Fiscal Year 2017 Capital Magnet Fund Program | CDFI 2017 CMF

Opportunity Information: Apply for CDFI 2017 CMF

The Fiscal Year 2017 Capital Magnet Fund (CMF) Program is a mandatory federal grant opportunity administered by the U.S. Department of the Treasury through the Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund. Its purpose is to channel capital to organizations that can deploy it into affordable housing and related neighborhood investment in a way that strengthens communities over time, particularly in places that are low-income or underserved, including rural areas that often have fewer financing options.

Under this program, the CDFI Fund makes CMF grants to eligible entities so they can finance a mix of housing and community-focused development. On the housing side, funds can support the development, preservation, rehabilitation, or purchase of affordable housing, with an emphasis on serving primarily extremely low-, very low-, and low-income families. In practice, that means the grant is intended to help bring units into existence, keep existing affordable units from being lost, improve the condition and livability of current housing stock, or help acquire properties that will be maintained as affordable. The program is not limited to a single housing approach; it is designed to be flexible enough to support different project types and financing structures as long as the end goal is affordable housing outcomes for the targeted income groups.

Beyond housing, CMF also supports economic development activities and community service facilities when they are connected to, and implemented alongside, affordable housing as part of a coordinated revitalization or stabilization strategy. The opportunity description highlights examples such as day care centers, workforce development centers, and health care clinics. The key idea is that housing alone may not be sufficient to improve opportunity and quality of life in distressed communities, so CMF allows awardees to pair housing investments with facilities and activities that meet everyday needs, strengthen local services, and support employment and economic mobility, provided these efforts are part of a concerted plan for the area.

Eligibility is aimed primarily at certified Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs), along with certain nonprofit organizations that meet the program's requirements. The public listing flags eligibility as "Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification)," which signals that applicants needed to consult the official Notice of Funds Availability and related guidance for the precise eligibility definitions, documentation standards, and any nonprofit-specific criteria. Application requirements and detailed instructions were made available through the CDFI Fund's website, which is where applicants would find the authoritative rules on what must be submitted, how proposals are evaluated, and what compliance commitments are required if an award is made.

For FY 2017, the funding opportunity is identified as "CDFI 2017 CMF" with CFDA number 21.011, categorized under Community Development. The opportunity opened on June 29, 2017, and the original application closing date was July 28, 2017, reflecting a one-month application window. The program anticipated making approximately 32 awards, with an individual award ceiling listed at $17,900,000. The description also notes that the CMF award ceiling is 15 percent of total program funding, which indicates there was a cap tied to the overall appropriation so that no single award could exceed that share, helping distribute funding across multiple recipients and geographies.

Overall, the FY 2017 CMF Program is best understood as a strategic capital tool: it funds organizations with demonstrated community finance capacity so they can assemble and leverage resources into affordable housing while also supporting complementary facilities and economic development efforts. The program design emphasizes place-based impact, targeting low-income and underserved rural areas, and encourages integrated investment that stabilizes neighborhoods and expands access to services that make affordable housing sustainable and communities more resilient.

• The Department of the Treasury, Community Development Financial Institutions in the community development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Fiscal Year 2017 Capital Magnet Fund Program" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 21.011.
• This funding opportunity was created on Jun 29, 2017.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Jul 28, 2017. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $17,900,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 32 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

Apply for CDFI 2017 CMF

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