The Seattle Housing Authority has earned Affordable Housing Accreditation by the Affordable Housing Accreditation Board™. This designation reflects SHA’s commitment to meeting performance standards established by the affordable housing industry and to providing quality, well-managed housing. SHA and the Akron Metropolitan Housing Authority in Ohio were the first two housing authorities to go through, and pass, the new accreditation process to become an “Accredited Affordable Housing Organization.” 

SHA underwent a rigorous review of documentation that culminated in a three-day site visit in June 2018. During the review and site visit, Affordable Housing Accreditation Board reviewers evaluated conformance with eight standards and 47 guidelines related to how effectively the board, leadership and staff work to meet their mission to enhance the Seattle community by creating and sustaining decent, safe and affordable living environments that foster stability and self-sufficiency for people with low incomes.

Established in 2013, the Affordable Housing Accreditation Board™ began piloting accreditation in early 2018.  Accreditation is awarded for a five-year period, encouraging accredited organizations to continuously improve and excel in providing safe, well-managed, high-quality affordable housing in their communities. 

“Organizations that pursue accreditation from the Affordable Housing Accreditation Board™ are demonstrating the highest commitment to their communities by delivering quality affordable housing,” said Diana McWilliams, President and CEO of the Affordable Housing Accreditation Board. “I commend the Seattle Housing Authority for successfully achieving this milestone and for its dedication to providing quality affordable housing in Seattle.”

“We found the accreditation process valuable,” said SHA Executive Director Andrew Lofton. “It provided an opportunity for us to conduct a focused review of our practices against industry established standards and have our high performance confirmed by an independent third party. It also provides a methodology that will help us ensure we continue to maintain and build on that performance.”