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Poverty Guidelines Published by HHS – Income Limits to Follow

January 31, 2015

On January 22, 2015, the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services published the 2015 Poverty Guidelines in the Federal Register. These guidelines are used to determine financial eligibility for certain federal programs, including HUD Subsidized housing programs. HUD had…

E-Book on LIHTC Compliance Now Available

January 22, 2015

As you well know, the federal low-income housing tax credit program is complicated. Staying in compliance with all of the program’s rules – and successfully interpreting the gray areas – is essential for all of the players involved in projects:…

HUD Memo Regarding Occupancy Protections for Residents in LIHTC Projects

January 20, 2015

HUD Memo Regarding Occupancy Protections for Residents in LIHTC Projects On January 12, 2015, HUD sent a memorandum to HUD offices and contract administrators providing guidance on protection of tenants of HUD projects when Low-Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC)…

Documents to Retain for LIHTC Projects

January 16, 2015

Documents to Retain for Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Projects In September 2014, the IRS published the Audit Guide for Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Projects. This guide is intended to assist IRS agents during an examination of a Section 42…

Obtaining Approval for Security Officers at LIHTC Projects

December 7, 2014

If a multifamily project with Low-Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC) is experiencing issues with crime or security or is located in a high crime area, owners may want to house a security or police officer in one of the low-income…

Disaster Relief Rules – IRS Revenue Notice 2014-49

November 24, 2014

Disaster Relief Rules Revenue Procedure 2014-49 This IRS Revenue Procedure provides temporary relief from certain requirements of §42 of the Internal Revenue Code (the LIHTC Program) for Agencies and owners if certain areas have been impacted by a major…

Employee and Security Units – IRS Audit Guide (October 2014)

November 7, 2014

The recently released final Section 42 Audit Guide provides some interesting guidance relative to the treatment of employee and security units in a LIHTC project. The Guide confirms that the cost of such a unit is includable in eligible basis,…

Imputed Rate for Assets Change – Effective February 1, 2015

November 7, 2014

HUD issued Notice H 2014-15 on October 31, 2014 changing the imputed rate for assets from 2% to .06%. Beginning on February 1, 2015, HUD will annually publish the passbook savings rate (i.e., imputed rate) to be used for…

Citi Bank Loan Program

October 27, 2014

Developers looking to put together LIHTC deals in California, New York, Illinois, Massachusetts, Delaware, Washington DC, and Florida have a new financing option available to them. Citi Bank has released guidance for its new affordable rental-housing program – The…

Social Security COLA Announced

October 22, 2014

The federal government announced on October 22, 2014 that the Social Security Cost of Live Adjustment (COLA) for 2015 will be 1.7%. This will increase the monthly pension for the average retired worker by $22 per month. This is up from…

Changes in Administration of State Supplementary Payments (SSP)

October 1, 2014

Almost all states have a Supplementary Payments (SSP) Program, which supplements the Federal Supplemental Security benefit (SSI), which is administered by the Social Security Administration (SSA). In the past, many states had their program administered by the SSA, making it…

HUD REAC Rules Updated (August 12, 2014)

August 31, 2014

HUD released HUD Compilation Bulletin on August 12, 2014, providing updated guidance to REAC inspectors regarding when certain areas of properties are not to be inspected for REAC purposes and changing the way certain inspection elements will be reviewed. These…

Violence Against Womens Act (VAWA) Recommendations Relative to the LIHTC Program

August 24, 2014

United States Code Title 42, Chapter 136, Subchapter III, effective March 7, 2013, provides housing protections for victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking. The following housing programs are required to comply with the VAWA: *Supportive…

HUD Implements HERA Changes to Tenant Based and Project Based Vouchers

July 6, 2014

On June 25, 2014, HUD published a notice implementing changes made by the Housing & Economic Recovery Act (HERA) of 2008 to the Tenant Based and Project Based Voucher Programs. Two changes will make it easier to use Project-based…

HUD Updates List of Federally Mandated Income Exclusions

May 29, 2014

HUD is required to periodically publish in the Federal Register a notice that lists amounts specifically excluded by any Federal Statute from consideration as income for purposes of determining eligibility or benefits in a HUD program. The last such notice…

