CARHA Publication of
the Council for Affordable
and Rural Housing
news
In this issue:
Annual Meeting Recap
Counsels’ Corners—Regulation Round-Up
Prepayment Updates
CARH Testifies on RuralHousing Issues
Preferred Buyer Plus—Q&A on APisp
Mailbox Retrofitting
Technohelper
2003
Aug
July
June
May
Apr
Mar
4%Credit
3.35%
3.33%
3.38%
3.40%
3.37%
3.40%
9%Credit
7.82%
7.78%
7.89%
7.92%
7.87%
7.93%
Up to the moment tax credit percentages always available atwww.carh.org
‒
From Sunday, June 8 to Tuesday, June 10,
2003 more than 100 CARH members and
guests attended CARH’s annual meeting and
legislative conference. The meeting again took
place at the Ritz Carlton, Pentagon City, which is
just a few short metro stops from both Capitol
Hill and the federal agencies that CARH works
with on affordable housing issues. Meeting par-
ticipants noted that this year’s conference provided
attendees with information and developments as
they became news. Several days prior to the
beginning of the conference, the long awaited
rewrite of the regulations governing the Rural
Housing Service’s (RHS) multifamily programs
were issued. The “3560 regulation” was issued
in proposed form in the Federal Register. The
agency gave the public 60 days, or August 1,
2003 to comment on the proposed regulation.
A special review committee met during the
annual meeting and legislative conference.
This committee has again met and had phone
conversations in an effort to formulate CARH’s
formal comments.
The conference opened the morning of
Sunday, June 8, with concurrent committee
meetings. As indicated, a special 3560 review
committee met to lay the groundwork for
CARH’s formal response to the proposed regula-
tions. This committee met all day, divided the
regulations into subject matters, thus leading to
the formation of subcommittees and the
appointment of subcommittee leaders. It was
agreed that a follow-up two day meeting would
be held in Washington in July.
The state associations committee co-chaired
by Joe Diehl, Executive Director of the Washington
CARH and Arrice Faught, Executive Director of
the Alabama CARH, was a lively and informative
meeting. Continued efforts of this committee
are fostering new associations throughout the
country and providing start-up assistance to
new groups. This technical assistance would
be in the form of providing help to groups as
they plan their first meeting, assisting groups in
formulating long-range plans for membership
development and recommending staffing needs
for the association.
At the same time as the state associations
committee met, the housing authority
committee met. This committee was chaired
by Norm McLoughlin, from the Kitsap County
Consolidated Housing Authority in Washington
State. While a myriad of issues were discussed
during this committee, two issues took top
billing. It was the committee’s recommendation
to CARH’s board of directors that CARH:
1. Oppose the administration’s proposal to
block grant the Section 8 program, and
CARH’s 2003 Annual Meeting and LegislativeConference—One for the History BooksBy Colleen M. Fisher, Executive Director
Tax CreditPercentages
See “ANNUAL MEETING” on page 2
Representative Mike Ross (D-AK) at CARH’s2003 Annual Meeting and LegislativeConference closing luncheon.
2. Support efforts on the part of HUD’s
Office of Multifamily Housing Assistance
Restructuring (OMHAR) to provide tech-
nical assistance to RHS in their efforts to
preserve the agency’s aging portfolio.
(CARH’s board of directors in a meeting
later in the day adopted both of these
recommendations.)
Attendees then had a choice between the
education and owners committee. At the edu-
cation committee, discussion centered on the
possibility of conducting some of CARH’s cur-
rent and future education programs via the
Internet. This would assist employees from
properties that have limited training funds to
participate in CARH’s education courses at
minimal costs since they would not incur travel
costs. After the education committee was
adjourned, CARH’s certification committee
met and reviewed applications submitted by
individuals for CARH’s Rural Affordable
Housing Professional (RAHP) and Rural
Affordable Housing Executive (RAHE)
designations. (See related education article
on page 5.)
The owners committee also had many
issues on the agenda. Attendees were updat-
ed on the status of CARH’s aging portfolio
position paper. Jim Poehlman and Mike Sivia,
co-chairs of the aging portfolio committee,
told attendees that since the release of the
paper in March, key members of Congress,
other housing related trade associations, and
government agencies had received copies of
the paper. The reaction of those groups to the
paper had been very positive. It was recom-
mended that all of the state housing finance
agencies as well as the Federal Home Loan
Banks throughout the country should be sent
copies of the paper. It was also the recom-
mendation of the committee that of the issues
outlined in the paper, CARH should work first
to restructure the RHS so that the state direc-
tors report to the RHS Administrator for
housing-related issues.
