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Share Photos of your 4% LIHTC Properties via Pinterest!
NAHMA is inviting its members to share success stories on properties that have used the 4% low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) for affordable housing construction or acquisition through NAHMA’s new Pinterest webpage.
Pinterest is an excellent resource for sharing photographs and stories instantly. By simply “pinning” a photo of one of your properties to NAHMA's board, you can demonstrate the life changing opportunities that affordable housing presents to low-income Americans. Pinterest offers a dynamic display model for these photos and accompanying text that is both appealing and easy to use. After you create a Pinterest profile, you can begin pinning pictures of you properties to NAHMA's board in a matter of seconds. To create a profile, please visit the main Pinterest page: https://www.pinterest.com/.
To view and post a picture to NAHMA's Featured Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) Properties board, please click on the link below.
When sharing your stories with NAHMA, please include:
• The state(s) in which you have used this credit
• Pictures of affordable housing preservation/construction that have occurred because of the credit
• General information on the property (number of units, construction dates, etc.)
• Information on the value it has provided for the local community
Asset Management
"Heading Into Year 15: Top 10 Considerations for General Partners"
"First Steps to Retrocommissioning"
State and Local Activities
"S.F. Supervisor Pushes to Boost SoMa Affordable Housing"
HUD-Related Activity
"HUD Announces Colorado Grant Money for Affordable Housing"
"Finance Trends: Multifamily Finance Trends and HUD"
Green Building
"Top Green Features for Affordable Housing"
"What’s Driving Green Building Between Now and 2020?"
Industry Trends
"How Long Can Current LIHTC Prices Last?"
"LIHTC Property Operating Expenses Increasing at 2.92 Percent Annual Rate"
Association News
Treasury and IRS Invite Public Comment on Priority Guidance Plan
PBCA Update: Court of Appeals Rules Against HUD
NAHMA Educational Foundation Invites Scholarship Applications
NAHMA June Meeting Registration is NOW OPEN!
Become a Specialist in Housing Credit Management® (SHCM®) Company!
Asset Management
Heading Into Year 15: Top 10 Considerations for General Partners
Affordable Housing Finance (04/16/14) Votta, Marianne
Of the 2 million affordable housing units with low-income housing tax credits (LIHTCs) nationwide, 50 percent will reach Year 15 in 2020, the year when the tax credits expire. General managers will need to examine various factors to determine what to do next. For instance, general partners (GPs) must reread the partnership agreement that serves as a road map for disposition alongside advice from their tax attorney and counsel. GPs also should review the capital accounts of all parties and determine what they want to do with the property. This may include selling the property, resyndicating, closing the deal with exiting limited partners (LPs), refinancing, or pursuing an early exit with LPs. Reviewing the local real estate market conditions is crucial because new entrants to the low-income housing marketplace might be offering new amenities or services that may make other projects appear obsolete. GPs furthermore need to evaluate the deferred maintenance and capital needs of a property and whether the current cash flow or reserves would cover these costs. Getting reliable appraisals on a property will allow GPs to determine if it is better to refinance with cash-out or to sell. Other key steps include examining the state/local market for tax credit allocations, meeting with the LP, and following the rules on communicating with tenants due to new tenant disclosure rules when a property changes hands.
First Steps to Retrocommissioning
FacilitiesNet (03/01/14) Banks, Paul
The first step a facility manager considering retrocommissioning (RCx) should follow is to undertake a benchmarking initiative, comparing a building's yearly energy use to a database of similar buildings to see if it is consuming an unwarranted high amount of energy. An “end use breakdown” should then be devised to identify how much energy is consumed by each system in the building. Once a facility manager opts to move ahead with an RCx probe, data should be collected regarding historical energy consumption and as-built information of mechanical and lighting systems. Interviews with facilities' operation staff often identify operational issues which should be studied as well as energy reduction opportunities. Owners should get in touch with local electric and gas utilities to see if they offer technical and financial aid for RCx and if they can recommend qualified companies to help with the project. Should a building have an Energy Management System (EMS), its extent and functionality should be assessed. A well-functioning EMS can boost the cost-effectiveness of the RCx investigation by enabling identification and evaluation of energy efficiency measures. A crucial step in the process is establishing trend logs via the EMS. If trend logs can be set up months in advance, the RCx schedule can be expedited. Facilities managers also should examine the overall picture, and set up the current needs of the building and its occupants in quantitative terms such as occupancy, ventilation requirements, and temperature settings.
