|
Sponsored By:
Pending Approvals Cause TRACS Delay
On Jan. 4, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced the delay of TRACS Release 2.0.3.A implementation and the cancellation of the TRACS Industry Working Group Conference originally scheduled for Jan. 14-15. The forms for TRACS are still pending Office of Management and Budget approval, therefore, the Feb. 1 implementation date has been postponed. A new implementation date will be set after approval. The Office of Multifamily Housing Programs will publish a stakeholder notification with the OMB approval of HUD’s new and/or revised forms and new expiration dates for HUD forms on the TRACS documents page. To learn more, click on the Web Link below.
Industry Trends
"University of Pennsylvania: 1 Million Federally Subsidized Affordable Homes, Or More, Are At Risk"
"A New Tool for Housing"
State and Local Activities
"State Treasurer Invites Public to Weigh in on California's Affordable Housing Crisis"
"Dallas Housing Authority Taps Private Developers in Affordable Housing Effort"
"King County Considers Building 44,000 Affordable Housing Units by 2024"
Management and Compliance
"Don't Neglect These Liability Red Flags at Your Properties"
Green Building
"How Eco-Friendly Builders Are Using Big Data to Make Design Decisions"
Association News
Affordable 100 Survey Available
Help Promote 2019 Scholarship Applications to Residents
Learn the Latest in Affordable Housing at NAHMA’s March Meeting
NAHMA Talks Affordable Housing on Podcast
NAHMA Releases 2018 Affordable 100 List
Become a Specialist in Housing Credit Management® (SHCM®) Company!
Upcoming Events
Industry Trends
University of Pennsylvania: 1 Million Federally Subsidized Affordable Homes, Or More, Are At Risk
Novogradac & Company LLP (01/16/2019) Lawrence, Peter
Recent research by the University of Pennsylvania highlights the potential loss of more than 1 million homes of federally subsidized housing from the affordable housing stock, and how changes in funding can lead to housing loss. The ongoing partial government shutdown is exacerbating and accelerating the problem of preservation, with 1,150 HUD Section 8 Project Based Rental Assistance contracts expired and not renewed in December and January, potentially affecting 70,000-80,000 very low-income households, and hundreds more contracts scheduled to expire each upcoming month, impacting tens of thousands more very low-income households. The working paper, "Preservation of Subsidized Housing: What We Know and Need to Know,” also calls for more research on the status of subsidized housing provided by federal supply-side housing programs, an increasingly important subset of all affordable housing. Though rental homes may leave the affordable housing supply for any number of reasons, the report lists the three biggest threats to subsidized housing as expiration or exit (homes are no longer required to remain affordable); depreciation (where rehabilitation costs become so cost prohibitive that homes either leave the subsidized universe or become totally uninhabitable); and appropriations (if federal funding were to be cut to supply-side programs the number of homes created or maintained would be in jeopardy). Of the programs examined, the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) has created by far the most affordable housing. The authors contend there may be more competition for LIHTC between owners of existing LIHTC properties and those looking to develop new housing.
A New Tool for Housing
Affordable Housing Finance (01/10/19) Serlin, Christine
The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act offered a new community development tool called Opportunity Zones (OZs) intended to spur investment in low-income neighborhoods. The number of census tracts designated as Qualified OZs by governors in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and five U.S. territories is 8,761. Samantha Spergel, director of real estate production at the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority, notes that an OZ investment is allowing a 9 percent Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) project to move forward in Brookville, a community of about 2,600 people. Project sponsor Batesville Senior Café is creating a mixed-income, mixed-use development downtown for seniors 55 and older. Valley House Flats will comprise adaptive-reuse of one of the oldest hotels in the state as well as new construction. Between $1.7 million and $2.2 million in opportunity funds will be invested in the $11.5 million development featuring 27 affordable and 20 market-rate apartments, along with a pharmacy and a movie theater. Keith Broadnax, senior vice president at Cinnaire, a nonprofit Community Development Financial Institution and partner in the Opportunity Investment Consortium of Indiana, says, "I was involved with the LIHTC when it was new, but there's a cap. With OZs, we're not restricted to a cap. It's unlimited what impact it could have on our communities." A Qualified Opportunity Fund is an investment vehicle created either as a partnership or corporation for investing in eligible property located in an OZ.
State and Local Activities
State Treasurer Invites Public to Weigh in on California's Affordable Housing Crisis
Lake County News (CA) (01/11/19)
California Treasurer Fiona Ma has scheduled a statewide listening tour to gather ideas and feedback from the public on how to increase the supply of affordable housing in the state. Ma says the listening tour will help her understand how best to organize and deploy resources that her office has to offer. The state treasurer's office oversees the California Tax Credit Allocation Committee (CTCAC), which administers the federal and state Low-Income Housing Tax Credit programs. In 2017, the CTCAC's three Federal Credit Awards programs financed more than 13,000 low-income housing units. The California Debt Limit Allocation Committee (CDLAC) manages the state's tax-exempt bond allocations for affordable housing projects and the Single-Family First-Time Homebuyer Program. In 2017, CDLAC's allocation for tax-exempt bonds helped to finance more than 12,000 housing units, including more than 10,000 affordable units. The listening tour begins Jan. 17 and includes stops in Fresno, Los Angeles, Sacramento, San Diego and San Francisco.