Other issues discussed included the pend-
ing “takings lawsuit” that would be argued in
Des Moines, Iowa at the end of June (this case
is a result of the Supreme Court decision last
year, which remanded Franconia Associates
et al., back to a lower court); supporting state
efforts to oppose legislation that is being con-
sidered by various state legislatures that would
restrict prepayment rights for owners of state
and federal affordable housing programs; and
pressing for legislation which would provide
exit tax relief for owners.
The committee was also brought up to
date on a recent letter sent by CARH to the
national RHS office requesting appraisals be
released to borrowers. Several district offices
had refused to release appraisals. The national
office has indicated that a letter will be forth-
coming that will direct the release of such
appraisals. In addition, an Administrative
Notice (AN) will also be issued on the subject.
Finally, the committee recommended that
CARH should examine the possibility of hold-
ing a series of seminars for owners on tools
for prepayment.
The official kick-off for the meeting was
the opening luncheon. In addition to recogniz-
ing the vendors exhibiting at the meeting, the
nominating committee, chaired by Bob Yoder,
CARH’s chairman of the board, presented the
recommended slate of candidates for execu-
tive officers. The recommended 2003–2004
executive officers were: Betty Bridges,
President; Bob Rice, Vice President; Bill
Shumaker, Secretary; Mitch Copman,
Treasurer; Bob Yoder, Chairman of the
Board; and Ray Huff, Immediate Past
President. (Bruce Baird, Belmont
Management, who had served as CARH’s
Secretary for the past five years, decided that
due to business commitments, he did not wish
to serve another term as Secretary. Bruce
was honored for his commitment to the
association later in the day.) The nominating
committee also recommended in addition to
the existing board two individuals to fill
vacancies. These two additional individuals
were Kenyon Salo, SK Companies located
in New Ipswich, New Hampshire and
Rodney Dudley, Intervest Development
Corporation located in Madison,
Mississippi. The nominating committee’s
recommended slate of candidates for
executive officers and board of directors
was approved by the members present at
the luncheon.
The formal committee meetings ended
with the development committee. (While
scheduled to meet, the management commit-
tee decided not to meet as a majority of
management issues were being addressed by
the “3560 Review Committee.”) The develop-
ment committee reviewed provisions in the tax
bill recently signed into law by President Bush.
Other tax issues such as legislation that would
allow for the use of higher area median
income or statewide income for the purpose
of determining Low Income Housing Tax
Credit (LIHTC) application income limits was
also discussed. It was the recommendation
of the development committee that CARH
emphasize other federal programs that would
help in the development of more affordable
rural housing throughout the country. These
programs include but are not limited to
the Department of Housing and Urban
Development’s (HUD) HOME and CDBG pro-
grams. (This recommendation was presented
to and approved by the board of directors
meeting that followed this development
committee meeting.)
Annual Meeting continued from page 1
CARH Members at George Washington’s Mount Vernon estate, site of the opening reception forCARH’s annual meeting.
CARH’s board of directors met following all
of the formal committee meetings. Committee
reports were given by all of the committees.
The board approved all of the recommenda-
tions previously noted in this article. It was
agreed that the fall board of directors meeting
would be held on October 19 with meetings
with officials from the RHS and HUD on
October 20. This meeting will be held at the
Ritz Carlton, Pentagon City in Arlington,
Virginia. As with all board of directors meet-
ings, CARH members not on the board are
welcome to attend. Please contact CARH’s
national office staff for hotel information
regarding this meeting.
One more meeting event of the day greet-
ed attendees. “News from Washington—
CARH’s Perspective” featured Colleen M.
Fisher, CARH’s Executive Director and Richard
M. Price, Esq., Nixon Peabody, LLP, and CARH’s
General Counsel. Richard updated attendees
to this session with the latest developments on
tax related legislation. The recent tax legisla-
tion that was signed by the President did not
contain the elimination of the double taxation
of corporate dividends. The proposal was
supported by the administration and would
have negatively impacted investment in the
LIHTC program. Investment in rural housing
would have been particularly hard hit had the
proposal been enacted. Richard also discussed
the various lawsuits impacting owners’ prepay-
ment rights. Colleen discussed the status of
appropriations bills for HUD and RHS. CARH’s
policy statement was also reviewed at this
time. Attendees were encouraged to visit their
members of Congress and staff during the
two days of the meeting. Copies of the full
policy statement as well a summary of the
statement were contained in each of the
attendees’ meeting handbooks. Additional
copies of both statements were available at
the CARH registration table.