Failure to Spot Unauthorize Occupants Can Lead to HUD and IRS Problems

April 26, 2014

A recent court case (Matthews v. Housing Authority of Baltimore City, March 2014) shows the importance of keeping track of who is living in your HUD assisted or tax credit units. Both HUD and the IRS have strict requirements relative…

HUD to Ease PHA Income Verification Requirements

April 11, 2014

HUD is in the process of preparing new rules that will allow public housing authorities (PHAs) to drastically alter the income verification requirements for public housing and Section 8 Voucher tenants. These changes could impact owners of Low-Income Housing Tax…

Draft House Tax Reform Act of 2014 Retains (but changes) LIHTC Program

February 28, 2014

On February 26, 2014, the House Ways & Means Committee under Chairman David Camp released a discussion draft Tax Reform Act of 2014. While tax reform almost certainly not going to happen in 2014, this draft proposal is significant in…

Social Security Administration Changes Rules Regarding Proof of Income Letters

February 28, 2014

On February 4, 2014, the Social Security Administration (SSA) announced that effective October 1, 2014, SSA field offices will no longer offer benefit verification letters. Budget cuts are responsible for this cutback. Households needing verification of SS benefits should now…

Farm Bill Protects Rural Area Designation

February 5, 2014

After a three-year struggle, the Farm Bill (H.R. 2642) was finally passed by Congress on February 4, 2014, and will now go to the President, who has indicated that he will sign the bill into law. The 357 page bill…

Nonprofit Set-Aside Issues for LIHTC Properties

January 2, 2014

IRC §42(h)(5) requires that a portion of each state’s annual credit ceiling be set aside for allocation to projects involving qualified nonprofit organizations. Specifically, at least 10% of the state’s allocable credit must be set-aside for a nonprofit pool. …

HUD Amends Verification Requirements

December 26, 2013

On December 10, 2013, HUD put online a revised transmittal for Handbook 4350.3, Chg. 4. It provided clarification for verification techniques – primarily those relating to EIV disputes and discrepancies. There is also an important change to Appendix 3, Acceptable…

2014 Income Limits Published

December 22, 2013

On December 18, 2013, HUD published the 2014 income limits for HUD programs as well as for the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit and Tax-Exempt Bond programs. The limits for the LIHTC and Bond projects are published separately from the limits…

Developer Fees in Eligible Basis

November 2, 2013

The most important calculation in the LIHTC program – at least in terms of credit generation – is qualified basis. Qualified basis is directly related to the amount of eligible basis (Eligible Basis times Applicable Fraction = Qualified Basis). So,…

HUD Mortgage Insurance Premiums for LIHTC Projects

September 26, 2013

HUD published a Notice in the Federal Register on September 26, 2013, clarifying that conventional or FHA-insured projects with existing LIHTC’s, and other affordable projects that meet LIHTC affordability criteria are eligible for the LIHTC Mortgage Insurance Premium (MIP) rate.…

HUD Changes to Appendix 3 of 4350.3 – Acceptable Forms of Verification

September 4, 2013

Along with the recent publication of Change 4 to HUD Handbook 4350.3, HUD also amended Appendix 3, Acceptable Forms of Verification. Some of the changes are worth noting, as follows (changes are shown in parentheses): Assets disposed of for less…

IRS Approves Same-Sex Marriage for Tax Purposes

August 29, 2013

Yesterday, I sent you an email that the IRS had not yet decided whether to recognize same-sex marriage for purposes of filing a joint federal tax return. I also indicated that I believed this was clearly contrary to the Supreme…

HUD Notice on Violence Against Women Act of 2013

August 9, 2013

On August 6, 2013, HUD published a Notice titled The Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013 (VAWA 2013): Overview of Applicability to HUD Programs. This notice provides an overview of the applicability to HUD programs of the recently enacted…

Rural Area Definition – Legislative Update (June 28, 2013)

June 29, 2013

Approximately 900 communities across the United States that are currently considered “rural” for purposes of United Stated Department of Agriculture (USDA) programs are in danger of losing their rural designation. The communities will no longer be considered rural based on…

Effect of Supreme Court Ruling on DOMA on LIHTC Student Rule

June 27, 2013

As you probably know by now, on June 26, 2013 the Supreme Court declared that Section Three of The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) is unconstitutional. This decision basically holds that persons of the same sex who are legally married…

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