Dallas Housing Authority Taps Private Developers in Affordable Housing Effort
Dallas Innovates (01/14/19) Potter, Payton
The Dallas Housing Authority (DHA) has partnered with 12 private developers in an attempt to increase the number of affordable housing units in the Dallas metro area. The group includes AMTEX Multi-Housing, Carleton Development, Fairfield Residential, Matthews Southwest, McCormack Baron Salazar, Michaels Development, Ojala Partners, Steele Properties, The NRP Group, Trammell Crow, Volunteers of America National Services and the combined team of DFW Advisors, KRR Construction and Michael R. Coker Co. DHA is seeking to redevelop 650 housing units across seven properties and nearly 146 acres of land in the city. “Between the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit and HUD's Rental Assistance Demonstration program, now is a good time for the authority to be working with private sector partners to transform their vision for affordable housing into reality,” said Joe Weatherly, The Michaels Organization's regional vice president of development. The Dallas-Fort Worth area has only 19 affordable housing units per every 100 renter households in the region, according to a March 2018 report from the National Low Income Housing Coalition. DHA says it may add more partners to the group.
King County Considers Building 44,000 Affordable Housing Units by 2024
Bellevue Reporter (WA) (01/10/19) Kunkler, Aaron
Councilmembers in King County, Wash., accepted a report from the Regional Affordable Housing Task Force on Jan. 7 that discussed ways municipalities can increase their affordable housing stock. The report, which will be forwarded to committees, found that approximately $306 million of public money annually on average has been spent on building or preserving affordable housing in the county. The federal government has historically invested the largest amount of funding through the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit, but those resources have not kept pace with increased need. Between 2012 and 2017, roughly $225.5 million came from the federal government each year, $53.5 million from cities inside the county, $16 million from the county itself, and $12 million from the state. The task force developed a plan to build or preserve at least 44,000 affordable housing units for people making 50 percent of the AMI or less by 2024. The plan includes creating an Affordable Housing Committee within the Growth Management Planning Council. Other strategies include standardizing mother-in-law unit blueprints between cities, letting homeowners interested in building such units select a pre-approved blueprint from a city, and encouraging utility providers to waive sewer hookup fees for these units, says Kenmore Mayor David Baker, co-chair of the task force. The county could also ask voters to approve a 1/10 of a penny sales-tax increase to build, acquire, and operate affordable housing, says Councilmember Rod Dembowski.
Management and Compliance
Don't Neglect These Liability Red Flags at Your Properties
Multifamily Executive (12/28/18) Powell, Jane
Structural issues at apartment properties can present a certain degree of financial liability and risk for current and future owners, lenders, and investors. Seeking out small signs and reversing correctable issues via proactive due diligence such as building assessments is vital to mitigating risk. The article's author details four potential liabilities to consider at current and prospective apartment properties. One, balconies and exterior stairs are often overlooked as a potential source of water intrusion and life-safety liabilities. As such, they should be regularly monitored for indications of conditions leading to structural distress, including cracks in the concrete topping or supports, peeling paint, rust stains, and corrosion. Two, garages are certainly a liability risk for those apartment properties that have them. Look for concrete-surface deterioration and/or concrete that looks like it is peeling, popping out, or flaking. Other early warning signs of water intrusion and deterioration of structural elements include corrosion and/or rust stains. Three, there is the matter of accessibility. Non-accessible properties pose a risk for lawsuits and costly legal battles. Common items of contention range from parking accessibility to non-accessible restroom configurations. Finally, seismic retrofits. There are two frequently identified types of seismically vulnerable buildings. The first is wood-frame “soft story” buildings, where the ground floor is used for parking and built with open walls on one face of the building. The second is nonductile concrete buildings, which are prone to crumbling and collapse under seismic forces.
Green Building
How Eco-Friendly Builders Are Using Big Data to Make Design Decisions
insideBIGDATA (01/05/19) Phillips, Avery
Large buildings have a significant effect on cities and the environment, but localized effects can be curbed by using an eco-friendly approach. For instance, housing communities can be designed to be walking and biking friendly, and be situated near access to public transport. Big data can show the ideal locations of these developments, or even how public transport can be rerouted or relocated to serve existing ones. Another possibility is creating multi-family housing that is affordable either in downtown areas near tenants' employers or near bus or rail transport, reducing the economic impact of commuting. Such data is already being applied to housing developments situated near BART stations in West Oakland, Calif. The idea is to make a car-free, public transportation-centric development in places where it is needed most. Meanwhile, eco-friendly builders are using big data to make design decisions ranging from location to amenities. Vendors are already turning to renewable energy, efficient appliances, efficient HVAC systems, the use of windows for climate control, and better insulating techniques. Meanwhile, sensors have become more affordable and are often movable, enabling analysts to obtain a better picture of what is really happening in a building.
