SC Housing Earns Award for Bridging Housing and Health
The South Carolina Housing Finance agency received a 2026 NCSHA Award for Program Excellence for its partnership with state mental health services.
Updated on Nov. 8, 2026 in Substance Abuse
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SC Housing received a 2026 NCSHA Award for Program Excellence in the Special Needs Housing category for Bridging Housing and Health, a collaboration with the South Carolina Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities. The partnership has placed more than 77 individuals with serious mental illness in housing across 16 LIHTC properties in nine counties.
Why it matters
The initiative connects people with serious mental illness to stable housing through incentives built into affordable housing development, addressing a gap between housing and behavioral health services in South Carolina. It shows how state housing policy can be used to support supportive housing for vulnerable residents across the state.
Program placement records show more than 77 individuals with serious mental illness housed across 16 LIHTC properties in nine counties, under a 2021 Qualified Allocation Plan requiring developers to commit at least 10 percent of units to supportive housing. The source does not report long-term housing stability outcomes for participants.
The players
South Carolina Housing (SC Housing)
The state housing finance agency that administers affordable housing programs and tax credit allocations in South Carolina.
South Carolina Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities (BHDD)
The state agency that oversees public mental health, substance use, and developmental disability services through 16 community mental health centers.
National Council of State Housing Agencies (NCSHA)
A national association of state housing finance agencies that administers annual awards recognizing program excellence in affordable housing.
The details
SC Housing's 2021 Qualified Allocation Plan introduced incentives for developers to commit at least 10 percent of units in qualifying affordable housing developments to supportive housing. BHDD, which operates 16 community mental health centers across South Carolina, identifies and refers eligible individuals to participating properties.
Timeline
2021: SC Housing's Qualified Allocation Plan introduced supportive housing incentives.
Friday, Nov. 6: NCSHA award recognition ceremony.
Big Picture
The partnership is an outgrowth of the supportive housing set-aside incentive in SC Housing's 2021 Qualified Allocation Plan, which ties tax credit allocations to commitments of at least 10 percent of units for supportive housing. The 2026 NCSHA recognition reflects how that policy has been implemented through the state's mental health system.
Eligible South Carolinians with serious mental illness may be referred to participating affordable housing properties through local BHDD community mental health centers. The program focuses on housing placement rather than direct medical treatment, so residents seeking housing should contact their local center for referral information.
The takeaway
Connecting housing and mental health services can help people with serious mental illness find stable places to live, and the program shows one way state agencies can coordinate these systems. Residents who think they may qualify should ask their local community mental health center about referrals.
Further reading
For more on related support services, see Substance Abuse coverage across South Carolina.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Post and Courier.
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Should state housing agencies do more to house people with serious mental illness?
