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NewsdeskFY2011 Continuum of Care Competition Awards $1.47 Billion in Homeless Grants for Renewal Projects
U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Shaun Donovan today awarded $1.47 billion to renew funding to more than 7,100 local homeless programs operating across the country. The funding announced today will ensure these housing and service programs remain operating in 2012 and are a critical part of the Obama Administration’s strategic plan to prevent and end homelessness.
HUD is renewing funding through its Continuum of Care programs to existing local programs as quickly as possible to prevent any interruption in federal assistance and will award funds to new projects in early 2012.
For a local summary of the grants announced on December 20, 2012, visit HUD’s Homelessness Resource Exchange at http://www.hudhre.info (What’s New section) or HUD’s website at http://www.hud.gov (Featured News)
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2010 PIT and HIC Data Posted
HUD has posted the 2010 Point in Time Count (PIT) and Housing Inventory Count (HIC) data on the homelessness exchange website (www.hudhre.info).
The populations and subpopulations report contains the PIT data and the housing inventory report contains the HIC data. The reports are available at the national, state, and continuum levels. Click here to view or download the reports.
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New Annual Progress Report [APR] for Continuum of Care Grants are Live in e-snaps!
The new CoC Annual Performance Report (APR) is live in e-snaps for Supportive Housing Program (SHP), Shelter Plus Care (S+C) and Section 8 Mod Rehab grants expiring June 1, 2011 or later. The new CoC APR is available under the e-snaps Funding Opportunity: CoC Full Annual Performance Report. A CoC APR Guidebook will be posted on HUD HRE (www.hudhre.info) by Friday, June 17th. The Guidebook will walk grantees through the submission process for the CoC Full APR.
SHP, S+C and SRO grants that expire between June 1, 2010 and May 31, 2011 must submit a Transition APR (TAPR) under the e-snaps Funding Opportunity: CoC Annual Performance Report.
All questions regarding the CoC Full APR should be submitted via the HUD HRE Virtual Help Desk.
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FREE WEBINAR ON JUNE 21ST!
Tuesday, June 21st at 1 o’clock CST, the National Council will present a free webinar introducing collaboration models for projects and typical sources of capital financing, operating funds and rental assistance for permanent housing focusing on individuals with co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders (COD).
Early registration is required. Please find webinar details and registration link provided in the announcement below.
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May 17, 2011
HUD Encourages Tuscaloosa, Alabama Landlords To List Vacancies On National Housing Locator System To Help Displaced Families ATLANTA - The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is appealing to landlords in Tuscaloosa, Alabama to list their vacant properties on its National Housing Locator System (NHLS). Working with federal and private housing databases, HUD uses this web-based system to offer thousands of families displaced from recent tornadoes longer term housing options. Landlords and property owners can list available units by registering onto HUD's National Housing Locator System and creating a new account. Landlords can also call the NHL at (703) 667-9420 ext.114 weekdays from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. to register their housing. "The National Housing Locator is a critical resource for families who need longer term housing," said HUD's Regional Administrator, Ed Jennings. "We need Tuscaloosa property owners and landlords with available units to list their vacant housing so that FEMA and our State and local recovery workers can refer displaced families to a suitable place to live as they put their lives back together." All landlords who list their vacant properties on the National Housing Locator must comply with the Fair Housing Act which prohibits housing discrimination based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status or disability. It is also unlawful to refuse to make reasonable accommodations in rules, policies, practices, or services, when such accommodation may be necessary to afford a person with disabilities equal opportunity to use and enjoy a dwelling. The NHLS merges federal housing resources with several commercial housing locators to offer a single outlet for locating rental housing around the country. The following private companies are providing housing vacancies to supplement other public databases: Inventory Management System (IMS), Apartments.Com, ApartmentTime.Com, SocialServe.com, RentLinx, Texas housing Authority, HUD Multi-family, Gosection8.com, USDA, Tenant Plus, hotpads.com, rentalads.com, Forrent.com. Authorized users can locate available housing by city; area code; price range; acceptance of housing vouchers; acceptance of pets; accessibility; assisted and elderly accommodations; and number of bedrooms and bathrooms. In most cases, the database will also include an address and map of the housing complex, contact information for the landlord, and monthly rent amount. All displaced families are eligible to use information provided through the NHLS, regardless of income. HUD does not endorse, sponsor or recommend any of the listings, information, products, services, or a company, including any trademark or trade name that may be contained on the list including those appearing on any external hyperlink, and HUD provides no assurance or guarantee with respect to any of them. All links are provided solely for the purpose of disseminating information on available housing. ***
May 2, 2011
Out of Reach 2011 Released
The National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC) released its annual rental housing report. This report provides rental data for every county and state in the U.S. In 2011, Alabama's housing wage is $12.77, a 46% increase since 2000. To read the report, click here.
