Resident

Measuring Resident Agency

~ Tushar Gurjal ~ 1 Comment

The Stewards of Affordable Housing for the Future have created a guide to help “outline measures and data gathering practices” that may “amplify resident voice and agency.” The guide is titled “Measuring Resident Agency and Voice in an Affordable Housing Setting: A Set of Guiding Questions to Move Forward.” The measures suggested by the guide fall into four categories. The categories were chosen based on how prevalent they were in current research, their relevance to the affordable housing industry, and their applicability to the affordable housing industry. In each category, the guide presents a few paragraphs on why the category is important, some suggested questions on how to think about the category for organizational staff, and some suggested questions to ask residents.

The categories covered by the guide are the following:

  • Resident Satisfaction – the guide notes that assessing resident satisfaction is a way to check if resident needs and safety are being met, which are needed, if additional and deeper resident engagement is to be had.
  • Social Cohesion – the guide defines this as “connectedness among residents” and notes that it can provide insight into a property’s culture, especially around “neighborliness and collaboration.”
  • Resident Power – the guide notes that this is important because it can help determine what a property remodel can look like or how operations and service delivery can be changed. It is the “ultimate outcome of exercising agency and voice.”
  • Civic Engagement – the guide gives examples of this as “volunteering, attending public hearings, and voting” and notes that these activities have served as indicators of community participation.

The full guide can be found here.

Administration Announces Housing Supply Action Plan

~ Tushar Gurjal ~ 1 Comment

On May 16, the administration announced a housing supply action plan that is intended to “ease the burden of housing costs over time, by boosting the supply of quality housing in every community.” The plan includes both legislative and administrative actions and is meant to align with other policies currently in effect (e.g., federal rental assistance) to create more affordable rents and make homeownership more affordable.

While the plan includes many specific actions, many of those actions can be grouped into the following categories.

  • Incentivizing jurisdictions to reform their zoning and land-use policies by giving higher scores to jurisdictions that do this in federal grant allocations.
  • Implementing new financing mechanisms to build and preserve housing, including manufactured housing; accessory dwelling units; two to four unit properties; and other multifamily buildings.
  • Improving existing federal financing for development and preservation, which includes making construction to permanent loans more available; promoting the use of COVID recovery funds for affordable housing; reforming the low-income housing tax credit and the HOME program.
  • Ensuring that more housing goes to owners that live in the units or non-profits that will rehabilitate them.
  • Addressing supply chain issues by working with the private sector.

The White House’s full announcement of their housing supply action plan can be found here.

US Supreme Court Overturns CDC Eviction Moratorium

~ Georgi Banna ~ Leave a comment

On Thursday, August 26, the United States Supreme Court vacated the stay that has allowed the current CDC eviction moratorium to continue. The order vacating the stay and dissent arguing to keep the stay can be found here. It confirms lower court decisions that the CDC did not have statutory authority to impose a nationwide eviction moratorium and states, “If a federally imposed eviction moratorium is to continue, Congress must specifically authorize it. The application to vacate stay presented to THE CHIEF JUSTICE and by him referred to the Court is granted.”

The Court order placed considerable responsibility on Congress to act on a federal eviction moratorium, “It is up to Congress, not the CDC, to decide whether the public interest merits further action here. And Congress was on notice that a further extension would almost surely require new legislation, yet it failed to act in the several weeks leading up to the moratorium’s expiration.”

NAHRO continues to meet and work with HUD to develop solutions that will provide housing authorities the flexibility to minimize local evictions and will provide additional information when it becomes available. NAHRO encourages housing authorities, landlords, and tenants to work together to avoid COVID related evictions and to review HUD’s Eviction Prevention and Stability Toolkit for information and best practices. A White House Fact Sheet has also been released that provides additional actions that are being taken to prevent eviction and increase access to emergency rental assistance funds.

Sec. Fudge Announces New Effort to Address Reentry Housing Needs

~ Claire Salant ~ Leave a comment

Secretary Fudge issued new guidance yesterday clarifying that citizens returning from jail and/or prison and at risk of homelessness are eligible for Emergency Housing Vouchers.

In a letter sent out to PHAs, Continuums of Care, and HUD grantees, Sec. Fudge wrote that “HUD strongly encourages PHAs to work with their Continuum of Care (CoC) partners to ensure that individuals who are at-risk of homelessness after leaving prisons or jails are considered for these vouchers.”

HUD has eliminated permissive prohibitions for drug-related criminal activity for EHVs, since drug addiction can be a root cause of homelessness. Following a Housing First approach, it now recommends considering drug-related prohibitions to be separate from prohibitions on criminal activity against a person. HUD also no longer requires a “one strike” rule for residents for criminal activity, and instead defers to discretion of landlords and PHAs. More detail on criminal records and eligibility for EHVs can be found here.

