + qualifying repairs/improvements (limited rehab rolled into the loan), New construction of a primary residence, Relocation of a dwe. Amounts: Based on appraised value/borrower qualification (100% financing); no fixed program cap but limited by repayment ability and modest-home stan. Administered by USDA Rural Development. Program page.
FHLBank Affordable Housing Program (AHP)- Competitive (regional) - Acquisition of property/land for affordable housing, New construction of affordable rental or ownership housing, Rehabilitation of existing housing (including conversions, e.g., to senior housing), Gap/subsidy financing. Amounts: Up to $75,000 per unit and up to $1,500,000 per project (2026 round; at least ~$29.3M available district-wide).. Administered by Federal Home Loan Bank. Program page.
FHLBank Homeownership Set-Aside Program (HSP / HSP+ / HOPE / TurnKey) (regional) - Down-payment assistance, Closing-cost assistance, Purchase-related repair assistance (minor rehab tied to the purchase). Amounts: $2,500 minimum to $15,000 maximum per household (2026); ~$14.29M total available district-wide in 2026.. Administered by Federal Home Loan Bank. Program page.
Rural Workforce Housing Fund (RWHF)- Nebraska DED, with NIFA Rural Workforce Housing Match Program (state) - New owner-occupied housing (cost cap, recently $325, 000/unit), New rental housing units (cost cap, recently $250, 000/unit), Substantial rehab where cost to rehab exceeds 50% of a unit's assessed value, Upper-story (dow. Amounts: Statewide RWHF rounds historically ~$10M-$20M; NIFA RWH match up to $250,000 per recipient and not more than 33% of total proposed investmen. Administered by Nebraska Department of Economic Development. Program page.
FHLBank TurnKey Homeownership Set-Aside Programs (HSP / HSP+ / HOPE) (regional) - Down payment assistance, Closing-cost assistance, Purchase-related/minor repair of the acquired home. Amounts: HSP: $2,500 minimum to $15,000 maximum per household. HOPE and HSP+ have their own tiers (HOPE serves moderate-income up to 115% AMI).. Administered by Federal Home Loan Bank. Program page.
Mid-America Arts Alliance (M-AAA) -- Artistic Innovations, Engage, and Touring/Exhibition Programs (regional) - Artistic Innovations: project grants (historically up to about $10, 000, 1:1 match) for nonprofits in AR/KS/MO/NE to create and present new work, Engage grants: support for bringing artists into community settings, Inter. Amounts: Artistic Innovations project grants have historically run up to about $10,000 with a 1:1 cash match; other programs (Engage, touring, Exhibi. Administered by Mid-America Arts Alliance. Program page.
How matching works
Pick any parcel in Scottsbluff, Gering, Terrytown, Mitchell, Minatare, Morrill, Lyman, Melbeta, Henry, or McGrew and the map runs its facts- zoning, use, overlays (TIF/CRA, CDBG low-to-moderate-income areas), and project details- through a deterministic eligibility engine. Every answer cites a first-party authority.
Program facts summarize each administering body's published materials; follow the program links for current deadlines and rules.
Common questions
How many programs does this cover in Scotts Bluff County?
22 programs are listed on this page (city, federal, regional, state). Each names the office that runs it and links that office's own page. The list is rebuilt from the funding catalog every time the site publishes, so it does not go stale between updates.
Does it cost anything to use this?
No. The program list, the parcel map, and the matching are free to use, with no account and no sign-up. Build Scotts Bluff charges only automated AI agents that call the data API.
Who do I contact to apply?
5 of these are run locally or regionally, so that is usually the first call. Every entry above names its administering body and links its program page; apply through that office, not through this site.
How do I know which ones my property qualifies for?
Open the map, pick the parcel, and the eligibility engine runs that lot's own facts -- zoning, use, and overlays such as TIF/CRA and CDBG low-to-moderate-income areas -- against each program's published rules. Every answer cites a first-party authority.