After a full day of sessions, attendees
were ready to relax and enjoy some history.
CARH’s opening reception was held at George
Washington’s Mount Vernon estate. The
evening began at the Mount Vernon Inn
Restaurant where attendees were treated to a
reception featuring cuisine that mirrored what
George and Martha Washington would have
served guests who visited them while at
Mount Vernon. The weather could not have
been better. A sense of quiet and serenity
enveloped the estate. The private tour of the
mansion was led by docents who took atten-
dees through the elegant candlelit mansion.
Stories about the owners were told as were
vignettes about guests who visited the
Washingtons’ home. The rarely-seen third
floor was no doubt a highlight of the tour.
Attendees also had the opportunity to visit the
outbuildings as well as the elegant gardens
that adorn the estate. While this year’s tour
was unique, CARH members will not want
to miss next year’s annual meeting opening
reception—it will be held at the world
famous International Spy Museum in
Washington, D.C.!
Another full day of sessions and news
greeted attendees on Monday, June 9. The
first event of the day featured Roberta
Youmans, democratic staff of the House
Financial Services Committee and Bill
Simpson, democratic
staff of the Senate
Appropriations
Committee. Roberta
and Bill gave their views
regarding their respective
committees’ agendas
on rural housing during
the first session of the
108th Congress. Roberta
reported that the
House Financial Services
Committee would be
holding a hearing on
rural housing issues in
the next several weeks.
This will be the first
comprehensive hearing on rural housing pro-
grams that the committee has held in many
years. (CARH was asked to testify at this hear-
ing. See related story on CARH’s testimony on
page 16 of this issue of CARH News.) Bill
indicated that the Senate Appropriations
Committee was very concerned over the RHS’s
Rental Assistance (RA) program and had asked
the General Accounting Office (GAO) to con-
duct a study on the program, particularly the
reference of the agency to unused RA. He did
indicate that members on the democratic side
of the committee were supportive of adding
additional funding for the Section 515 pro-
gram so that new construction funding would
be available in Fiscal Year 2004.
The “Nitty-Gritty with the Rural Housing
Service (RHS), Department of Housing and
Urban Development (HUD) and the Federal
Housing Finance Board” session featured
Thomas Dorr, Under Secretary Rural
Development at USDA; Mike McCullough,
Director, Office of Multifamily Housing
Development at HUD; and Lynn Brazen, Vice
President and Community Investment Officer,
Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta.
During this session all three speakers dis-
cussed programs impacting the rural housing
industry. Of particular interest was the discus-
sion by Mike McCullough regarding HUD’s
multifamily mortgage insurance program and
the development of a program that would
provide funds for small complexes, such as
those built in rural areas across the country.
Lynn Brazen also discussed the Federal Home
Loan Banks’ affordable housing programs and
how funds can be leveraged with other state
and federal programs.
After a break that allowed attendees
to talk to exhibitors and view products, atten-
dees were given the opportunity to choose
between sessions. “On the Money: Specialized
Financing Options for Rural Housing” featured
Sally Digges, Neighborhood Reinvestment
Corporation; Bill Hale, Portage Area
Development Corporation; and Lynn Brazen of
the Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta. This
group of panelists discussed different sources
of financing available for refinancing the
existing affordable housing portfolio as well
financing new construction. Real world exam-
ples were discussed as Bill Hale talked about
the purchase of an existing affordable housing
See “ANNUAL MEETING” on page 6New CARH member, Mel Nagata, of Waipahu Jack Hall MemorialCorporation, and his wife at CARH’s auction and reception.
National Site Managers of the Year Honored at CARH Annual Meeting
|
The Rural Housing Service (RHS) recently
named four site managers National Site
Managers of the Year for 2002 through
their sixth annual awards program. RHS
designed the awards program to recognize
site managers for their dedication and hard
work which helps to ensure the happiness and
safety of more than 400,000 individuals and
families living in approximately 18,000 proper-
ties financed by the United States Department
of Agriculture’s RHS.
The awards were presented in each of
three categories: elderly, family, and farm labor
housing. The 2002 winners for Family Site
Manager of the Year were Sherrie Perkins of
Investors Management who manages the
Arbor Trace Apartments, Brookhaven
Apartments, and Francis Lake Apartments in
Lake Park, Georgia. The Farm Labor Housing
Site Manager of the Year was Carmen
Roqueta of Everglades Village, Everglades
Community Association in Florida City, Florida.