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April 2011
Governor's Interagency Council on Homelessness releases "Understanding Homelessness: Causes and Consequences in Alabama."
 To read the report, click on the image above.
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March 2011
The Institute for Children, Poverty, and Homelessness Releases Reports
Many state-level plans to end homelessness are approaching their mid or endpoints and must accommodate upcmoing policy changes signaled by the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness' 2010 release of Opening Doors: Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness. Hence, to inform and improve future implementation, the Institute for Children, Poverty, and Homelessness (ICPH) reviewed statewide planning efforts across the nation. ICPH found widespread rejection of the federal government’s focus on reducing chronic homelessness in the interest of cost-effectiveness, with stakeholders preferring to include other vulnerable persons, such as families with dependent children. ICPH also identified key plan document and stakeholder factors for successful implementation. To read the report, click here. ICPH also released policy recommendations based upon the above report. ICPH released an Alabama-specific brief. To read the brief, click here. ***
2.4.11
Object to the House Assault on Affordable Housing Now
Extreme Cuts Proposed The House Budget Committee proposed setting FY11 spending caps for domestic discretionary programs at FY08 levels, dramatically lower than current funding levels.
To meet these caps and impose additional cuts, the House Appropriations Committee announced its plan to cut the Transportation, HUD, and Related Agencies (THUD) Subcommittee’s funding allocation by 18%. This is below the President’s FY11 budget request and 17% below FY10 levels, the level at which programs are now being funded under the continuing resolution. These cuts would reduce HUD’s share of the THUD budget, causing hundreds of thousands of households currently housed through HUD programs to lose their housing. Cuts at these levels would devastate HUD programs serving the lowest income, most economically vulnerable households. HUD announced this week that the number of households experiencing worst case housing needs, defined as very low income renter households paying more than half of their income for housing or having other significant housing problems, increased by 20% between 2007 and 2009. Please contact your Representative and Senators NOW to let them know that these cuts are unacceptable and that: 1. HUD programs must be funded at FY10 levels at a minimum, and 2. Three HUD programs must be funded at higher than FY10 levels to prevent households from being evicted from affordable housing:
Click here to get the contact information for your House or Senate offices or call the Congressional switchboard at 877-210-5351.
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9.8.10
OBAMA ADMINISTRATION AWARDS ADDITIONAL $1 BILLION
TO STABILIZE NEIGHBORHOODS HARD-HIT BY FORECLOSURE Third round of NSP grants to build on efforts to confront abandonment and blight WASHINGTON – U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan today awarded an additional $1 billion in funding to all states along with a number of counties and local communities struggling to reverse the effects of the foreclosure crisis. The grants announced today represent a third round of funding through HUD’s Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP) and will provide targeted emergency assistance to state and local governments to acquire, redevelop or demolish foreclosed properties. For a complete listing of the allocations announced today, visit HUD’s website. “These grants will support local efforts to reverse the effects these foreclosed properties have on their surrounding neighborhoods,” said Donovan. “We want to make certain that we target these funds to those places with especially high foreclosure activity so we can help turn the tide in our battle against abandonment and blight. As a direct result of the leadership provided by Senator Chris Dodd and Congressman Barney Frank, who played key roles in winning approval for these funds, we will be able to make investments that will reduce blight, bolster neighboring home values, create jobs and produce affordable housing.”
The funding announced today is provided under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. To date, there have been two other rounds of NSP funding: the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 (HERA) provided $3.92 billion and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act) appropriated an additional $2 billion. Like those earlier rounds of NSP grants, these targeted funds will be used to purchase foreclosed homes at a discount and to rehabilitate or redevelop them in order to respond to rising foreclosures and falling home values. Today, 95 cents of every dollar from the first round of NSP funding is obligated – and is in use by communities, buying up and renovating homes, and creating jobs.
