NMA Blog

Our fifth annual national housing conference was our best one yet, and we couldn't have done it without you! Thank you to everyone who joined us at the The Housing Conference in Boston, Massachusetts. To view the gallery of photos from the event, go here. I’d like to extend a warm thank-you to our generous sponsors, GoSection8 and HAI Group, who helped make the conference a very special event.

It was a real joy to have wonderful conversations with so many passionate and insightful members of our industry who appreciate the particular challenges and successes we all navigate, whether new to affordable housing or an old pro. I continue to be inspired by all of the ways you're improving the lives of the families in your communities. For some more incredible achievements, go here to read about the honorees of the 2017 NMA Housing Awards.

If you missed us in Boston, we'd love to say hi to you at another event! The NMA team will be attending a couple of conferences next month. I'll be attending national NAHRO, and you can meet Sheryl Putnam and Samantha Sowards at the New England Affordable Housing Management Association (NEAHMA). Stop by our booth, pick up some goodies, and chat with us!

Stay tuned for more updates!

John McKay has been with NMA since 1998, and has served as CEO of the company since 2007. He brings his knowledge of housing regulations and industry best practices into his role as project executive on many of NMA’s contracts with large housing authority clients and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). He has assessed, analyzed, and provided feedback to some of the country’s most well-run private and public organizations.

Last week at our fifth annual national housing conference in Boston, Nan McKay and Associates announced the winners of the 2017 NMA Housing Awards. We first launched these awards a decade ago to recognize excellence and innovation in the affordable housing industry.

Since then, we’ve been honored to read and evaluate a great number of worthy entries, and this year was no exception. Read on to learn more about this year’s winning agencies.

2017 Development Award
Large Agency

Valencia Grove
Housing Authority of the County of San Bernardino

Built in 1942, Valencia Grove wasthe first public housing site built in the County of San Bernardino. The original 115 public housing unit site was long overdue for a major revitalization. In 2013, the Housing Authority of the County of San Bernardino (HACSB) and its’ affiliate non‐profit developer, Housing Partners I, Inc. began the revitalization of its first public housing site in Redlands. The revitalization of this public housing site consists of a three pronged innovative approach: 1) demolition through a deconstruction/construction program; 2) use of factory‐built modular units; and 3) transitioned away from a traditional public housing site to a mixed‐used community (eventually to include homeownership), with a multi‐use educational and recreational facility.

2017 Development Award
Small Agency

Richards Crossing
Nevada Rural Housing Authority

NRHA has been instrumental in the development of the supportive housing project, Richards Crossing in Carson City. This innovative and unique new construction project is highly needed in the area and the first of its kind in northern Nevada. Richards Crossing includes 38 affordable housing units developed specifically for the homeless and extremely low-income individuals. Eight units will be reserved for chronically homeless veterans who receive rental assistance from the U.S. Veterans Administration (VA), while the other 30 units will receive Section 8 project-based rental assistance.

2017 Development Award
Honorable Mention

Legacy Commons
Fresno

Legacy Commons is a brand new innovative multi-family housing community in southwest Fresno. Designed to provide high-quality, affordable housing with modern amenities and on site services, the Mediterranean style apartment homes consists of one, two, three, and four bedroom apartment homes for a total of 128 units. Legacy Commons offers several impactful amenities including a community multi-purpose room with a kitchen, on site recording studio, fitness center, play structures and a swimming pool.

2017 Resident Service Award
Large Agency

Food Business Pathways
New York City Housing Authority

In 2014, NYCHA, NYC Department of Small Business Services (SBS), and NYC Economic Development Corporation (EDC) with support from Citi Community Development and nonprofits Hot Bread Kitchen and Start Small Think Big collaborated in an unprecedented way to develop a full-scale business career accelerator called Food Business Pathways (FBP). Food Business Pathways is part of Doorways to Opportunity, a $1.4 million investment from Citi Community Development to expand access to economic opportunities through a network of community services.

2017 Resident Service Award
Large Agency

M.O.V.E.
Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority

The Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority (CMHA) developed the M.O.V.E. Program in November of 2015. M.O.V.E. stands for Motivate, Opportunity, Vision and Empowerment and focuses on providing employment, job training, educational opportunities and support services to the Asset Management residents, Housing Choice Voucher participants, and Section 3 residents. That effort increases their chances of becoming economically self-sufficient.

2017 Resident Service Award
Small Agency

Summer BreakSpot Mobile Program
Broward County Housing Authority

Broward County Housing Authority (BCHA) partnered with community agencies in an innovative program called Summer BreakSpot Mobile Program (SBSP) of Broward County to provide nutritious lunches and snacks to local children/young adults ages 0-18. The program operates in summer months from June through August, and combines healthy food choices with nutrition education, cooking demonstrations, a literacy program, physical fitness, personal enrichment workshops, and other fun activities. At its inception the program started with 7 feeding sites and as of summer 2016 it has grown to host 75 locations, which includes over 60 community partners.

The NMA Housing Awards is an annual event created to honor agencies that build bridges to the future and generate real change in their communities and the affordable housing industry. Entries for the 2018 awards will open this spring.

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!

Have you sent us your application yet for the 2017 NMA Housing Awards? Entries are due Friday, April 28, 2017 and must be postmarked or emailed by that date.

If you haven’t entered yet, now is your opportunity to share all the amazing work your agency has done for the community. Award winners will be presented with an engraved trophy at The Housing Conference this August in Boston, Massachusetts.

2017 NMA Development Award

NMA honors the outstanding achievement of housing authorities or associations in affordable housing with the NMA Development Award. One award will be given to an agency with 1250 or more units and one to an agency with 1249 or fewer units. Unit size is based on the total number of housing units.

Eligibility: Housing authorities or associations that administer affordable housing programs will be eligible. Each entry must be limited to one specific development initiative. Examples of such initiatives are new development or construction, green initiatives, property improvements, or out-of-the-box financing.

Criteria: To apply for the 2017 NMA Development Award, all applicants must respond to the following in 1500 words or less.

• Describe the housing authority’s / association’s most significant accomplishment in development over the past 12 months.
• Describe the individual achievement by your employees that helped your agency reach your goal.
• Describe the lasting impact of such development on the community served.

2017 NMA Resident Service Award

The NMA Resident Service Award is sponsored by NMA to recognize housing authorities who are leaders in the affordable housing industry through their community outreach and efforts to improve the future of the families they serve. One award will be given to an agency with 1250 or more units and one to an agency with 1249 or fewer units. Unit size is based on the total number of housing units.

Eligibility: Housing authorities or associations that administer affordable housing programs will be eligible. Each entry must be limited to one specific service initiative. Examples of such initiatives are self-sufficiency programs, community projects, education, or other resident or participant initiatives.

Criteria: To apply for the 2017 NMA Resident Service Award, all applicants must respond to the following in 1500 words or less.

• Describe the housing authority’s / association’s most significant accomplishment in service over the past 12 months.
• Describe the individual achievement by your employees that helped your agency reach your goal.
• Describe the lasting impact of such social achievements on the community served.

You can download the entry form on our website. Go here to read about last year's winners. If you have any questions, email us at marketing@nanmckay.com. We look forward to reading your entries!

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!