There was a tie for the Elderly Housing Site
Manager of the Year—the two winners were
Cathy Wortham of Windsor Place Apartments,
Sun Belt Management in Wedowee, Alabama
and Brenda Witcher of Martins Landing II
Apartments, Harris Brown Management in
Martinsville, Virginia.
Candidates for this award were first
nominated by their local Rural Development
officers, their supervisors, or other members
of their communities. The nominees were
judged at the state-level by State Rural
Development review panels made up of both
public and private management experts. A
winner from each state was selected based on
resident satisfaction, property curbside appeal,
accurate and complete record-keeping, and
consistent performance of actions above and
beyond the call of duty.
Next, the state winners competed at the
national level; representatives from national
profit and non-profit associations, including a
representative from the Council for Affordable
and Rural Housing (CARH), reviewed and
scored the applications.
The national award winners were honored
at a special awards luncheon sponsored by
CARH on June 10, 2003 at the Ritz-Carlton
Hotel, Pentagon City in Arlington, Virginia.
Awards were presented to the winners at the
luncheon, which their families also attended.
The Honorable Mike Ross (R-AK), member of
the House Housing Subcommittee and Clinton
Jones, Esq., Senior Counsel to the House
Financial Services Committee were keynote
speakers at the event. Chris Alsop, of RHS,
presented the awards and gave each winner a
plaque recognizing her achievement. In addi-
tion to hosting the luncheon, CARH also gave
each award winner a special photograph of
the United States Capitol building to com-
memorate their trip to Washington, and to
show CARH’s appreciation for their role in
rural housing.
National Elderly Housing Site Manager of the Year: Cathy WorthamCathy has been employed by Sun Belt
Management since December of 2000; and
she manages Windsor Place, a 24-unit elderly
property in Wedowee, Alabama. Cathy has
always enjoyed working with the elderly and
goes above and beyond the duties of her posi-
tion. She is always available for her tenants
and takes pride in the way the apartments
and grounds look. Her residents praise her
for going out of her way to do the extra
things that make the apartments “home”
for her residents.
Ms. Wortham is married to Phillip
Wortham and has one son, Adam. Ms.
Wortham still operates a ceramic and flower
shop that she began with her mother and
operated jointly with her until 1996.
National Elderly Housing Site Manager of the Year:Brenda WitcherBrenda is employed by Harris Brown
Management and manages Martins Landing II
in Martinsville, Virginia. This is a 38-unit elderly
apartment complex, which she has managed
for three years. In this time, she has gained
the respect and trust of every resident there.
She is always available to the residents and
spends countless hours planting flowers,
pulling weeds, and picking up trash. She has
given her residents rides to the doctor and she
has even taken the time to make dinner for a
sick resident. She also publishes a monthly
newsletter that is enjoyed by all of the
residents.
Brenda Witcher lives in Callands, Virginia,
with her husband Charlie. They have three
grown children and three grandchildren.
Brenda and Charlie are co-founders of New
Life Church in Callands, where Charlie is
the Pastor.
National Managers of the Year: (from left to right) Sherrie Perkins, Cathy Wortham, BrendaWitcher, and Carmen Roqueta.
See “SITE MANAGERS” on page 23
|
At CARH’s 2003 Annual Meeting and
Legislative Conference in June, the
CARH Certification Board of Review
met to evaluate applications for renewing
CARH members’ educational designations: the
Rural and Affordable Housing Professional
(RAHP); and the Rural and Affordable Housing
Executive (RAHE). Four CARH members were
awarded renewals for their RAHP designation
and twelve CARH members were awarded
renewals for their RAHE designation.
CARH’s professional designations denote
CARH members who have proven to uphold
the highest standards of professionalism and
excellence in the affordable and rural housing
industry. The RAHP designation recognizes
CARH members who typically work as site
managers, assistant managers, occupancy spe-
cialists, RHS or Housing Finance Commission
occupancy personnel, the equivalent, or any
combination of the above. The RAHE designa-
tion recognizes CARH members who have
worked in the industry for at least five years,
with at least two years of that experience in a
supervisory or executive capacity.
