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On Nov. 18 HUD’s Office of Public and Indian Housing (PIH) updated its guidance regarding the temporary eviction moratorium order from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The CDC eviction moratorium ends on Dec. 31. Initially, on Oct. 19, PIH issued guidance on the CDC’s moratorium in the form of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs). The following are the items to note from the recently updated FAQ.
On Oct. 14, HUD issued updated COVID-19 FAQs for multifamily housing providers. This is the eighth update to the FAQs. HUD had last issued updated FAQs on July 31. HUD has been using this document to address the concerns of owners, staff, and residents during the pandemic.
The latest version updates nine questions and adds 13 new questions, nine of which address the CDC Eviction Moratorium Order that was issued on Sept. 4. Here’s a rundown of the updated questions of interest to owners and managers.
In response to the nationwide health crisis associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, HUD’s Real Estate Assessment Center recently released Inspector Notice 2020-01, which establishes guidance to all Uniform Physical Condition Standards (UPCS) inspectors who conduct physical inspections of HUD-assisted and insured properties.
Each year HUD invests billions of federal dollars into distressed communities across the country for projects that build and rehabilitate housing, improve a variety of infrastructures, build community centers, and help families achieve stability and advancement. One way that HUD achieves these objectives is through the promotion and administration of Section 3, a provision of the HUD Act of 1968, found at 12 U.S.C. 1701u.
Last August, HUD launched a demonstration—that is, a pilot program—to test new approaches for making certain PHAs and private owners provide housing that’s safe and livable and to overhaul HUD’s Real Estate Assessment Center (REAC) physical inspection protocol. The change was prompted by negative press reports about substandard subsidized properties and HUD’s concerns that owners are “gaming the system” to make minimal repairs to pass inspections.
HUD’s Real Estate Assessment Center (REAC) recently released a memorandum that details the return-to-operations plan for inspections. The annual REAC inspection is a critical indicator of a federally assisted site's ability to maintain the physical standards established by HUD to ensure that residents are provided with decent, safe, and sanitary housing. Site owners can be contacted to schedule inspections starting on Sept. 21, 2020. With a 14-day notice from that point, physical inspections would resume on or about Oct. 5, 2020.
Under normal circumstances, when an assisted unit becomes vacant, a new household doesn’t usually move in right away. It takes time to find an eligible household. And even if you have a waiting list, you may need time to complete the applicant household’s eligibility review and certification, and a new household may need time to arrange its move-in.
On June 18, David Vargas, REAC’s Deputy Assistant Secretary, gave a presentation to the National Leased Housing Association (NLHA) to discuss the safe return of Real Estate Assessment Center (REAC) and National Standards for the Physical Inspection of Real Estate (NSPIRE) operations. In early March, REAC postponed all inspections until further notice due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
U.S.-style federalism allows for federal and state laws to exist side by side. In the context of federally assisted housing, leases and landlord-tenant relations are governed by HUD rules even though they’re located on property subject to state regulation. Nevertheless, it can also get confusing at times, particularly in eviction cases.
In the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, HUD made certain limited electronic signing and document delivery options available to help reduce virus exposure for important resident interactions such as income recertifications and applicant processing. In a new notice issued by HUD’s Office of Multifamily Housing, HUD has expanded the electronic option for owners in a continued effort to limit COVID-19 exposure for staff and residents by minimizing face-to-face interactions.
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