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HUD HOTMA Rules Clarify and Change the Treatment of Assets
03-05-2024
HUD Notice H 2013-10 expands upon the Final Rule for implementing the Housing Opportunity Through Modernization Act (HOTMA). This final rule makes some changes to the way managers of HUD-assisted housing will deal with assets on HUD-assisted properties. Since LIHTC properties are required to follow HUD rules relative to the determination of income, these changes also apply to tax credit properties.
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AJ Johnson - February 14, 2024
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Owner Successfully Uses “Mrs. Murphy” Fair Housing Exemption
05-23-2023
In Weilburg v. Castellane, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of NY ruled in favor of an apartment building owner in a religious discrimination case. The fair housing suit was brought by one of the tenants on the grounds that they were evicted by the landlord for being Jehovah’s Witnesses. However, the court ruled that the building was exempted from the definition of a “dwelling” under the FHA. The exemption applies to buildings of no more than four units, as long as the owner of the building is a resident in one of the units.
The FHA explicitly Read more -
HUD Publishes 2023 Income Limits
05-23-2023
On May 15, 2023, HUD published the 2023 income limits for HUD programs as well as for the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit and Tax-Exempt Bond programs. The limits are effective on May 15, 2023. The limits for the LIHTC and Bond projects are published separately from the limits for HUD programs.
LIHTC and Bond properties use the Multifamily Tax Subsidy Project (MTSP) limits and are held harmless from income limit (and therefore rent) reductions. These properties may use the highest income limits used for resident qualification and rent calculation purposes since the project has been i Read more -
2023 Income Limits Will Be Delayed
12-07-2022
The U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD) normally publishes annual income limits in early April of each year. However, complications with calculating the limits due to COVID-19 will cause a delay in the release of the limits in 2023. According to HUD, the limits will be released on or about May 15, 2023.
HUD normally uses American Community Survey (ACS) Data from three years prior to the income limit release to determine family median incomes and income limits. However, the Census Bureau did not release the 2020 one-year ACS data due to data collection difficulties be Read more -
House and Senate Add Homeless Students and Veterans as LIHTC Student Exception
12-07-2022
On November 16, 2022, S. 5108 was introduced in the U.S. Senate, and H.R. 9313 was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives. The title of the bill is “Housing for Homeless Students Act of 2022.” If the bill becomes law, it will amend Section 42 of the Internal Revenue Code to qualify homeless youth and veterans who are full-time students for purposes of the low-income housing tax credit.
The homeless student rule would have a look-back period of seven years prior to occupancy in a LIHTC project and the veteran exception would have a five-year look-back. In other words, Read more -
HUD Publishes Various Income and Rent Limits
06-09-2022
HUD has published the Fiscal Year 2022 income limits for Emergency Solutions Grants (ESG), Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), Housing Opportunities for People with Aids (HOPWA), the HOME Program, and the Housing Trust Fund (HTF). These limits will be effective on June 15, 2022, and can be found on HUD User at www.huduser.gov/portal/datasets/il.html.
It should be noted that the CDBG-DR Income Limits for Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands were effec Read more -
Eviction Due to Unauthorized Occupants Possible with Solid Documentation
06-09-2022
In Montgomery Street Housing Urban Renewal, LLC v. Sheriff (June 2021), a property owner sued to evict a resident for lease violations relating to an unauthorized occupant. The New Jersey property, Montgomery Heights Apartments, is a Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) property with project-based Vouchers.
Read moreAJ Johnson to Provide Multiple Sessions at Mid-Atlantic AHMA Fall Conference
10-22-2021
AJ Johnson will be providing eight sessions during the upcoming Mid-Atlantic AHMA Fall Conference | Virtual 2021. Sessions include the following:
- Changing Work Patterns and Opportunities
- Development of Emergency Response Plans for Multifamily Properties
- Regulatory/Legislative Update
- Avoiding the 7 Most Common LIHTC Noncompliance Issues
- Income & Assets with Special Consideration to Cash Apps and Cryptocurrency
- Dealing with the "Special" Rules of the LIHTC Program
- Dealing with Tenant Fraud &a Read more
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HCCP Online Exam Now Being Offered
03-24-2021
Following is a correction to an earlier posted article on the HCCP online exam.
Starting on March 8, 2021, A. J. Johnson Consulting Services will be offering the online version of the Housing Credit Certified Professional (HCCP) exam. Unlike the in-person exam, the online exam will be offered on an ongoing basis and need not be taken immediately after a scheduled training.
The online exam fee will be $204.00, which is $29.00 higher than the fee for the in-person exam. This additional cost is necessary due to the cost of live proctoring that will take place d Read more -
Hoarding – A Challenge for Housing Managers
12-17-2020
In 2013, the American Psychiatric Association (APA) declared hoarding to be a clinical disability, automatically putting the issue of hoarding front and center with housing operators. The Fair Housing Act (FHA) bans discrimination against individuals with disabilities. The FHA defines disability as any physical or mental impairment that substantially affects one or more major life activities.
Hoarding is more than simply having too much clutter. It is characterized by the accumulation of items that are generally viewed as having no value, and the inability to discard those items. Read more
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Affordable Housing Priorities of the Incoming Biden Administration
12-17-2020
Elections have consequences. With the election of Joe Biden as President, the consequences for the affordable housing industry are likely to be very positive and will at the least put an end to the ambivalent – and even hostile – approach that the Trump administration has taken toward affordable housing during the past four years.
The incoming administration has presented a detailed and comprehensive blueprint for how it will approach the housing affordability problem for the next four years. Following are some of the major elements of the plan, with a foc Read more
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Illegal Steering--Recent Fair Housing Settlement Shows Feds Lack of Tolerance for the Practice
07-10-2020
The United States Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD) reached a Settlement Agreement with the Decatur (AL) Housing Authority on June 26 after a HUD compliance review determined that the Authority maintained discriminatory housing practices in three of its senior properties. Specifically, HUD’s review revealed that the housing authority discriminated against elderly black applicants who applied for housing at more desirable properties (The Towers) by repeatedly skipping over them on the wait list even though they were supposed to be the next applicant to be housed. Bl Read more
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HUD Issues Update Notice on COVID-19 Statutory and Regulatory Waivers
07-10-2020
On July 2, 2020, the Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD) issued Notice PIH 2020-05, Rev. 1 “COVID-19 Statutory and Regulatory Waivers and Alternative Requirements for the Public Housing, Housing Choice Voucher, Indian Housing Block Grant and Indian Community Development Block Grant programs, Suspension of P Read more Complying with HUD’s New Guidance on Assistance Animals -Part II – Assistance Animals Other then Service Animals
04-10-2020
Training, Advocacy, and Information for Owners and Managers of Affordable Multifamily Housing Communities