Candidates for both the RAHP and the
RAHE designations must have a record of high
standards, ethics, and integrity in all business
issues. They must also be employed by a com-
pany that is a member in good standing with
national CARH, and must be recommended
by fellow CARH members. Candidates apply
using the application form provided by the
CARH national office and must provide docu-
mentation showing that they have met the
qualifications for the designation. All complet-
ed applications are examined by CARH’s
Certification Board of Review. The RAHP and
RAHE designations are valid for two years from
the date of initial issuance; after two years,
CARH members may apply for renewal and, if
approved, continue using the designation.
The qualifications for earning the RAHP
designation include successful completion of
CARH’s Basic Apartment Management Course
(including successful completion of the final
exam); occupancy training, specifically, the
Spectrum STAR or equivalent RHS Occupancy
Training; and fair housing and 504 training
such as the Spectrum Fair Housing or an
equivalent. Candidates must also have two
years of experience in rural housing, serving in
the capacity of a site manager, assistant man-
ager, occupancy specialist, RHS or Housing
Finance Commission occupancy personnel, the
equivalent, or any combination of the above.
Candidates must have accumulated at least
30 participation credits by attending CARH
events, either nationally or locally, or through
alternative, pre-approved participation credits
for circumstances where distance makes par-
ticipation in local CARH activities difficult.
RAHE candidates must have at least five
years experience in the rural housing industry,
and at least two years of that experience must
be in a supervisory or executive capacity. The
candidate must have successfully completed a
STAR or equivalent RHS occupancy-training
program. Work experience may be substituted
particularly if the individual is an owner or is in
a supervisory role in the company. In addition,
successful completion of fair housing and 504
training within the last two years is required.
A complete list of qualifications, including
fees, is available from the CARH national
office. For more information about CARH’s
designations, or to request an application,
please contact Lauren Block at the national
CARH office at 703-837-9001.
Congratulations to CARH members who
were awarded Rural and Affordable Housing
Professional (RAHP) and Rural and Affordable
Housing Executive (RAHE) designation
renewals by CARH’s Certification Board of
Review at CARH’s 2003 Annual Meeting and
Legislative Conference!
Designation Renewals Awarded at CARH’s Annual Meeting
RAHE Designation Renewals
Michael BurkeCBM GroupAuburn, CA
Tina Williams-BurkeCBM GroupAuburn, CA
Robert A. CaplanDiversified Housing Services, Inc.Houston, TX
Ray L. HuffAuburn Realty, LLCAuburn, AL
Cora W. TankersleyAuburn Realty, LLCAuburn, AL
John T. HuffHuff Management Company, Inc.Opelika, AL
Elizabeth KuykendallHuff Management Company, Inc.Opelika, AL
Anna M. PatilloHuff Management Company, Inc.Opelika, AL
Deborah AversanoQuality Management Inc.Mercer Island, WA
Stacy SissonsValentine & CompanyHuntington, NY
Susan ValentineValentine & CompanyHuntington, NY
Robert P. Yoder, Sr.Warrior Run Development Corp.Turbotville, PA
RAHP Designation Renewals
Cindy SniderBiggs, Inc.Decatur, IN
Marie LeachCloverdale Community HousingCloverdale, IN
Hazel JonesSouthwind Management Services, Inc.Leesburg, GA
Pat GuerreroT & C Associates, S.C.Madison, WI
portfolio and how each source of funding
played into the transaction.
The “Multi-Family Housing Information
System (MFIS) 3—Why, When and How Is It
Working?” session featured Larry Anderson,
Director of Office of Rental Housing
Preservation at RHS. Larry gave a demonstra-
tion of the system and reports generated so
that attendees could see the type of informa-
tion that the agency both at the national and
state levels could access. The data is intended
to be the only information gathering system
used by the agency nationwide. The system
will allow the national as well as states and
district offices to have access to servicing infor-
mation that will, in turn, generate uniform
policies and procedures. In addition, when
the system is fully operational, it will help the
agency provide better and accurate informa-
tion to Congress on programs.
During a break in the program, a special
tour of the National Gallery of Art (NGA) was
planned for attendees and their wives and
guests. This docent-led one-hour tour featured
highlights from the NGA’s permanent collec-
tion. The permanent collection is one of the
finest collections in the world, illustrating
major achievements in painting, sculpture,
and graphic arts from the Middle Ages to
the present. After the tour, there was ample
opportunity to further explore the museum
and visit the gallery shops. Several meeting
attendees who did not go on the tour took
time during this period and visited with their
members of Congress.
The afternoon program again gave atten-
dees a choice of sessions and topics. Paul
Jemmi and Krista O’Malley of Acordia; Harry J.
