NMA Blog

Signups for Q&A sessions at The Housing Conference are now open!

We’re thrilled to be taking our fifth annual national housing conference to Boston this August. Included with every conference registration is the opportunity to reserve a free, one-hour Q&A session with one of our NMA experts, including Nan herself!

If you’re registered for the conference and want to sign up for a session, click here and reserve your time now. The Q&A sessions are limited to registered attendees and will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis.

The tentative agenda has just been updated, and when you register now you'll receive early bird pricing!

Join us August 21-22, 2017, for two fantastic days of networking, learning, and exploring the beautiful and historic city of Boston, Massachusetts. Industry experts will present sessions and panels on the latest topics in affordable housing, including:

• An update on UPCS-V, the proposed inspections protocol to replace HQS
• How to deal with generational differences in the workplace
• What you need to know if you're a new executive director
• Nan McKay's annual legislative update, including new rules and notices
• Best practices in PBV and RAD PBV
• Public/private partnerships and grant funds
• What you need to know before applying for MTW
• Understanding tax credits and RAD finance
• Best practices in managing FSS, plus how to start a new FSS program in PBRA
• What's new in capital fund finance
• Best practices in PBRA and RAD PBRA
• Effective waitlist management
• What's new in fair housing
• Best practices in SEMAP
• CDBG-DR and resilience
• Roundtable panel session with NMA Housing Awards winners
• And more!

Visit our website to register!

The tentative agenda for our fifth annual national housing conference is now available, and when you register now you'll receive early bird pricing!

Join us August 21-22, 2017, for two fantastic days of networking, learning,
and exploring the beautiful and historic city of Boston, Massachusetts. Industry experts will present sessions and panels on the latest topics in affordable housing, including:

• An update on UPCS-V, the proposed inspections protocol to replace HQS (panel session)
• Best practices in managing FSS, plus how to start a new FSS program in PBRA (panel session)
• Best practices in PBRA and RAD PBRA (panel session)
• Best practices in PBV and RAD PBV
• Best practices in SEMAP (hands-on session)
• CDBG-DR and resilience
• Effective waitlist management
• How to deal with generational differences in the workplace
• Nan McKay's annual legislative update, including new rules and notices
• Public/private partnerships and grant funds (panel session)
• Quality control
• Rent reasonableness
• Roundtable panel session with NMA Housing Awards winners
• Succession planning
• Understanding tax credits and RAD finance
• What you need to know before applying for MTW
• What you need to know if you're a new executive director
• What's new in capital fund finance
• What's new in fair housing

Visit our website to register!

On December 20, 2016, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) published in the Federal Register a final rule requiring the installation of broadband infrastructure at the time of new construction or substantial rehabilitation of HUD-funded multifamily rental housing. While the title of the rule suggests that it applies only to HUD’s multifamily programs, it does also apply to multifamily rental units funded under the project-based voucher (PBV) program, the public housing capital fund, and Choice Neighborhoods programs.

The purpose of the rule is to “narrow the digital divide,” that is, to provide families residing in HUD-funded housing a platform from which to participate in the digital economy and thereby increase their access to economic opportunities. In addition to making it a requirement to install broadband infrastructure during new construction and substantial rehabilitation, the time at which installation is easier and less expensive, the rule also:

• Defines broadband infrastructure as cables, fiber optics, wiring, or other permanent (integral to the structure) infrastructure—including wireless infrastructure—as long as the installation results in broadband infrastructure in each dwelling unit meeting the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC’s) definition in effect at the time the pre-construction estimates are generated.
• Defines substantial rehabilitation for programs that do not already have a definition as work on the electrical system with estimated costs equal to or greater than 75 percent of the cost of replacing the entire electrical system, or when the estimated cost of the rehabilitation is equal to or greater than 75 percent of the total estimated cost of replacing the multifamily rental housing after the rehabilitation is complete. This definition for the purpose of broadband infrastructure does not affect definitions of rehabilitation already in place for other purposes.

Further details, including a comprehensive list of programs to which the requirements apply, can be found in the rule. It becomes effective January 19, 2017.

If you’re interested in learning more about HUD's multifamily programs, don’t miss our newly redesigned seminar, Multifamily Housing Specialist. In response to customer feedback, we've extended this class to four days, providing a comprehensive training on the HUD Handbook 4350.3 REV-1 which covers eligibility, screening and selection, admission, rent calculation, recertification, termination, and a discussion of HUD’s multifamily systems. Our next session is being offered in June in Wisconsin and is currently on sale for 10% off when you purchase now. Register here.

Yesterday in the Federal Register, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) published the initial implementation guidance for the Housing Opportunity through Modernization Act (HOTMA).

The guidance sets forth the statutory provisions effective immediately under HOTMA, and the actions that may or should be taken now in order to comply with those changes, in addition to identifying the provisions that are not effective until HUD subsequently issues a notice or regulation to implement them.

