Feature
November 14, 2012
Screening applicants is becoming increasingly important for assisted sites. And visiting an applicant's home is an effective way to identify bad applicants. It can also help you get a head start in working with those applicants you ultimately decide to accept. At the Residences at Ninth Square...
Income Calculations
November 14, 2012
To determine whether a household is eligible to live at your assisted site and how much assistance it should get, you must count income that the household “expects to receive” during its 12-month certification year [HUD Handbook 4350.3, par. 5-5(A)]. This includes amounts household...
Recent Court Rulings
November 14, 2012
Facts: A resident sued the owner and the local housing authority for alleged wrongful termination of her Section 8 subsidy. In August 2008, the resident was notified that her unit failed a Housing Quality Standards (HQS) inspection. When she received this notification, she understood it to mean...
Recent Court Rulings
November 14, 2012
Facts: Owners of a project-based Section 8 site sued HUD to challenge regulations that provide standards for “decent, safe, and sanitary” low-income housing. Under Section 8 of the Housing Act of 1937, HUD provides housing assistance through both “project-based assistance,”...
Recent Court Rulings
November 14, 2012
Facts: In December 2007, a resident slipped and fell in front of the owner’s building while stepping up to the curb and onto a five- or six-inch mound of snow. The resident claimed that the owner was negligent in removing snow from the sidewalk.
The owner argued that according to all...
The Trainer
November 14, 2012
USING HOME VISITS TO SCREEN APPLICANTS; ANNUALIZING EMPLOYMENT INCOME
In this month’s feature, we discussed how some management companies conduct a home visit to applicants' current residences before deciding whether to accept or reject them. While HUD allows you to make home...
Feature
October 11, 2012
During an inspection, Real Estate Assessment Center (REAC) inspectors look at specific areas of the site for health and safety hazards. Most of these hazards can cost you points on your inspection score but don't necessarily subject you to other, more serious penalties.
Compliance
October 11, 2012
Federal laws require employers—including apartment building owners and management companies—to post signs explaining legal information to their employees. Failure to post the signs can cost as much as $10,000 per violation. Fortunately, compliance is easy. The signs are available free...
Compliance
October 11, 2012
Files on households can take up a lot of space. After a few years, you may be tempted to throw out some of these files, which contain documents relating to former and current households as well as to applicants who were rejected or withdrew their applications. If you're not careful, you might...
HUD Audits
October 11, 2012
HUD audited the Recovery Act formula and competitive grants administered by the Hammond Housing Authority in Hammond, Ind., as part of its annual audit plan. It selected the authority based on its analysis of risk factors related to the housing agencies in Region V’s jurisdiction.