State and Local Activities
S.F. Supervisor Pushes to Boost SoMa Affordable Housing
San Francisco Chronicle (CA) (04/08/14) Lagos, Marisa
San Francisco Supervisor Jane Kim has introduced legislation that would require developers to justify projects in her district to the City Planning Commission if the amount of affordable housing dips below 30 percent. District Six includes the booming South of Market neighborhood and the Tenderloin. The legislation does not prevent developers from moving forward with projects. However, projects of 10 units or more that do not meet that "floor" would face some extra hoops. The commission would have to consider whether the proposed development affects the district's overall housing makeup, hampers "the location or viability" of affordable housing in the area and would cause or exacerbate displacement of low and middle-income households.
HUD-Related Activity
HUD Announces Colorado Grant Money for Affordable Housing
Denver Business Journal (04/09/14) Huspeni, Dennis
HUD officials in early April announced that more than $10 million in grant money is headed to Colorado housing authorities to make large-scale improvements to affordable housing communities. Rick Garcia, the federal agency's Rocky Mountain regional administrator, remarks, "Housing authorities in Colorado count on this funding to maintain and improve their public housing for many families, especially the most vulnerable -- our seniors." Garcia is a former Denver city councilman. HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan emphasized that his agency will be working closely with the Congress to expand efforts to generate approximately $6 billion in private investment for the recapitalization of public housing.
Finance Trends: Multifamily Finance Trends and HUD
Multi-Housing News (04/14) Greenman, Renee
Economic indicators indicate that the multifamily sector continues to be strong, and that a bubble is not expected. Investors and developers are active and demand for units remains steady. Affordable housing is a key priority of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Apartment projects that qualify as affordable are typically fast tracked through the HUD finance process. HUD deems an apartment project affordable with the presence of Low Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC) or rental subsidy restricted rents, or when acceptable tenants earn a percentage of area median income, usually 50 percent to 60 percent. Rising interest rates indicate there is not as much of a gap between existing apartment financing rates and current interest rates. As rental rates increase and equity grows, owners have an opportunity to access that equity via refinancing. The Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) initiative now enables HUD's public housing portfolio and some older HUD multifamily properties to seek capital to refinance. Moreover, LIHTC affordable properties that are leaving their initial compliance period will attempt to curb initial interest rates and tap equity to pay off investors who no longer have a tax benefit.
Green Building
Top Green Features for Affordable Housing
Affordable Housing Finance (04/21/14) Serlin, Christine
There are various environmentally friendly features that leading developers consider essential for new developments. "A big priority for us is to divert waste from our landfills so we prioritize recycling construction waste, minimizing the pollution footprint of our construction sites, and making it super easy for our residents to recycle through signage, easy placement of bins, and education," notes Satellite Affordable Housing Associates executive director Susan Friedland. She also cites indoor air quality and renewable energy via power purchase agreements or photovoltaic systems as crucial elements. Meanwhile, WinnCos' Darien Crimmin says light-emitting diode (LED) lighting is specified by his firm as a standard feature in almost all new developments. "Over the past few years...the LED industry has matured, prices have dropped, and the quality has increased," he notes. Durable flooring that uses ceramic tiles rather than carpeting also is a must, according to Foundation Communities executive director Walter Moreau. First Community Housing's Jeff Oberdorfer lists transit adjacency and no-smoking environments as vital project features, and his company's latest development is sited across from local and regional transit hubs. Finally, adding higher insulation values and improved air sealing is crucial and affordable to Blue Sea Development principal Les Bluestone.
What’s Driving Green Building Between Now and 2020?
EcoBuilding Pulse (03/12/14) Weeks, Katie
Green building is a booming business. Energy savings have helped to reduce mortgage defaults, while people living and working in green buildings report improved health, well-being, and performance. In addition, green infrastructure helps increase rents and property values. By 2016, green building is projected to represent 55 percent of all commercial and 33 percent of the residential building market. Homeowners and commercial buyers prefer green buildings for their lower utility bills, higher resale values, and for the comfort, health, and safety they provide. Federal and state government policies support and encourage green building. As part of the Vision 2020 program, the Hanley Wood Sustainability Council identified five key developments that will drive green building in the future. The multifamily housing market is going to be a hot market for green building as it encompasses both residential and commercial construction. The focus is shifting from singular structures to green community design, addressing issues such as how can buildings work together to achieve energy performance or how can a community achieve resource conservation with maximum participation. Although developing innovations in energy efficiency is important, it is equally important to fully capitalize on existing technology. Meanwhile, gathering data, such as energy benchmarking, will enable more measurement and verification of green building efforts so architects and builders better understand the performance implications of their design decisions.
