The “sequester,” which has dominated news headlines since the election, is a term used to describe a series of across-the-board federal spending cuts. At the beginning of March, the cuts began to kick in when President Obama and members of Congress were unable to work out a deal. As a result, by the end of the fiscal year, $85 billion in automatic reductions to both defense and domestic spending will take effect.
It’s essential to keep keys on hand so that you can enter your site’s units in an emergency. But you’re asking for trouble if you don’t keep careful track of the keys you have for this purpose. An intruder might get hold of a unit key and use it to commit a crime, such as robbery or assault, in the unit. And a court might find you liable for that crime.
When applicants apply to your assisted site, you must give them a written application to fill out, which asks for certain required eligibility and income information. If you don’t get this information, you could end up admitting an ineligible or inappropriate household. And that could mean trouble with HUD, including HUD’s refusal to pay the assistance on the household’s unit. Or you could improperly reject an eligible household and risk discrimination claims and more trouble with HUD.
Many assisted sites would like to hire a social service coordinator but don’t know where to get the money to pay the coordinator’s salary. With government grants very limited, it’s important to know what other sources you can tap to get the funding you need. And to get this funding, you need to know what documents and information to include when requesting HUD approval.
If your site has an elevator, it’s important that your staff know the proper steps to take when a passenger-filled elevator breaks down. If your staff doesn’t take the proper steps and passengers get injured during the breakdown, you could get sued, warns risk management consultant Rose Kugler.
by Daniel BaglioreAs a manager, you have a fiduciary—that is, legal—responsibility to the property owner to ensure that tenant rent is accurately calculated and that residents are given appropriate notice of an increase in their portion of the rent, while simultaneously complying with the HUD regulations. Failure to provide proper notice of a rent increase in certain cases is a violation of the HUD requirements and can have a detrimental financial impact on the property.
Screening applicants is becoming increasingly important for assisted sites. And visiting an applicant's home is an effective way to identify bad applicants. It can also help you get a head start in working with those applicants you ultimately decide to accept. At the Residences at Ninth Square, a site in New Haven, Conn., the management uses home visits with great success as part of a rigorous applicant-screening process. They perform the standard background checks on credit, criminal records, and prior evictions for each applicant.
During an inspection, Real Estate Assessment Center (REAC) inspectors look at specific areas of the site for health and safety hazards. Most of these hazards can cost you points on your inspection score but don't necessarily subject you to other, more serious penalties.
HUD-assisted households are required to report all income from all sources to the owner or manager during certification or recertification. One component of annual income is any income the household’s assets generate. And sometimes, households may dispose of assets for less than fair market value (FMV). These can include cash gifts or property. As an owner or manager, you must get correct information from residents about assets disposed of for less than FMV.
You may think that because you take good care of your site, conduct regular inspections, and promptly fix problems, you’re prepared for your site’s upcoming HUD inspection. But it’s important to give your site a last-minute once-over to make sure you catch any problems before the inspector arrives. Some of the easiest-to-avoid inspection problems can cost you big points or get you hit with a health-and-safety “ticket,” says Paul Crosby, director of maintenance with Gene B. Glick Company, Inc.
