NCSHA Blogs
HUD Releases FY 2017 Fair Market Rents
On August 26, HUD published a notice in the Federal Register announcing the Fiscal Year (FY) 2017 Fair Market Rents (FMRs). FMRs are used to determine payment standards for a number of housing assistance programs, including the Housing Choice Voucher and the Project-Based Section 8 programs.
FHA and FHFA Announce Changes to Loss Mitigation Programs
The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) and Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced yesterday changes to their loss mitigation requirements to streamline their processes and help struggling homeowners avoid foreclosure and stay in their homes.
CDFA Annual Volume Cap Report Finds Uptick in Usage of Private Activity Bonds, in Particular MRBs
The Council of Development Finance Agencies (CDFA) on August 5 released its report on 2015 Private Activity Bond and Volume Cap Trends, which finds that states issued $12.9 billion in private activity bonds (PAB) in 2015, $1.3 billion more than the previous year. 2015 was the second year in a row in which states increased their PAB issuance.
Housing Recovery Continuing, According to HUD Housing Scorecard
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Department of Treasury released the July Housing Scorecard earlier this month. The report says higher sales of new and previously owned homes, a lower mortgage rate, and higher home prices show that the housing market recovery is continuing.
President Signs Housing Assistance Reform Bill Into Law
On July 29, President Obama signed into law H.R. 3700, the Housing Opportunity Through Modernization Act (HOTMA), which will streamline and reform several federal housing assistance programs. NCSHA and a broad coalition of housing stakeholders have strongly advocated for this bipartisan legislation over the past year.
CFPB Releases Loss Mitigation Principles
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) yesterday released a set of suggested principles for foreclosure prevention activities. The guidelines are not legally binding but are intended to act as guidance for mortgagees’ and investors’ loss mitigation efforts.
CFPB Proposes Expanding RESPA Disclosure Exemption for HFA Loans
Earlier today, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released a proposed rule that would make several changes to CFPB’s TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosure Rule (TRID). The proposal includes a provision designed to make it easier for lenders to participate in HFA down payment assistance programs by exempting more such programs from onerous disclosure requirements.
HUD Proposes New Administrative Fee Formula for Housing Choice Vouchers
Earlier this month, HUD published a proposed rule that would substantially change the formula it uses to determine how much funding public housing agencies (PHA) receive to administer the Housing Choice Voucher (voucher) program. With this new formula, HUD aims to better capture the costs of administering the voucher program and therefore more accurately compensate administering PHAs.
Fannie Mae Announces Enhancements to HFA Preferred, HomeReady Products
Fannie Mae announced Tuesday that it will be making several adjustments to its affordable HomeReady product that it believes will allow the product to serve more low- and moderate-income borrowers. Fannie Mae has informed NCSHA that these adjustments will also be incorporated into its HFA Preferred Products.
Interactive Tool Shows Why Building Affordable Housing Absent a Government Subsidy is Uneconomic
The Urban Institute, in partnership with the National Housing Conference, has released a new online tool entitled, The Cost of Affordable Housing: Does it Pencil Out?, illustrating the gap between the cost of constructing and maintaining rental housing affordable to low-income households and the rents those families can afford to pay. The tool shows that without relying on government subsidies—in particular the Housing Credit program—it is often impossible to build and maintain housing for low-income households.