Industry Trends
How Long Can Current LIHTC Prices Last?
Affordable Housing Finance (04/22/14) Kimura, Donna
With investor demand having resurged in the last three years, average tax credit pricing routinely tops $0.90 per dollar of credit, with housing credits trading higher than $1 per dollar of credit for projects located in thriving Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) markets, according to CohnReznick Tax Credit Investment Services Group principal Fred Copeman. Yields should have declined below 7 percent, but syndicators have been striving to prevent this. Strategies responsible for this trend include syndicators slashing their fees, finding properties in markets with limited CRA value, and using their own working capital to tie up lower-tier property investments and bring them into their funds at a date when the properties are closer to going into service than might typically be the case. "Assuming that tax credit prices don't come down, and I don't see any reason why they should, something has to give," Copeman notes. He also says projecting that yields in multi-investor funds will fall under 7 percent before the end of this year is difficult. "The unknown is how far prices increase before you lose current investors or lose the interest of potential new investors, particularly economic investors," notes U.S. Bancorp Community Development's Beth Stohr. Bank of America Merrill Lynch's David Leopold says the low-income housing tax credit market has reverted to pre-recession levels, and he reports that "there's potential for some external factors to destabilize the market, but I don't think any of them are very likely in the short to moderate term."
LIHTC Property Operating Expenses Increasing at 2.92 Percent Annual Rate
Novogradac Journal of Tax Credits (04/14) Vol. 05, No. 4 Domalewski, Armand
Novogradac & Company LLP has released a report on multifamily rental housing operating expenses between 2010 and 2012 that includes low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) properties. The report found that operating expenses between 2010 and 2012 for LIHTC properties during this time period increased at an annual rate of 2.92 percent, while operating expenses for all multifamily rental properties, including market-rate developments, grew at an annual rate of 2.39 percent. Novogradac gathered data from property audits and categorized that data based on accepted operating expense line items, encompassing more than 2,100 market-rate and LIHTC properties that include 585,000 individual units. The fastest growth in total operating expenses between 2010 and 2012 was seen in regions 7 and 8 that include several Western and Midwestern states: Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming. Total operating expenses in this combined region grew at an annual rate of 6.36 percent, mostly due to a surge in administrative expenses and operating costs that include security, trash and contract costs. In the combined regions 1 and 2, meanwhile, total operating expenses actually declined. These regions cover Connecticut, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Jersey, and New York, which saw an annual 0.09 percent decrease. Of the 10 states featured in the report's first edition, Tennessee experienced the largest increase in operating expenses between 2010 and 2012 due to stronger than average housing recovery and increases in local property taxes.
Association News
Treasury and IRS Invite Public Comment on Priority Guidance Plan
The Treasury Department and IRS invite public comment on recommendations for items that should be included on the 2014-2015 Priority Guidance Plan. The Treasury Department's Office of Tax Policy and the Service use the Priority Guidance Plan each year to identify and prioritize the tax issues that should be addressed through regulations, revenue rulings, revenue procedures, notices, and other published administrative guidance.
The 2014-2015 Priority Guidance Plan will identify guidance projects that the Treasury Department and the Service intend to work on actively as priorities during the period from July 1, 2014, through June 30, 2015. NAHMA plans to submit comments in consultation with its Tax Credit Committee members.
To review the Treasury notice, please click on the link below.
PBCA Update: Court of Appeals Rules Against HUD
On March 25, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit handed down its decision in the case of CMS Contract Management Services et. al. vs. United States. This case pertains to HUD’s award of PBCA contracts. The PBCA plaintiffs appealed the previous U.S. Court of Federal Claims decision which permitted HUD to proceed with its PBCA contract awards under the 2012 NOFA. On this appeal, the PBCA plaintiffs won. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (referred to as the Appeals Court for our purposes) reversed the lower court’s decision and remanded the case back to the lower court to be decided consistent with this decision. The decision prevents HUD from proceeding with its contract awards under the 2012 PBCA NOFA.
The Appeals Court ruled that the Performance-Based Annual Contribution Contracts (PBACCs or PBCA contracts) are procurement agreements, not cooperative agreements as HUD had argued. Procurement agreements carry stricter restrictions for contract awards.
The Appeals Court did not rule on the legality of HUD’s preference for in-state PBCAs.
