Resources
IRS Regulatory Relief Available During COVID-19 Pandemic
On January 11, IRS issued Notice 2022-05 providing temporary relief to state Housing Credit allocating agencies, owners, and residents of Housing Credit properties in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Notice 2022-05 is the fourth notice to extend Housing Credit deadlines and provide waivers of certain program rules since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. This matrix compares the accommodations IRS provides in Notice 2022-05 to recommendations for COVID-19 guidance NCSHA sent to IRS in letters in August and October 2021 and to existing disaster relief IRS provides under Revenue Procedures 2014-49 and 2014-50, which are applicable in cases of a presidentially-declared major disaster.
Featured HAF Program: Idaho Homeowner Assistance Fund
Idaho homeowners, if you’ve fallen behind on your house payments, you’re not alone. Help is here for Idaho homeowners who’ve experienced financial hardship because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Get started here.
NCSHA Joins Coalition Letter Expressing Concerns About Disclosure Legislation
NCSHA recently joined the Government Finance Officers Association, National Association of Counties, U.S. Conference of Mayors, the National League of Cities, and other municipal finance groups as signatories on a letter to congressional leaders expressing concerns about S. 4295, the Financial Data Transparency Act, and its possible inclusion as an amendment to the FY23 National Defense Authorization Act.
NCSHA Comments on HUD HAPSS Draft Solicitation
On September 28, 2022, NCSHA sent the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development this letter urging it to withdraw or substantially revise its draft solicitation to procure contractors to provide Housing Assistance Payments contract support services (HAPSS) to HUD to help it administer approximately 17,000 project-based rental assistance contracts.
Updated IRS FAQs on Taxability of Payments from Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds
On September 28, 2022, the Internal Revenue Service updated its Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) pertaining to the tax treatment of various benefits funded through Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (SLFRF). The new FAQs clarify that down payment assistance for home buyers funded through SLFRF is not considered federal taxable income, meaning homeowners will not have to report the assistance as income and government entities do not have to issue 1099 forms to recipients of assistance. The updated FAQs also clarify that SLFRF assistance provided to home buyers to help pay mortgage insurance premiums also does not qualify as federal taxable income.
Request for Information: Green and Resilient Retrofit Program
On September 22, 2022, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development released a preview version of a Request for Information requesting comments on its new Green and Resilient Retrofit Program (GRRP). HUD is establishing the GRRP pursuant to a section of the Inflation Reduction Act providing $1 billion to HUD for energy and water efficiency retrofits and climate resilience of HUD-assisted multifamily properties.
Analysis: The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law — Implications for Affordable Housing
NCSHA commissioned UpLook Advisors to perform a high-level assessment of the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law’s implications for housing. The analysis highlights a number of new and existing...
HOME Final Rule Implementing Changes to Commitment Requirement
This regulation finalizes without change an interim rule, published in 2016, that modified the method by which the Department of Housing and Urban Development determines participating jurisdictions’ (PJs) compliance with the statutory 24-month commitment requirement for HOME Investment Partnerships program funds. Specifically, it uses a grant-specific method for determining compliance with the requirement and revised the method for administering program income to prevent PJs from losing allocated HOME funds when they expend program income.
Report: Filling Funding Gaps — How State Agencies Are Moving to Meet a Growing Threat to Affordable Housing
On September 20, 2022, NCSHA released this report, produced by Abt Associates, documenting the actions state housing finance agencies are taking to meet the growing threat to affordable housing from unprecedented cost increases in labor, materials, and financing.
