On July 6, HUD released the “National Standards for the Physical Inspection of Real Estate and Associated Protocols, Scoring Notice” for public inspection. It will be officially published in The Federal Register on July 7, 2023. Public Housing inspections were scheduled to begin July 1, 2023. 

The notice outlines how NSPIRE inspections will be scored and responds to comments submitted in response to the Proposed Scoring Notice. It significantly revises the proposed notice in two ways.  

1. The final notice eliminates the new letter grade requirement. Now, NSPIRE scores will no longer provide a letter grade categorizing a property’s physical condition based on the inspection score it receives.  

2. Projects that have one deficiency in multiple parts of a building will only have points deducted once per “inspectable area”—units, inside common areas, and outside areas—but not multiple times per each inspectable area.  

The final notice does not revise the new methodology, which prioritizes resident health and safety by prioritizing units most heavily. Final scores will be calculated by weighting each deficiency the inspection finds. Weights are determined by the location and severity of the deficiency. Those found in units are weighted more heavily than common areas inside buildings, and deficiencies outside of buildings are assigned the lowest weights. At the same time, “life-threatening” deficiencies, as defined by HOTMA, are given the greatest weight and the lowest severity deficiencies are given the lowest. Therefore, a life-threatening deficiency found in a unit will result in the largest possible score deduction of any single deficiency.  

The NSPIRE Administrative Procedures Notice was published on July 3, 2023. For more information, please see the pre-published Final Scoring Notice, NAHRO’s July 3^rd NSPIRE coverage, and the forthcoming July 15 edition of The NAHRO Monitor.  

On June 28, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) welcomed applications to the $7 billion grant competition Solar for All, which was created by the Inflation Reduction Act’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF) to expand existing and implement new residential solar investment for low-income and disadvantaged communities. The program will award up to 60 grants to states, territories, Tribal governments, municipalities, and eligible nonprofits.

The application deadline for submission is September 26, 2023. In addition, applicants are required to submit a Notice of Intent to be eligible by the following dates:

• July 31, 2023 for all states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico
• August 14, 2023 for U.S. territories, municipalities and eligible nonprofits
• August 28, 2023 for Tribal governments and Intertribal Consortia

There are three award options that include awards for programs that serve a specific state or territory, awards for programs that serve American Indian and Alaska Native communities and awards for programs that serve communities in multiple states. Different sized award amount will be determined by the total number of households served.

The application can found on Grants.gov here.

 

Last week, HUD’s Office of Policy Development and Research (PD&R) published proposed changes to the methodology used for calculating fair market rents. There are two material changes included to the calculation of FMRs. First, the proposal would include a change in the definition of “recent mover” as used in the recent movement adjustment. HUD is proposing to consider the rents of households who moved into their unit only in the current American Community Survey (ACS) year. Currently, HUD looks at movers in the past 23 months. HUD intends for this change to be more reflective of current market conditions.

The second change would be to retain and expand the use of rent inflation factors calculated by private sector sources. HUD first used this expanded inflation factor while calculating 2023 FMRs. NAHRO encourages HUD to continue using the most robust and up-to-date inflation factors to ensure FMRs are matching the current market.

The notice can be found here. Comments are due July 24.

The Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University recently published its report titled “The State of the Nation’s Housing 2023.” The report provides insight into the current state of the United States housing market–highlighting the challenges faced by homeowners and renters due to rising costs. 

One key finding of the report is the significant impact of increasing interest rates on housing affordability. Despite a decrease in housing demand and market activity, the cost of homeownership continues to rise, surpassing pre-pandemic levels. Factors such as higher borrowing costs, and rising costs of land and construction, have contributed to a decline in the construction of new single-family homes, thereby exacerbating the existing housing shortage. These rising costs have particularly affected first-time homebuyers, rendering homeownership unattainable for many. 

While rent growth has slowed down in certain areas and home prices have declined, overall affordability remains a pressing concern. The report highlights the growing number of homeowners and renters burdened by housing costs, with a record 21.6 million renter households spending more than 30 percent of their income on housing.  Furthermore, the report suggests a potential slowdown in the construction of multifamily properties due to an increase in rental vacancy rates, higher interest rates, and stricter lending standards.  

Find the full report here. 

Urban Institute published their report titled “Using Vouchers to Support Homeownership: Can the Housing Choice Voucher Homeownership Program Help Address the Racial Homeownership Gap?” The Urban Institute’s paper delves into the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) homeownership program, its potential to bridge the racial homeownership gap, and the limitations it faces in achieving this goal. Below is a summary of their findings.  

One of the significant challenges in the housing landscape of the United States is the persistent gap in homeownership rates between Black and white households. Inequitable access to economic opportunities has perpetuated this disparity, with Black non-Hispanic households comprising nearly half of all HCV recipients. By enabling HCV recipients to allocate their vouchers towards mortgage payments, individuals and families can build equity, establish roots within their communities, and break the cycle of intergenerational poverty.  