Beyond EHVs, more guidance on criminal records in accordance with the Fair Housing Act can be found here. PHAs and federally-assisted housing cannot use arrest records as the basis to deny admission, terminate assistance, or evict residents.

HUD plans to issue future guidance and tools for PHAs and private landlords on tenant screening and best practices on reentry housing. Later this month it will also issue guidance on using Community Development Block Grants on community violence intervention (CVI).

New, Updated Emergency Rental Assistance Guidance Issued

~ Georgi Banna ~ Leave a comment

The U.S. Department of Treasury (Treasury) has released new and updated frequently asked questions (FAQs) on the Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP) that was created by the December 27, 2020 omnibus appropriations act. These new February 22, 2021 dated FAQs replace in their entirety the previously issued January 19, 2021 FAQs.

NAHRO commends Treasury for the new FAQs, as they provide much-needed clear and reasonable guidance on the ERAP. NAHRO has been in contact with Treasury on numerous occasions to ensure that PHAs and their residents are served by the ERAP. On January 25, 2021, NAHRO sent a letter to the Treasury and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development outlining our concerns with the January 19, 2021 FAQs, and the new FAQs address many of NAHRO’s concerns. These new FAQs are a major step forward for PHAs in meeting their COVID-19 housing needs of HUD-assisted residents.  

Below are a number of the key guidance points provided by the February 22, 2021 FAQs:

  • Federally assisted tenants (Public Housing, Housing Choice Voucher, & Project-Based Rental Assistance) are eligible for ERAP assistance for the tenant-owed portion of rent and utilities that are not subsidized. 
  • Tenants may document their financial hardship due to COVID-19 (unemployment benefits, reduction of income, significant costs, or other COVID-19 financial hardship) by written attestation signed by the tenant that one or more household members meet this eligibility criteria. 
  • Tenant household income is defined by using either HUD’s “annual income” definition in 24 CFR 5.609 or adjusted gross income reported on an Internal Revenue Service Form 1040 series. 
  • “Other expenses related to housing” examples are provided. The examples include but are not limited to: 
    • relocation expenses and rental fees (if a household has been temporarily or permanently displaced due to the COVID-19 outbreak);  
    • reasonable accrued late fees (if not included in rental or utility arrears and if incurred due to COVID-19); and  
    • Internet service provided to the rental unit. 
  • Outreach to landlords and utility providers must be done before providing the funds directly to the tenant. Outreach can be done using the following methods: 
    • a request for participation is sent in writing, by mail, to the landlord or utility provider, and the addressee does not respond to the request within 14 calendar days after mailing;  
    • the grantee has made at least three attempts by phone, text, or e-mail over a 10 calendar-day period to request the landlord or utility provider’s participation; or 
    • a landlord confirms in writing that the landlord does not wish to participate. 
  • PHAs, non-profit organizations, and local governments may operate ERAP programs through contractor, subrecipient, or intergovernmental cooperation agreements with the primary grantee at the state or local jurisdiction level. These agreements must meet monitoring and management requirements of 2 CFR 200.331-200.333 and procurement standards of 2 CFR 200.317-200.327. 

These are just a few of the answers in the new FAQs. The full FAQs are available on the NAHRO website’s Emergency Rental Assistance Program page. The Emergency Rental Assistance Program, including these FAQs, will be a focus of the 2021 NAHRO Online Washington Conference’s Treasury Affordable Housing Program and Washington Report sessions on March 2, 2021. Click here to register for the 2021 NAHRO Online Washington Conference. 

Thirdhand Smoke Informational Webinar

~ Georgi Banna ~ Leave a comment

NAHRO from time-to-time shares information and webinars from affordable housing partners. Today we are sharing an upcoming webinar from the Thirdhand Smoke Resource Center.

Thirdhand Smoke:
What Every Property Manager Needs to Know

Thursday, October 15, 2020, 2:00-3:00 pm PST
The webinar is free to participants.
REGISTER NOW!

Many property managers are all too familiar with complaints about secondhand smoke and the smell and discoloration left behind in the units of smokers. But did you know that this smell and discoloration is the result of the toxic residue left behind by tobacco smoke and it has negative health effects? Also known as thirdhand smoke, this toxic residue sticks to carpets, doors, furniture, walls, and other surfaces and materials and can remain for years after secondhand smoke has disappeared. How much do you know about thirdhand smoke? How prepared are you to prevent toxic thirdhand smoke? How prepared are you to deal with thirdhand smoke that has built up in an apartment?

This webinar will explain why it is so difficult to remove thirdhand smoke once it has become established and will focus on successful strategies to prevent thirdhand smoke in multiunit housing, with plenty of time for discussion with our panelists!

