HUD Housing Notice § 2014-16

               U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
                                      WASHINGTON, DC 20410-8000


ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR HOUSING-
FEDERAL HOUSING COMMISSIONER




Special Attention of:                                     NOTICE H 2014-16

Multifamily Regional Center Directors                     Issued: November 28, 2014
Multifamily Hub Directors
Multifamily Program Center Directors
Rural Housing Services (RHS) Directors                    Expires: This notice remains in effect
                                                                   until amended, revoked, or
                                                                   superseded.
Contract Administrators
Multifamily Owners and Management Agents



        Subject: Waiting List Administration

  I.    Purpose. This notice provides guidance on the administration of waiting lists for
        Multifamily Housing properties, on the topics of opening the waiting list, placing
        applicants on the waiting list, and outreach. This notice does not mandate any new
        practices for Multifamily owners and agents, but rather provides additional options for
        owners in their waiting list administration to further ensure fair housing compliance. For
        additional details, owners should review federal regulations at 24 C.F.R Part 5, as well as
        HUD Handbook 4350.3 REV-1 Occupancy Requirements of Subsidized Multifamily
        Housing Programs.

 II.    Background. Multifamily owners are responsible for establishing an application and
        selection process that treats applicants equitably and provides an effective method for
        determining program eligibility. While maintaining a waiting list for a property, an
        owner may close the waiting list for one or more unit sizes if the average wait is
        excessive (HUD Handbook 4350.3 4-16). When an owner agrees to accept applications
        again, a notice of this action must be announced in a publication likely to be read by
        potential applicants and in accordance with applicable affirmative fair housing marketing
        requirements or the HUD-approved Affirmative Fair Housing Marketing Plan. Owners
        must also accommodate persons with disabilities who cannot utilize the owner’s
        preferred application process, by providing alternative methods of application in-take
        (e.g. accepting mailed or online applications). In response to community concerns that
        individuals with disabilities may still be at a disadvantage regarding waiting list
        placement, the Office of Multifamily Housing (in alignment with the Office of Public
        and Indian Housing (PIH)), is publishing additional options for owners to administer their
        waiting lists.




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III.     Applicability. This notice applies to the following programs:

             A. Project-based Section 8
                      1. New Construction
                      2. State Agency Financed
                      3. Substantial Rehabilitation
                      4. Section 202/8
                      5. Rural Housing Services (RHS) Section 515/8
                      6. Loan Management Set-Aside (LMSA)
                      7. Property Disposition Set-Aside (PDSA)
             B. Section 101 Rent Supplement
             C. Section 202/162 Project Assistance Contract (PAC)
             D. Section 202 Project Rental Assistance Contract (PRAC)
             E. Section 202 Senior Preservation Rental Assistance Contracts (SPRAC)
             F. Section 811 PRAC
             G. Section 811 Project Rental Assistance Demonstration units under a Rental
                Assistance Contract (PRA)
             H. Section 236
             I. Section 236 Rental Assistance Payments (RAP)
             J. Section 221(d)(3) Below Market Interest Rate (BMIR)

IV.      Effective Date. This notice is effective upon publication and remains in effect until
         amended, superseded, or rescinded.

    V.   Opening the Waiting List. As stated in HUD Handbook 4350.3 REV-1,
         paragraph 4-16.B.2, when an owner agrees to open his/her waiting list and begins to
         accept applications, the notice of this action must be announced in a publication likely to
         be read by potential applicants in the same manner (and if possible, in the same
         publications) as the notification that the waiting list was closed. The notifications should
         be extensive, and the rules for applying and the order in which applications will be
         processed should be stated. Advertisements should include where and when to apply.
         Advertising and outreach activities must be done in accordance with applicable fair
         housing marketing requirements or the HUD-approved Affirmative Fair Housing
         Marketing Plan.