Association News
Affordable 100 Survey Available
The National Affordable Housing Management Association (NAHMA) is inviting affordable multifamily property management companies to take part in its annual Affordable 100 survey. The Affordable 100—a list of the 100 largest affordable multifamily property management companies ranked by affordable unit counts—is featured on the association’s website, as well as in the June issues of NAHMA News, Affordable Housing Finance magazine and Units magazine.
The NAHMA website version expands the list to the top 120 largest multifamily property management companies. In addition, the online version presents two specialty lists: the 25 largest housing credit (LIHTC) property management companies and the 25 largest Rural Development program property management companies.
Additionally, the Affordable 100 survey data is used as a tool to assist in NAHMA’s policy and appropriations advocacy in Washington, D.C., and around the nation.
To take part in the survey, click on the link provided below. Responses are due Jan. 31.
Help Promote 2019 Scholarship Applications to Residents
The NAHMA Educational Foundation is accepting applications for scholarships to be awarded to worthy student residents in 2019. Eligibility for the program requires that an applicant be a resident in good standing at an AHMA-affiliated apartment community and be either a high school senior with a minimum grade point average of 2.5, a general equivalency diploma holder or a matriculated student with a minimum grade point average of 2.3 at an accredited college or trade/technical school.
All applications must complete the online process, which includes the online application form, as well as provide two references, an essay and a certification of residency in good standing form. A grade transcript through the fall 2018 is also necessary and is the only application component sent via U.S. mail to the foundation. The deadline for completed applications is 10 p.m. Eastern on May 15. For more information, visit the foundation webpage by clicking on the Educational Foundation link under the About Us tab at www.nahma.org. To access a promotional flyer to share with your residents, click on the Web Link provided below.
Learn the Latest in Affordable Housing at NAHMA’s March Meeting
The 2019 National Affordable Housing Management Association (NAHMA) Biannual Top Issues in Affordable Housing winter conference is the best place to learn about the latest trends in Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) programs, housing tax credits, senior living, rural housing and more. Register for the meeting today and save $50. The three-day event, taking place March 3-5 in Washington, D.C., features educational panels, networking opportunities, the Industry Awards evening reception and the Communities of Quality (COQ) Awards luncheon. The event concludes with prearranged Capitol Hill meetings with congressional representatives and their staff. To find out more, click the link below.
NAHMA Talks Affordable Housing on Podcast
Kris Cook, executive director of NAHMA, took part in a Through The Noise interview with hosts Ernesto Gluecksmann and Caroline Broder. To hear the podcast, click the Web Link provided below.
NAHMA Releases 2018 Affordable 100 List
The National Affordable Housing Management Association (NAHMA) announces its 2018 Affordable 100—a list of the 100 largest affordable multifamily property management companies ranked by affordable unit counts—is available on its website, click Web Link below, as well as in the June issues of NAHMA News, Affordable Housing Finance magazine and Units magazine. The NAHMA website version expands the list to the top 120 largest multifamily property management companies. In addition, the online version presents two specialty lists: the 25 largest housing credit (LIHTC) property management companies and the 25 largest Rural Development program property management companies.
Become a Specialist in Housing Credit Management® (SHCM®) Company!
The three national associations sponsoring the Specialist in Housing Credit Management® (SHCM®) certification program invite your company to become a Specialist in Housing Credit Management® Company, a corporate designation created specifically to honor management companies that successfully maintain a significant portion of their properties and staff to the high standards of the SHCM certification program.
The SHCM program, developed especially for management companies involved with properties developed and operated under the Low-Income Tax Credit (LIHTC) program, is sponsored by the National Affordable Housing Management Association (NAHMA), the National Apartment Association Education Institute (NAAEI), and LeadingAge.
Earning the SHCM Company designation publicly demonstrates that a company is among the finest managers of LIHTC housing in the industry.
For more details on how to become a SHCM Company, click on the Web Link below.
Upcoming Events
NAA CampusConnex
February 12-13, 2019
More
NAHMA Biannual Top Issues in Affordable Housing Spring Conference
March 3-5, 2019
More
NAA Advocate
March 5-6, 2019
More
LeadingAge PEAK Leadership Summit
March 17-20, 2019
More
NAA Apartmentalize
June 26-28, 2019
More
NAHMA Biannual Top Issues in Affordable Housing Fall Conference
October 27-29, 2019
More
News summaries © copyright 2019 SmithBucklin
|
|