Webinar topics include:

  1. Thirdhand smoke: origins, constituents, routes of exposure, remediation
  2. Regulatory approaches to prevention of thirdhand smoke in multiunit housing
  3. Policy approaches to prevention of thirdhand smoke in multiunit housing
  4. Strategies for overcoming resistance: Successes, challenges, and resource

Thank you for sharing this invitation with property managers and owners!

Today – NAHRO Webinar: The Impact of the CDC Eviction Moratorium on PHAs

~ Georgi Banna ~ Leave a comment

NAHRO is hosting a webinar on the recently publish CDC order stopping most non-payment of rent evictions in the United States. The webinar is today, September 8, 2020 at 2pm eastern time. Click here to register. This webinar is complimentary for NAHRO members and $25 for non-member. More information on the benefits of NAHRO membership is available here.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) have issued an order stopping most residential evictions for non-payment of rent through the end of 2020. What does this mean for Public Housing Authorities (PHAs) and their residents? Join the NAHRO team and Housing Development Law Institute (HDLI) staff as they provide a breakdown of the CDC order and discuss how it may affect the day-to-day operations of PHAs’ housing programs.

This webinar is the first of our complimentary member benefit series – monthly online sessions that will tackle hot topics, provide opportunities to hear from your peers in the field, and feature networking events to keep you connected. Keep an eye on our training calendar – more information will be coming soon!

Click here to register for today’s webinar!

CDC Publishes Order Halting Residential Evictions

~ Georgi Banna ~ Leave a comment

On late Tuesday afternoon, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced an order to stop residential evictions to halt the spread of COVID-19. The order is currently scheduled to be published in the Federal Register on September 4. It becomes effective on publication and will last until December 31, 2020, unless extended.

The order notes that as of late August, there have been over 23 million cases of COVID-19 globally, resulting in over 800,000 deaths. It also states that, domestically, there have been over 5.5 million cases, which have resulted in over 174,000 deaths. Given the “historic threat to public health,” the order notes that “[e]viction moratoria facilitate self-isolation by people who become ill or who are at risk for severe illness from COVID-19 due to an underlying medical condition.” The order also notes that eviction moratoria help implement stay-at-home and social distancing orders, while also preventing homelessness which “increases the likelihood of individuals moving into close quarters in congregate settings, such as homeless shelters, which then puts individuals at higher risk of COVID-19.”

The order institutes a temporary eviction moratorium. It states that a “landlord . . . shall not evict any covered person from any residential property in any State or U.S. territory” in which there are COVID-19 cases. The term “covered person” includes any tenant who states—under the penalty of perjury—to their landlord, owner, or other person with the power to evict that the following conditions have been met:

  • The person has used their best efforts to obtain available government assistance for rent or housing;
  • The person meets any of the following three criteria:
    • The person does not expect to earn more than $99,000 in annual income in calendar year (CY) 2020 (or more than $198,000 for joint tax returns);
    • The person was not required to report any income in 2019 to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS); or
    • The person received a “stimulus check” under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act;
  • The person is unable to pay the full rent or make a full housing payment due to loss of compensable hours of work, a lay-off, or extraordinary out-of-pocket medical expenses;
  • The person is making “best efforts” to make timely partial payments that are as close to the full payment as possible; and
  • Eviction would render the individual homeless or force the individual to live in close quarters in a new congregate or shared living setting.

Despite the order, individuals are still obligated to pay rent or make applicable payments. The order does not prevent charging or collecting fees, penalties, and interest for late payments. Tenants may still be evicted for the following:

  • Engaging in criminal activity on the premises;
  • Threatening the health or safety of other residents;
  • Damaging or posing an immediate and significant risk of damage to property;
  • Violating any applicable building code, health ordinance, or similar regulation relating to health and safety; or
  • Violating any other contractual obligation (other than late fees, penalties, or interest).

This order does not apply in certain areas. It does not apply in any “State, local, territorial, or tribal area with a moratorium on residential evictions that provides the same or greater level of public-health protection.” Additionally, the order does not apply in American Samoa—which has no reported cases—unless cases develop.

The order is not a rule as defined in the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), but is an “emergency action.” If it did qualify as a rule, the order notes that there is still “good cause” to dispense with the regular notice-and-comment process because of the public-health emergency.

There are certain criminal penalties for violating this order. A person violating the order may be subject to a fine of $100,000, one year of jail, both a fine and jail, or another lawful penalty, if the violation does not result in a death. If the violation results in a death, the person violating the order may be subject to a fine of $250,000, one year of jail, both a fine and jail, or other lawful penalty. An organization violating this order may be subject to $200,000 per event, if the violation does not lead to a death and $500,000 per event if the violation results in death. The Department of Health and Human Services is authorized to cooperate with and aid state and local authorities to authorize this order.

