Housing charities, by the numbers.
13,426 of them filed a full Form 990 and spent $38.9B between them.
- 13,426
- charities filing a full Form 990, 4,460 spending $1M+
- $38.9B
- spent in their latest year, with $16.3B coming in as gifts and grants
- 9%
- of all that spending by the 10 biggest
What “housing” covers.
The biggest slice is housing development, at 69% of all spending in the cause. Spending outside these groups is in charities the IRS coded more generally.
Spending in each charity's latest e-filed Form 990 (Part I, line 18), grouped by the NTEE code in the IRS master file.
The biggest 399 housing charities.
| # | Charity | Spending | Program share | Cost to raise $1 | Savings | CEO pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Navigate Affordable Housing Partners Birmingham, AL · Housing development · FY 2024 | $909.3M | 99% | 0¢ | 1 mo | $333K |
| 2 | Front Porch Communities and Services Glendale, CA · Housing development · FY 2025 | $413.1M | 80% | 0¢ | 19 mo | $1.39M |
| 3 | Metropolitan Boston Housing Partnership Boston, MA · Housing development · FY 2025 | $401.9M | 99% | 54¢ | 1 mo | $226K |
| 4 | Mosaic Omaha, NE · Other · FY 2025 | $376.7M | 86% | 23¢ | 6 mo | $981K |
| 5 | Acacia Network HousingOur file Bronx, NY · Shelters and temporary housing · FY 2024 | $347.0M | 96% | 0¢ | 0 mo | $897K |
| 6 | Collegiate Housing Foundation Fairhope, AL · Shelters and temporary housing · FY 2025 | $340.3M | 99% | – | -7 mo | $663K |
| 7 | Masonic Villages of the Grand Lodge Elizabethtown, PA · Housing owners and renters · FY 2024 | $230.9M | 88% | 7¢ | 50 mo | – |
| 8 | Preservation Freehold Company Lewisville, TX · Housing development · FY 2024 | $222.1M | 89% | 0¢ | -2 mo | $160K |
| 9 | Philadelphia Housing Development Philadelphia, PA · Housing development · FY 2025 | $189.8M | 81% | 0¢ | -1 mo | – |
| 10 | WesthabOur file Yonkers, NY · Shelters and temporary housing · FY 2024 | $180.7M | 92% | 0¢ | 4 mo | $481K |
| 11 | Hope Network Grand Rapids, MI · Housing development · FY 2025 | $169.5M | 91% | 5¢ | 9 mo | $404K |
| 12 | Way FindersOur file Springfield, MA · Housing development · FY 2025 | $158.3M | 97% | 0¢ | 2 mo | $234K |
| 13 | Abode ServicesOur file Fremont, CA · Shelters and temporary housing · FY 2025 | $150.4M | 90% | 1¢ | 3 mo | $323K |
| 14 | Neighborhood Housing Services of the Quincy, MA · Housing support · FY 2025 | $145.5M | 98% | 3¢ | 2 mo | $306K |
| 15 | Help USA Inc and Affiliates New York, NY · Shelters and temporary housing · FY 2025 | $145.2M | 89% | 0¢ | 2 mo | $313K |
| 16 | Unlimited Development Galesburg, IL · Housing development · FY 2025 | $135.2M | 96% | 0¢ | 5 mo | $37K |
| 17 | Florida Pace Centers Miami, FL · Other · FY 2025 | $127.9M | 83% | 707¢ | 8 mo | $325K |
| 18 | National Campus and Community Austin, TX · Housing development · FY 2025 | $122.7M | 100% | – | -18 mo | $188K |
| 19 | Preservation of Affordable Housing Boston, MA · Housing development · FY 2024 | $118.6M | 95% | 4¢ | 38 mo | $521K |
| 20 | Home Life Services Brooklyn, NY · Shelters and temporary housing · FY 2025 | $118.3M | 93% | – | 0 mo | – |
| 21 | Atlantic Housing Foundation Dallas, TX · Housing development · FY 2024 | $117.6M | 98% | – | -9 mo | $574K |
| 22 | Superior Living Foundation Mclean, VA · Housing development · FY 2025 | $117.5M | 72% | – | -2 mo | $175K |
| 23 | Cedar Crest Village Catonsville, NJ · Housing development · FY 2024 | $115.9M | 87% | 12¢ | -9 mo | $246K |
| 24 | Maris Grove Catonsville, PA · Housing development · FY 2024 | $111.0M | 87% | 11¢ | -9 mo | $303K |
| 25 | Ndc Housing & Economic Development New York, NY · Housing development · FY 2024 | $110.9M | 93% | 0¢ | 12 mo | – |
Program share = program expenses ÷ total expenses (Part IX, line 25). Cost to raise $1 = fundraising expenses ÷ contributions (Part IX, Part VIII line 1h). Savings = net assets ÷ annual spending × 12, which includes buildings, endowments and restricted gifts, so zoos and aquariums run high. CEO pay is reportable compensation from the charity (Part VII). “CPA view” moves joint fundraising costs reported on line 26 out of programs. Names link to our file where we have one, otherwise to the filing on ProPublica.
Benchmarks for housing.
Medians across 4,460 charities spending $1M or more. Use them to judge any charity in this cause.
- 87%
- median program share, as reported
- 0¢
- median cost to raise $1, among charities taking in $100K+ in gifts
- 11 mo
- median net assets, in months of spending
| Annual spending | Charities | Median CEO pay | Median program share |
|---|---|---|---|
| $1–5M | 3,051 | $152K | 87% |
| $5–25M | 1,130 | $227K | 87% |
| $25–100M | 248 | $319K | 88% |
| $100M+ | 31 | $318K | 93% |
The yes-or-no answers.
Counts of housing charities answering “yes” (or failing a basic check) in their latest Form 990. The charities answer these themselves.
charities told the IRS they discovered a significant diversion of assets (theft, embezzlement or misuse).
charities reported a paid fundraiser that kept half or more of what it raised.
charities reported an excess benefit transaction with an insider.
charities had $2M+ in revenue and no audited financial statements.
charities had $1M+ in revenue and no conflict-of-interest policy.
charities reported loans to or from officers or directors.
A “yes” is a reason to read the filing, not a verdict. Learn what each answer means in how to check a charity, and see how we read a 990.
Every housing charity we cover.
Questions about housing charities.
What is the largest housing charity?
By spending, Navigate Affordable Housing Partners (AL), at $909.3M in its fiscal year ending 2024, per its Form 990.
How much do housing charity CEOs make?
The median CEO of a housing charity spending $1–5M a year was paid $152K. At charities spending $100M or more, the median was $318K. Figures are reportable compensation from the charity, Form 990 Part VII.
What percentage of donations to housing charities goes to programs?
The median housing charity spending $1M or more reported 87% of its spending on programs, on Form 990 Part IX. That is the charity's own split. Some charities count part of their fundraising mail as program work; our pages show the number both ways.
How many housing charities are there?
13,426 housing organizations filed a full Form 990 in the IRS's 2025 and 2026 e-file releases, 4,460 of them spending $1 million or more. Thousands more file the short 990-EZ or the 990-N postcard.
Where this comes from.
Each charity's latest Form 990 in the IRS's 2025 and 2026 e-file releases, joined to the IRS Exempt Organizations Business Master File for its NTEE cause code. Organizations that file as charities but aren't funded like one (research contractors, sports bodies and similar) are left out of the comparison table. Charities that file a 990-EZ or 990-N aren't included. Figures are as filed; we haven't reviewed each one, except where a charity has our full file.
Charity Math, “Housing charities, by the numbers,” data as of 2026-11-07. https://charitymath.com/causes/housing/