State Awards $12M to Construct 92 Affordable Apartments for Homeless Mainers in Bangor, Portland, and South Portland

The State of Maine has awarded a total of $12 million for the construction of affordable apartments in Bangor, Portland, and South Portland.

This funding stems from the Home for Good program, also known as the Housing First program, which was established by the Legislature in 2023 to support the provision of “permanent housing to address chronic homelessness in the State.”

State law requires that “services facilitated under the program must be available on site, 24 hours per day and be designed to build independent living skills and connect individuals with community-based services.”

As a result of these $12 million worth of awards, 92 new apartments are slated to be built across these three cities for homeless Mainers.

With this funding, developers are expected to be able to leverage an additional $24 million worth of tax credits, bonds, loans, and subsidies, including the 4 percent Low-Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC), MaineHousing tax-exempt bond financing, and State subsidies to support capital expenditures.

The Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) will also be providing ongoing funding in support of the 24-hour services to be provided to those living in these apartments.

Those living in these apartments will have round-the-clock “supportive services,” with social workers on premise to help residents find employment, “support daily living skills,” and ease access to services for substance use disorders or mental health challenges.

Residents will be expected to spend 30 percent of their income on rent for these units as part of a voucher program.

“The Home for Good grants represent a critical pathway to ensure individuals previously facing chronic homelessness have access to services as they transition into new, stable housing,” said DHHS’ Director for the Office of Behavioral Health, Sarah Squirrell in a statement.

“Services will be provided with the goal of eliminating or mitigating previous barriers to successfully maintaining housing and preventing return to homelessness, paving the way for healthier, safer outcomes for the individual and the community,” Squirrell said.

“Chronic homelessness is often caused by underlying and untreated physical and mental health illnesses, which when left uncared for, adds up far beyond the cost of providing people with the housing and support they need to stay healthy,” MaineHousing Director Dan Brennan said in a press release Wednesday.

“This proven formula not only saves lives in the long run,” Brennan said, “but it also saves money, and it improves the overall health of our communities and the state of Maine.”

“Addressing Maine’s housing needs calls for a number of creative approaches, including ways to get people off the streets and into stable housing, where they can then get help to turn their lives around,” Gov. Janet Mills (D) said in a statement.

“With these awards from MaineHousing, communities will have more resources to address the serious challenges caused by chronic homelessness,” the governor added.

The first round of Home for Good awards were distributed in April of 2025, when $20 million was distributed across five projects in Sanford, Portland, Augusta, Auburn, and Bangor, accounting for a total of 138 new units.

Click Here to Read the Maine State Housing Authority’s Full Press Release