The order includes a declaration for tenants. A tenant must provide a copy of the declaration to their landlord, owner, or other individual who has the right to evict. Each adult listed on the lease must complete the declaration. The declaration must be true under a penalty of perjury.

A pre-publication copy of the order can be found here.

NAHRO continues to encourage Public Housing Authorities (PHAs), Section 8 landlords, and tenants to work together to minimize the financial impact of COVID-19. Tenants should contact their PHA notifying them of any reduction of income due to the pandemic. Landlords and PHAs should reach out and coordinate with tenants concerning unpaid rent. Best practices in preventing evictions include repayment agreements, retroactive recertifications and proactive communication with tenants.

Below are links to HUD and NAHRO eviction prevention resources:

Our advocacy must continue to ensure adequate resources that support your programs and provides rent relief for unassisted families. Use the NAHRO Advocacy Action Alert Center to send letters to your members of Congress and the Administration and let them know the critical role quality house and rental assistance plays as we continue to navigate the COVID-19 pandemic.

President Signs Executive Order on Assistance to Renters and Homeowners

~ Georgi Banna ~ Leave a comment

On August 8, President Trump signed an executive order titled “Executive Order on Fighting the Spread of COIVD-19 by Providing Assistance to Renters and Homeowners.” This Executive Order (EO) was signed after the negotiations on a fourth COVID-19 legislative relief package broke down.

The EO states, “[i]t is the policy of the United States to minimize, to the greatest extent possible, residential evictions and foreclosures during the ongoing COVID-19 national emergency.” Specifically it directs the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) “to promote the ability of renters and homeowners to avoid eviction or foreclosure” through actions that “may include encouraging and providing assistance to public housing authorities, affordable housing owners, landlords, and recipients of Federal grant funds in minimizing evictions and foreclosures.” The agencies of HUD and Treasury are also directed to “identify any and all available Federal funds to provide temporary financial assistance to renters and homeowners.” Additionally, the Department of Health and Human Services, along with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), “shall consider whether any measures temporarily halting residential evictions . . . are reasonably necessary to prevent further spread of COVID-19.”

This Executive Order, in and of itself, does not specifically extend nor create an eviction moratorium nor does it create a new rental or homeowner assistance program. This Executive Order instructs the executive branch of government – specifically Health and Human Services; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC); Treasury; Housing and Urban Development; and the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) – to assess their current resources and tools related to renters and homeowners affected by COVID-19.

NAHRO continues to encourage Public Housing Authorities (PHAs), Section 8 landlords, and tenants to work together to minimize the financial impact of COVID-19. Tenants should contact their PHA notifying them of any reduction of income due to the pandemic. Landlords and PHAs should reach out and coordinate with tenants concerning unpaid rent. Best practices in preventing evictions include repayment agreements, retroactive recertifications and proactive communication with tenants.

Below are links to HUD and NAHRO eviction prevention resources:

Our advocacy must continue to ensure adequate resources that support your programs and provides rent relief for unassisted families. Use the NAHRO Advocacy Action Alert Center to send letters to your members of Congress and the Administration and let them know the critical role quality house and rental assistance plays as we continue to navigate the COVID-19 pandemic.

Homeland Security’s Public Charge Rule Implementation Stopped!

~ Georgi Banna ~ Leave a comment

On July 29, 2020, Judge George B. Daniels of the U.S District Court for the Southern District of New York issued a preliminary injunction and temporary stay of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Public Charge rule. Judge Daniels’ order provides that DHS and U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) can not enforce, apply, implement, or treat as effective the Public Charge rule as long as “there is a declared national health emergency in response to the COVID-19 outbreak.”

The preliminary injunction and temporary stay applies nationwide as Judge Daniels wrote, “Each infected individual that travels to Governmental Plaintiffs’ jurisdiction [States of New York, Connecticut, and Vermont; and City of New York] risks undoing crucial progress made in combating this disease. Discouraging noncitizens nationwide from obtaining necessary treatment and care certainly undermines those efforts. Issuing geographically limited relief would not meaningfully abate the public health risk, especially when applied to a population that represents a significant portion of essential workers who continue to work outside of their homes ans interact with the public at large.”

The Public Charge rule, that defined public charge to include individuals receiving federal housing benefits, took effect February 24, 2020; after previous injunctions and stays were lifted by the U.S. Supreme Court. It is anticipated that Judge Daniels’ preliminary injunction and temporary stay order will also be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

The July 29, 2020 order can be view here. NAHRO’s Public Charge One-Pager provides additional information on the DHS Public Charge rule. NAHRO will continue to follow the implementation of DHS’s Public Charge rule and share additional information as we receive it.