Holmes Co. recorder Hall appointed to OHTFAC
Holmes County recorder Anita Hall was recently appointed by Gov. Mike DeWine’s office to serve on the Ohio Housing Trust Fund Advisory Committee.
Anita Hall, Holmes County recorder, has recently been appointed to the Ohio Housing Trust Fund Advisory Committee for a term ending March 18, 2025.
Hall, a first-time state appointee, said she is eager to serve the state in this new capacity.
“It’s an honor,” Hall said of the appointment. “I think it’s a very important committee to be on.”
The Ohio Housing Trust Fund is a dedicated income source, with the Ohio recorder’s offices around the county adding a significant amount to that income. The Ohio Housing Trust Fund is a flexible state funding source that provides affordable housing opportunities, expands housing services and improves housing conditions for low-income Ohioans and families.
Hall said any time her office takes in documents to be recorded, part of the funds brought in by the transactions goes directly to the housing trust fund, thus it is a state requirement for a member of the state’s recording population to be on the committee.
Other members of the committee, which is regulated by the Ohio Revised Code, includes a member of the lending community, affordable housing developers, an organization that works with homeless people, two local county government members and a state broker in addition to the recorder.
Hall said she is looking forward to providing plenty of input to the committee and just wants to do a good job in adding to the effort to serve in an advisory role.
Hall said she was approached for the role back in November 2021 when a lobbyist for the Ohio Recorder’s Association asked if she would have an interest in filling an upcoming vacancy on the committee.
Then she waited. For more than one year, she didn’t hear any word on the position, until one month ago when she received word she would be appointed.
Hall said the purpose of her committee is not to award any type of funding, but instead to research and recommend the most appropriate way to allocate the money to the Ohio Housing Trust Fund.
“We recommend the money they receive to projects they deem worthy,” Hall said. “It can be low- to moderate-income housing projects. This housing trust fund works also with the Ohio Housing Finance Agency, which loans money to folks who want to apply for a mortgage. So our duty is solely to make recommendations on how the funds should be used.”
Hall said the committee has just one formal meeting annually but will converse via email throughout the year to discuss how they should best proceed. She doesn’t expect it to make a large time commitment, although she said there will definitely be a learning curve as she settles into her role.
Hall said there are many worthy projects the committee can consider, noting the Autumn Run housing complex south of Millersburg is one example of a housing complex that benefited from the committee’s recommendation.
Hall, who also serves as a member of an advisory board for the Ohio treasurer of state, said she is excited to be able to add her input to her newly appointed position but also is eager to be able to represent her county while spreading the funds to worthwhile projects throughout Ohio.
There are three funds to which the state recorder offices pay into: the Ohio County General Fund, the Ohio Housing Trust Fund and the Recorder’s Equipment Fund.
“The majority goes to the Ohio Housing Trust Fund,” Hall said.
She said county recorders generate millions of dollars annually to the state, making her role in recommending how the dollars are distributed critical. Once her committee makes its recommendation, the final say as to where the funding will go falls on the shoulders of the Ohio Department of Development and the Ohio Housing Trust Fund.