HUD has not yet issued an official statement on the Appeals Court’s decision. Based on previous information from HUD officials about the Department’s contingency plans if it lost the case, NAHMA expects HUD will enter into long-term contracts with incumbent PBCAs.
Rebidding the PBCA contracts under federal procurement laws would likely take 24 months.
NAHMA Educational Foundation Invites Scholarship Applications
All high school seniors, high school graduates, and adults holding a high school diploma or GED living at an Affordable Housing Management Association (AHMA) member property are invited by the Board of Directors of the National Affordable Housing Management Association (NAHMA) Educational Foundation to apply for scholarship grants for higher education to be awarded in 2014.
The NAHMA Educational Foundation issues this invitation to distinguished residents who are pursuing some type of higher education in college, university, community college, trade/ professional school or institute. The Foundation is a privately funded, non-profit organization that was created in 1994, and awarded its first scholarships in 2007, to further charitable and educational opportunities on behalf of residents living at an AHMA member property. This is one of a very few foundations of this type in the nation. We encourage the financial support of corporations, companies, families, private trusts, and individuals wishing to join us in this effort to honor and assist those who are the future of their respective NAHMA communities.
Applications must be filed online and be submitted by May 30, 2014
NAHMA June Meeting Registration is NOW OPEN!
The National Affordable Housing Management Association (NAHMA) will again hold its annual summer meeting in conjunction with the National Apartment Association (NAA) Education Conference & Exposition on June 17-21, in Denver, CO.
The 2014 NAA Education Conference & Exposition is the largest event in the multifamily housing industry and includes world-class educators and a star-studded lineup of speakers.
Through this partnership, both conferences will address the critical needs of affordable housing communities and the apartment industry as a whole. Discounts will be available to attendees who register for both conferences. These discounts will provide a cost neutral solution to your training and development needs.
Special note: The Early Bird Registration Deadline for the NAA Education Conference & Exposition is April 18, 2014. Register on or before this date and save on registration fees for the 2014 NAA Education Conference & Exposition. Headline speakers include Michael J Fox actor and activist as the Thursday Keynote speaker; Barbara Corcoran and Draymond John of ABC’s hit show “Shark Tank” as the Friday General Session speakers; and Alex Sheen, Founder of ‘because I said I would’ as a speaker for the Special Saturday session.
At the NAHMA Public Policy Issues Forum, to be held as a full-day meeting on Wednesday, June 18, discussions will focus on public policy related to federal legislative and regulatory initiatives that impact all of the affordable housing programs, from HUD programs (project-based Section, Section 8 tenant vouchers, Section 202 senior housing, and Section 811 special needs housing); to the Low Income Housing Tax Credit program; to Rural Housing Service programs (Sections 515, 538 and the revitalization program). In addition to its full day of meetings on June 18, NAHMA will be providing affordable housing-specific sessions as part of the NAA conference – for details, see below.
On Tuesday, June 17, NAHMA will host a "mini convocation" for AHMA Executive Directors and Presidents from 10 am to 2 pm to share insights and experiences in developing and providing member programs and services.
ALSO, MORE DETAILS COMING SOON on two exciting events that will be held in conjunction with the NAHMA meeting: (separate registrations for both events apply)
• NAHMA Educational Foundation Fundraiser - on Wednesday evening June 18, @ 6pm Kevin Taylors @ The Opera House, reception style event with exciting entertainment
• NAHMA Party @ Suite 200 Nightclub & Bar will be open from 9 pm to 1 am
For registration details, click on the link below.
NAHMA Sessions to be Held During the NAA Conference:
Thurs., June 19, 9 am – 10:30 am
NAHMA Presents: Scenarios for Housing Credit Reform -- Is there Life Afterwards?
The Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC or Housing Credit) program is the primary and virtually sole source of major funding for development of new and major rehab of existing affordable multifamily housing across the country. As Congress considers substantive reform of the federal tax code in an effort to solve the nation’s fiscal woes, all programs are on the table for possible major change or even elimination. In this session, industry experts will discuss likely scenarios of reform to the Housing Credit program, as well as what forward thinkers may already be contemplating as “Plan B” if the Housing Credit program undergoes major change. Attendees will learn about:
* Possible changes to the Housing Credit program as a result of federal tax reform;
* Possible impacts these changes might have on affordable multifamily housing development and preservation; and
* What steps, if any, affordable housing developers should be considering now for better positioning of their portfolio should the program undergo major reform.