         The notification requirements must also comply with HUD fair housing requirements,
         such as adopting suitable means to assure that the notice reaches eligible individuals with
         disabilities and those with limited English proficiency.1 Multifamily owners must ensure
         that notices of and communications during all meetings are provided in a manner that is
         effective for persons with hearing, vision, and other communications-related disabilities

1
 For additional details, please see 24 CFR § 8.6 and the Final Guidance to Federal Financial Assistance Recipients:
Title VI Prohibition Against National Origin Discrimination Affecting Limited English Proficient Persons,
published in the Federal Register on January 22, 2007 (72 FR 2732).


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       consistent with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (24 CFR 8.6), and, as
       applicable, the Americans with Disabilities Act. This includes ensuring that meeting sites
       are accessible and auxiliary aids and services are provided as needed, e.g., materials in
       Braille, audio, and large type; sign language interpreters, computer-assisted real time
       transcription (CART) services, and assistive listening devices, etc.

       Consistent with our PIH counterparts, and the guidance in PIH Notice 2012-34,
       Multifamily Housing cautions against opening the waiting list and accepting applications
       for limited periods, such as a single day, which may create disorderly and unsafe
       application intake processes. Opening waiting lists for longer periods and making
       applications available ahead of time will create safer and more effective application
       intake processes. Additionally, having multiple venues, both physical and online, to
       accept the application will help promote safety and accessibility for the application
       process.

VI.    Placing Applicants on the Waiting List. In scenarios where Multifamily Housing
       owners elect to open a previously closed waiting list for a set period of time, owners may
       consider the use of a lottery or other random choice techniques to select which applicants
       will be placed and to determine the order these applicants will be placed on a waiting list.
       Owners should consider whether this is a reasonable approach in their jurisdictions. For
       example, this approach would be reasonable for properties located in areas where the
       volume of applications is high enough that placing each eligible applicant on the waiting
       list would result in an unrealistic waiting period for housing. It may also be appropriate
       in scenarios where individuals unable to apply in person at the onset of the opening
       would be at a distinct disadvantage in their placement on the waiting list. If a
       Multifamily Housing owner uses this approach, the owner must describe it in the tenant
       selection plan and any public notice of a waiting list opening must clearly state that this
       system will be used to place applicants on the waiting list. Further, applicants should be
       notified that, so long as the application is submitted within the stated timeframe, the
       timing of the application submission will have no effect on how soon they may be offered
       assistance. If the lottery or other random selection procedure is not used, reasonable
       accommodations must be made for individuals who are unable because of disabilities to
       submit early in the application process.

       If a lottery or other random choice technique is used to place applicants on the waiting
       list and to determine the order in which to place applicants on the waiting list, the date
       and time the lottery is held should be the date recorded on the waiting list. Any
       preferences the applicant qualifies for must also be noted on the waiting list. Selecting
       tenants from the waiting list must be done in accordance with Chapter 4 of HUD
       Handbook 4350.3, REV-1 including paragraph 4-15.A which requires that, once unit size
       and preference order is determined, owners must select applications from the waiting list
       in chronological order to fill vacancies.

VII.   Advertising. Owners must advertise according to the property’s Affirmative Fair
       Housing Marketing Plan and target this advertising to groups other than the typical
       population of the neighborhood in which the property is located while reaching out to

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        applicants who are least likely to apply because they are not the predominant racial or
        ethnic group in the neighborhood. All advertising must include the HUD-approved Equal
        Housing Opportunity logo, slogan, or statement. Further, all advertising depicting
        persons must depict members of all eligible protected classes including individuals from
        both majority and minority groups, including both sexes.

VIII.   Paperwork Reduction Act
        There are no information collection requirements in this Notice and therefore the
        Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501-3520) does not apply. In accordance
        with the Paperwork Reduction Act, an agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person
        is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless the collection displays a
        currently valid OMB control number.

 IX.    Contact Information. Inquiries about this Notice may be directed to Kate Brennan at
        Catherine.M.Brennan@hud.gov in the Office of Multifamily Housing.




                             _____________________________________________
                             Biniam Gebre, Acting Assistant Secretary for Housing –
                               Federal Housing Commissioner




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