Thousands have housing thanks to ‘one of the best-kept secrets in Virginia’

Hundreds of thousands of affordable homes and related economic benefits around the state wouldn’t have been possible but for the visionary leadership of one of the best-kept secrets in Virginia. And with the new year, that leader, Susan Dewey, CEO of Virginia Housing, steps down after a quarter-century atop the arguably best housing finance agency in the nation.  

Under Dewey’s administration at Virginia Housing (formerly known as VHDA), the numbers are staggeringly large, providing more economic impact to Virginia in terms of housing equity, jobs created, taxes paid, than probably any other single state leader. In a five-year economic impact study, Virginia Housing was shown to have delivered $10 billion in economic activity and created 65,900 jobs with a payroll of $3.6 billion from 2014-2018.  

At a recent retirement celebration in Richmond, Dewey modestly told the room of industry leaders that she had answered one of her young grandchildren’s questions about what it was she did at her job. “I told her, we help build nicer homes for families.” Indeed, the skills and administration of bonding authority, and independence from state government funding, has enabled Virginia Housing to finance or counsel something like 10% of every owned and rented home in the commonwealth.  

A touchstone of Dewey’s innovative leadership has been the deployment of an increasing amount of net proceeds into the affordable community development nonprofit work. This support undergirds network capacity, which in turn expands housing opportunities for the hardest to serve. Since 2006, this REACH Virginia program began with an allocation of under $20 million or 15% of internally generated net resources, growing to 75% or just over $89 million in fiscal year 2023, with a cumulative total of $915 million. 

In fiscal year 20223, the REACH impact spread across Virginia Housing’s three main strategic goals: 1) state housing needs through the housing delivery network, 2) addressing unmet rental and critical needs, 3) strengthening homeownership for first-time homebuyers. Virginia Housing also celebrated its 50^th year of service in the past year.  

As Bob Adams, a longtime veteran of many housing initiatives around the state and nation, observed in a recent Housing Forward Virginia recognition of Dewey’s work, “Susan literally changed the face of Virginia Housing and made its staff look more like the population that it served with her commitment to diversity and inclusion. For all of her professional accomplishments, Susan matched that with a personal touch. She got to know many of us working in the nonprofit field and always had a question about family, kids, grandkids. When nonprofits got together to celebrate success or to mourn loss, Susan was there. If you called her, she called back. If she couldn’t provide the requested assistance, you always got an honest, straightforward answer. But more often than not, she would find a way to help.” 

Virginia Housing is governed by an 11-member board of commissioners, appointed by the governor, who in turn hire the CEO. At the moment, no member of the board resides west of Charlottesville, as Bristol Redevelopment Housing Authority Executive Director Lisa Porter was the last member to serve from this region in a term which ended this summer. Janet Wigglesworth, formerly chief operating officer, is serving as interim CEO while the board conducts a national search for Dewey’s replacement. Dewey has accepted a seat on the Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta’s board, which begins with her retirement from Virginia Housing.  

Dewey was a steady presence at innumerable ground breakings and ribbon-cuttings all across the commonwealth over the last quarter century. And in fact, many Virginians continue to benefit, without realizing it, from these ‘nicer homes’ which she and hundreds of Virginia Housing associates helped create.  

Andy Kegley recently retired after nearly three decades as executive director of Open Door Community, a nonprofit housing and food organization based in Wytheville, which receives a variety of Virginia Housing products and support.