Moderator: Kris Cook, CAE, Executive Director, NAHMA
Speakers: Nicolo Pinoli, Partner, Novogradac & Company LLP; Larry Curtis, President and Managing Partner, WinnDevelopment; Michelle Norris, Senior Vice President Acquisitions & Development and Public Policy, National Church Residences
Thurs., June 19, 10:45 am – Noon
NAHMA Presents: Cutting-Edge Energy-Saving Solutions Designed to Pay for Themselves
In mid-2013, the Department of Housing and Urban Development awarded nearly $23 million from its Energy Innovation Fund to organizations leading the way in bringing energy-saving solutions to affordable multifamily housing. A year later, attendees will learn from grant recipients about the programs they launched and the successes they achieved, including:
* A pilot program to finance energy-efficient retrofits designed to pay for themselves through reduced energy costs;
* Development of innovative and replicable strategies designed to set new industry standards for energy efficiency; and
* Creation of new financing tools designed to facilitate significant reductions in energy consumption, operating costs, and the carbon footprint of affordable multifamily housing.
Moderator: Kris Cook, CAE, Executive Director, NAHMA
Speakers: Darien Crimmin, Vice President of Energy and Sustainability, WinnDevelopment; Jeffrey Greenberger, Chief Operating Officer, Affordable Community Energy; Richard Samson, President, SAHF Energy, a Division of Stewards of Affordable Housing for the Future
Fri., June 20, 8 am – 9:30 am
NAHMA Presents: The Clipboard is Dead Even in Affordable Housing –
Long Live the Tablet!
Most of existing daily and weekly maintenance processes are confined to the flat and lifeless world of a clipboard, pencil and paper. The information gathered and recorded on daily system checks is static, never shared, does not have comparative performance measurement, and little, if any, oversight or accountability. Paper-based work order systems are labor intensive – valuable time is consumed in constant movement to and from the office to pick-up and drop off work orders. Technician’s notes are absent, or unreadable, and important information on troubleshooting and solutions is lost. Without real system knowledge, troubleshooting our increasingly sophisticated building systems is difficult at best. The best-intentioned staff may upset controls that have impact on our residents or system components. In this session, attendees learn how to say goodbye to the clipboard, and welcome new maintenance tools – bring on the tablets to optimize site staff time and efficiency, lower utility and operations costs, be persistent with performance checks and realize all the savings promised by sophisticated systems. Specifically, attendees will be guided through the process of evaluating and implementing affordable mobile maintenance technology that will:
* Bring daily/weekly logs and checks to life;
* Provide accountability and global oversight to maintenance activities;
* Save energy through proper system operation;
* Allow for accurate on-the-spot trouble shooting;
* Save labor time and cost through mobile work order systems;
* Empower site staff to run buildings more effectively; and
* Capture institutional knowledge required to operate a comfortable, efficient, and healthy building.
Moderator: Michelle Kitchen, Director of Government Affairs, NAHMA
Speakers: Michael Ferguson, VP Facilities Management, Peabody Properties; Matthew Holden, President, Sparhawk Group
Fri., June 20, 2:15 pm – 3:45 pm
NAHMA Presents: Key Federal Legislative and Regulatory Issues Impacting Affordable Multifamily Housing
The world of affordable multifamily housing is not only highly regulated by three federal agencies, but also highly dependent on the ability of Congress to pass timely and sufficient annual funding bills. This session will focus on key current federal legislative and regulatory issues facing providers of multifamily affordable housing participating in HUD, rural housing and Housing Credit programs. Attendees will learn about -
* The impact of federal budget appropriations, sequestration and the deficit on funding for affordable multifamily programs now and into the future;
* The latest regulatory initiatives impacting the Housing Credit, HUD and rural housing programs; and
* Real-world impacts on communities, management companies and owners.
Moderator: Michelle Kitchen, Director of Government Affairs, NAHMA
Speakers: Gianna Solari, President, NAHMA, Vice President/COO, Solari Enterprises; Kris Cook, Executive Director, NAHMA; Greg Brown, Senior Vice President of Government Affairs, NAA
Become a Specialist in Housing Credit Management® (SHCM®) Company!
The three national associations sponsoring the Specialist in Housing Credit Management® certification program invite your company to become a Specialist in Housing Credit Management® (SHCM®) 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 (formerly AAHSA, the American Association of Housing and Services for the Aging).
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 link below.
Abstract News © Copyright 2014 INFORMATION, INC.
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