The ripple effects from an unsteady economy and uneven housing market continue to be felt in the assisted housing industry. Depending upon your geographic location and the type of housing your site includes, you're probably encountering vexing issues, such as ever-growing waiting lists for...
Households at your site with pregnant members, and families with pregnant members who apply to live at your site, are subject to specific HUD rules when it comes to eligibility, income, and unit size. But you have to be careful about how you use what you learn with regard to pregnant residents...
If you ever need a rent comparability study (RCS)—for a Section 8 contract renewal, for example, or to help substantiate an annual rent increase request—you don't want to simply take what the appraiser gives you and hand it off to your contract administrator or local HUD office...
As an owner or manager, one of your key responsibilities is to work with households and individuals to determine their correct level of eligibility and amount of rent and to ensure that they are placed in an appropriate unit. This is accomplished through a thorough interview where information is...
When it comes to marketing your site, HUD has one key expectation: that you will do what you said you were going to do when you completed your Affirmative Fair Housing Marketing Plan (AFHMP), Form HUD-935.2A. HUD calls the AFHMP “the owner's blueprint for marketing activity.”
You already know you must provide reasonable accommodations for applicants and residents who are disabled and use a wheelchair for mobility. But as an owner or manager, you also must be certain that you maintain a safe environment for all your residents and visitors.
You can hope you never need the services of a collection agency, but it's likely that you will. Suppose a resident skips out without paying the share of his rent above his subsidy. You are entitled to pursue the resident within legal means to collect past-due debts. That's when a good...
In “Follow HUD Guidelines for New Resident Orientation,” above, we discuss the importance of briefing new residents on the terms of the lease and house rules. HUD's guidelines for conducting this briefing include providing information in written form, such as a packet of handouts...
When new residents move in to your site, you should take steps to assure that they understand their responsibilities as outlined in their lease and house rules. While HUD does not require you to do this, HUD strongly encourages you to—and it is a good site management practice.
Chances are you've probably heard or received complaints about these situations. Some of them were probably easy to deal with. Others weren't. And when they happen frequently, and the...
