Include Unemployment Compensation in Resident's Income

HUD considers unemployment compensation to be income, so be sure to include it in your income calculations when certifying and recertifying residents. Even if a resident doesn't know how long he'll be out of work and collecting benefits, according to Handbook 4350.3, an owner must calculate projected annual income by annualizing current income. So even if the unemployment compensation does not last for a full 12 months, assume current circumstances will last a full 12 months when projecting the resident's income.

As the unemployment rate continues to rise nationally, many states are facing delays in processing periodic unemployment compensation payments. For instructions on how to treat lump-sum payments caused by these delays, see Handbook 4350.3, Figure 5-3.