As specified in the guidance, among the HOTMA provisions that are effective upon enactment, or otherwise in effect, are the following:

• Reasonable accommodation payment standards. HOTMA allows PHAs to establish a payment standard of up to 120 percent of fair market rent (FMR) without HUD approval as a reasonable accommodation for a person with a disability. Because the streamlining rule previously provided PHAs with this flexibility, no action is required to implement this provision.
• Establishment of FMR. This provision changes how HUD publishes FMRs and the procedures for comment and requests for reevaluation. Additionally, HOTMA provides that in the housing choice voucher (HCV) program, no PHA is required as a result of a reduction in the FMR to reduce the payment standard of a family continuing to reside in a unit under HAP contract at the time the FMR was reduced. Should PHAs choose to use the higher payment standard for the family’s subsidy calculation, this must be specified in the administrative plan. HUD’s FMRs for 2017 already reflect the new procedures, and HUD will issue additional guidance with regards to payment standards in the future.
• Family Unification Program (FUP) for children aging out of foster care. HOTMA revises the length of the term that an FUP-eligible youth may receive FUP assistance from 18 to 36 months, in addition to revising the eligibility requirements for FUP-eligible youth. Changes to the FUP program were effective upon implementation of HOTMA and PHAs were made aware of the new provision by means of a letter to FUP PHA executive directors on August 29, 2016. Further details can be found in today’s guidance.
• Preference for United States citizens or nationals. This section applies to Guam only. The provisions were effective upon enactment of HOTMA and the details can be found within today’s guidance.
• Exception to PHA resident board member requirement. Certain jurisdictions, as specified in the guidance, are excepted from the resident board member requirement. While effective upon implementation of HOTMA, this exception has already been effective for a number of years through various appropriations acts.
• Inclusion of PHAs and local development authorities in Emergency Solutions grants. HOTMA authorized local governments receiving these grants to sub-award all or some of those funds to PHAs and local redevelopment authorities. The provision was effective upon implementation of HOTMA, although HUD does intend to issue further guidance on the matter.
• Inclusion of Disaster Housing Assistance Program (DHAP) in certain fraud and abuse measures. This provision considers DHAP a HUD program for the purpose of income verifications. Like other provisions described in the notice, it has previously been in effect through appropriations acts for a number of years.
• Energy efficiency requirements under the Self-Help Homeownership Program (SHOP). While this provision was effective upon enactment of HOTMA, changes will be reflected in the future SHOP notice of funding availability (NOFA), where more information will also be provided.
• Formula and terms for allocations to prevent homelessness for individuals living with HIV or AIDS. This provision makes several changes to the Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA) program. They apply to FY 2017 funds and HUD’s Office of Community Planning and Development (CPD) will issue further guidance on how the changes will affect future funding.

As mentioned above, today’s guidance also specifies several other pieces of HOTMA that will require further rulemaking or guidance in order to become effective. In other words, PHAs may not apply these provisions until HUD issues a rule or a notice addressing them. Because they are not immediately effective, they are summarized in brief below, although further details can be found in today’s guidance:

• Changes regarding initial inspections in HCV units
• Changes on the enforcement of housing quality standards (HQS) in HCV units
• Changes regarding the frequency of income reviews
• Changes on income reviews in project-based housing, in addition to changes on project-based assistance in general
• Limitations on public housing tenancy for over-income families
• Limitations on eligibility for assistance based on assets
• Changes regarding PHA-owned units
• Revisions to requirements regarding the public housing capital and operating funds
• Changes regarding the use of vouchers for manufactured housing
• Modifications of FHA requirements for mortgage insurance for condominiums
• Changes regarding the definition of geographic area in the Continuum of Care program
• Changes regarding HOPWA allocations

Got questions about HOTMA? All of NMA's HCV classes have been updated for the new payment standard rules. Register at least 45 days in advance for most seminars and you’ll receive a 10 percent discount. (The discount does not apply to seminars hosted by housing authorities or associations.)

HUD’s Office of Public and Indian Housing (PIH) has posted an updated version of Form HUD-52665, Family Portability Information. The form has a new revision date (6/2016) and expiration date (4/30/2018), and also includes revisions to account for changes brought about by the Streamlining Portability Final Rule, including:

• A new field has been added in Part II-A to indicate the receiving PHA’s administrative fee rate.
• Instructions in Part II-B of the form have been revised to state that this part must be completed by the receiving PHA and received by the initial PHA within 90 days following the expiration date of the initial PHA’s voucher, and that for changes in the family status or billing amount, Part II-B must be completed and sent within 10 working days of the effective date of the change.
• What was previously section 5 of Part II-B has now been broken out into two separate entries numbered 5 and 6. Subsequent sections have been renumbered.
• Section 9 of Part II-B (formerly 8) now includes a note that the form must be submitted again once the outcome of the family’s search is known.
• Section 10 (formerly 9) covering billing information now contains fields to account for ongoing administrative fee-related revisions in the final rule.
• A comments section is now included on the last page.

The updated form is available in on HUDCLIPS. In other news this week:

CBPP: Federal housing spending is poorly matched to need

NCSHA: HUD proposes broadband infrastructure requirement for multifamily housing