State and local governments can use their neighborhood stabilization grants to acquire land and property; to demolish or rehabilitate abandoned properties; and/or to offer downpayment and closing cost assistance to low- to moderate-income homebuyers (household incomes not exceed 120 percent of area median income). In addition, these grantees can create “land banks” to assemble, temporarily manage, and dispose of vacant land for the purpose of stabilizing neighborhoods and encouraging re-use or redevelopment of urban property. HUD will issue an NSP3 guidance notice in the next few weeks to assist grantees in designing their programs and applying for funds.
NSP 3 will take full advantage of the historic First Look partnership Secretary Donovan announced with the National Community Stabilization Trust last week. First Look gives NSP grantees an exclusive 12-14 day window to evaluate and bid on properties before others can do so. By giving every NSP grantee the first crack at buying foreclosed and abandoned properties in these targeted neighborhoods, First Look will maximize the impact of NSP dollars in the hardest-hit neighborhoods – making it more likely the properties communities want to buy are strategically chosen and cutting in half the traditional 75-to-85 day process it takes to re-sell foreclosed properties.
NSP also seeks to prevent future foreclosures by requiring housing counseling for families receiving homebuyer assistance. HUD seeks to protect future homebuyers by requiring States and local grantees to ensure that new homebuyers under NSP receive homeownership counseling and obtain a mortgage loan from a lender who agrees to comply with sound lending practices.
In determining the allocations announced today, HUD, as it did with NSP1, followed key indicators for the distribution formula outlined by Congress. HUD is using the latest data to implement the Congressional formula. The formula weighs several factors to match funding to need in the 20 percent most distressed neighborhoods as determined based on the number and percentage of home foreclosures, the number and percentage of homes financed by a subprime mortgage related loan, and the number and percentage of homes in delinquency. To estimate the level of need down to the neighborhood level, HUD uses a model that takes into account causes of foreclosures and delinquencies, which include housing price declines from peak levels, and increases in unemployment, and rate of high cost and highly leveraged loans. HUD also considers vacancy problems in neighborhoods with severe foreclosure related problems.
In addition to a third round of NSP funding, the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act creates a $1 billion Emergency Homeowners Loan Program to be administered by HUD. This loan program will provide up to 24 months in mortgage assistance to homeowners who are at risk of foreclosure and have experienced a substantial reduction in income due to involuntary unemployment, underemployment, or a medical condition. HUD will announce additional details, including the targeted areas and other program specifics when the program is officially launched in the coming weeks.
9.28.10
HUD TO PROVIDE PERMANENT HOUSING TO 550 HOMELESS VETERANS ACROSS THE U.S.
Funding part of Obama Administration plan to end veteran homelessness WASHINGTON - U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan announced today that HUD will provide $4.3 million to local housing authorities in 19 states to provide permanent housing for 550 homeless veterans in America. The funding is provided through The Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing Program (HUD-VASH), a coordinated effort by HUD, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), and local housing authorities to provide permanent supportive housing for veterans experiencing homelessness. For a local breakdown of the rental vouchers announced today, visit HUD's website.
"Our veterans deserve something better than a life on the streets," said Donovan. "President Obama has given us our marching orders that, as a nation, we must end the curse of homelessness especially for those who answered their country's call to serve."
This funding to local housing authorities is part of the Obama Administration's strategy to end veteran and long-term chronic homelessness by 2015. Opening Doors: Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness serves as a roadmap for how the federal government will work with state and local agreements to confront the root causes of homelessness, especially among former servicemen and women.
The grants announced today are part of a $75 million investment to support the needs of homeless veterans. With today's announcement, HUD will have allocated a combined $70 million to fund 9,800 housing vouchers nationwide for 2010. The fourth and final competitive round will be announced later this year or early 2011. In addition to the rental assistance, the VA Medical Centers provide supportive services and case management to eligible homeless veterans.
HUD allocates the housing vouchers to local public housing agencies, which work closely with local Veterans Affairs Medical Centers (VAMC) to target rental assistance vouchers to homeless veterans in their area. Homeless veterans are selected based on a variety of factors, including the number of reported homeless veterans and the proximity of a local VAMC with the capacity to provide case management. Veteran Affairs case managers will also work directly with local housing agencies that are administering the HUD-VASH program to determine income eligibility and help participants find suitable housing.
Veterans participating in the HUD-VASH program rent privately owned housing and generally contribute no more than 30 percent of their income toward rent. VA offers eligible homeless veterans clinical and supportive services through its medical centers across the U.S, Guam and Puerto Rico.
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