Benefits and Limitations of the HCV Homeownership Program: 

While housing agencies supporting homeownership vouchers highlight the program’s long-term benefits for families, there are several limitations that hinder its potential to advance homeownership opportunities for Black non-Hispanic households: 

Scope and Mission of Housing Agencies: Some housing agencies may not consider homeownership as part of their organization’s mission to make renting affordable. 

Suitability for High-Cost Metropolitan Areas: In areas characterized by high housing costs, finding affordable homeownership opportunities can be challenging for voucher holders. This constraint may limit the program’s feasibility in such regions, making it less accessible for prospective homeowners. 

Impact of High Interest Rates: High interest rates have the potential to redirect a substantial portion of household finances towards interest payments, impeding a homeowner’s ability to build equity.  

Need for Collaboration: The effectiveness of the program relies on successful collaboration between housing agencies, lenders, and various first-time homebuyer programs. However, fostering such collaboration can be challenging, as it requires coordination among multiple stakeholders with potentially divergent priorities. 

Policy Recommendations for Greater Impact: 

The report suggests four potential policy changes that could enhance the HCV Homeownership program. 

Policy 1: Increase Income Limits for Participants 

One approach to expanding the HCV homeownership program is by raising income eligibility limits, allowing more households to qualify for assistance. However, this policy would strain the program’s budget, as demand already exceeds supply. Moreover, without dedicated funding, broadening eligibility wouldn’t guarantee that households actually receive assistance. Finally, increasing income limits would detract from a PHAs ability to provide rental assistance for extremely low-income families due to finite budgets. 

Policy 2: Create a Distinct Class of HCV Vouchers for Homeownership 

Designating a specific portion of HCVs for homeownership, accompanied by a separate funding stream, could increase participation. However, the effectiveness of this policy remains uncertain, as current uptake rates for homeownership vouchers remain low. Additionally, allocating more vouchers to homeownership would reduce the number of households served with vouchers for rental units. 

Policy 3: Extend the Length of Subsidy Allowable 

Extending the maximum subsidy period past the current 15 years could provide households with more time to achieve financial self-sufficiency for homeownership. This policy could be particularly beneficial for younger households with prospects for increased income over time. This could also be appealing to lending institutions as they may be more willing to engage in the program as there is a perceived reduction in risk of payment default.  

Policy 4: Increase Funding for Lump Sum Down Payment Assistance 

Currently, HUD allows PHAs to offer 12 times the monthly subsidy amount in the form of a down payment rather than providing a homeownership voucher. Offering a larger upfront down payment assistance, potentially up to five- or ten-years’ worth of subsidies, could significantly reduce the financial burden on homebuyers. This approach could eliminate the need for mortgage insurance and save costs in the long run.  

The full paper can be found here. 

On June 15, HUD officially updated the Community Planning and Development (CPD) Income Eligibility Calculator to incorporate income limits for fiscal year 2023. The calculator is used to determine income eligibility and assistance amount calculations for the following programs:

• Brownfield Economic Development Initiative (BEDI)
• Community Development Block Grant Program (CDBG)
• CDBG Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR)
• Emergency Solutions Grants (ESG)
• HOME Investment Partnerships Program (HOME)
• Housing Opportunities for Persons With AIDS (HOPWA)
• Housing Trust Fund (HTF)
• Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP)
• Section 108 Loan Guarantee Program
• Self-Help Homeownership Opportunity (SHOP)

For current users of the calculator, calculations that have been made in a users dashboard and calculations moving forward will use fiscal year 2023 income limits for determining eligibility.

Data for calculations made based on fiscal year 2022 income limits are only accessible to those who have already downloaded and saved the information prior to the update. The Department notes that the calculator is designed to easily update income for the future and not as a means of storing past data.

The CPD Income Eligibility Calculator can be found here.

On June 6, HUD announced the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for the Jobs Plus program. Approximately $22.5 million will be made available for PHAs to develop approaches that encourage economic mobility and promote increased resident earnings through earned income disregards and a series of employment enabling services. In addition to counseling, training, and education support, PHAs have the flexibility to provide other services according to resident needs and local abilities.

Eligible housing agencies are those that serve a minimum of 100 households where at least one resident in each household is non-elderly (less than age 65). PHAs that received a Jobs Plus program grant for FY 2019, FY 2020-2021, or FY 2022 are not eligible.

The Department expects to make 12 awards ranging from a minimum of $1.6 million to a maximum of $3.7 million, depending on the number of households served. Applications for this grant are due by Monday, August 21, 2023.

The full Jobs Plus program NOFO can be found here. More information on the notice will be available in the June 15 edition of The Monitor.