Kelly, Esq. of Nixon Peabody, LLP; Roger Platt
of the Real Estate Roundtable; and Stephen
York of the Department of Homeland Security,
participated on the panel “Terrorism,
Insurance and Related Security Issues.” Federal
law enforcement agencies have issued two
alerts to the housing industry, warning that
multifamily housing may be a “soft” target of
future terrorist activity. Presenters discussed
how owners and managers ought to address
the questions of (1) appropriate action that
should be taken to protect residents and prop-
erty and (2) how changes in law since the
September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks have
affected the operation and management of
multifamily properties. Best practices were
reviewed as well as changes in federal and
state law dealing with terrorism.
A majority of the developers attending
the conference opted for “The Section 538
Program—Mixed Reviews and Early Promise—
Why Bother?” At this session, Jeff Woda, The
Woda Group, led panelists in a discussion
about the Section 538 program and how, as
a developer, he has made the program work.
Rounding out the panel were Bonnie Birath of
Huntington National Bank, David Cooper of
Alliance Holding and Melodie Taylor of the
Ohio Rural Development office. Actual trans-
actions that the panelists participated in were
reviewed. Also discussed were proposed regu-
latory changes, that when implemented will
hopefully increase investment by the second-
ary mortgage market.
The final panels of the day featured a
choice between “Time Management” headed
by Diane Cohen, Cohen and Company and
“Development and Management Opportunities
with Other Rural Development Programs.”
The Time Management session gave some
excellent examples of how on a day to day
basis attendees could better organize both
their professional and personal time, thereby
reducing stress and increasing individuals’
efficiency and productivity.
Several other programs administered by
the Rural Development present opportunities
for developers and management companies.
“Development and Management Opportunities
with Other Rural Development Programs” fea-
tured Bill Hagy, Rural Business Programs; David
Layfield, Layfield and Associates; Pat Sheridan,
Rural Housing Service; and Peter Talbot, Michel
and Associates. Panelists discussed the Section
514 farm labor housing as well as the rural
business programs and how both programs
can work in partnership with for-profit devel-
opers as well as non-profit organizations. This
session provided important information on
programs and opportunities in areas outside
of the traditional multifamily programs.
What is CARH’s annual meeting and leg-
islative conference without our auction? For
an unprecedented third year, Bill Shumaker,
Provident Management and CARH’s Secretary,
was at the helm as CARH’s auctioneer. We
raised close to $16,000 for the association.
Attendees bid on silent auction items, which
included gift baskets, gift certificates to
various restaurants and CD/DVD players.
Live auction items included unique vacation
packages; a weekend in upstate New York;
a weekend in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina;
Puget Sound and Key West vacation homes;
the world famous Alabama barbecue; framed
art work including some exquisite photos
of Washington, D.C.; and the consulting
Annual Meeting continued from page 3
See “ANNUAL MEETING” on page 26
Acordia
ALCARH
American Rural Housing Insurance Agency
Boston Capital
CLASSIC Real Estate Systems, LLC
Crest Realty
Davis Insurance Agency
Michel Associates, Inc.
Provident Management, Inc.
Searle & Company
Sun Belt Management, Inc.
Third Renaissance, Inc.
Warrior Run Development Corp.
Thank You To Our Meeting Sponsors!
Federal Circuit Finds Prepayment Laws Caused A Compensable TakingBy Harry J. Kelly, Esq., Nixon Peabody, LLP, CARH General Counsel
’
Two recent Federal Circuit decisions came
out in support of awarding damages to
affordable housing owners where mort-
gage prepayment was delayed. For owners of
rural housing projects, these decisions have
two helpful implications. First, many owners of
rural housing also own HUD-insured housing
and ownership rights have been confirmed in
these cases. Second, and more important in
some ways, these cases, while dealing with
takings issues, are generally supportive of the
view that owners of affordable housing suf-
fered when their prepayment rights were
blocked by later legislation.
Vindicating the position of owners who
initially brought suit in the mid-1990s, the
Federal Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that
owners who were barred by the Emergency
Low Income Housing Act of 1988 (“ELIHPA”)
and the Low Income Housing Preservation and
Resident Homeownership Act of 1990 (“LIH-
PRHA”) from prepaying their HUD insured
mortgages and who are able to meet certain
evidentiary tests have suffered a compensable
taking of their property rights. Cienega
Gardens v. United States, __ F.3d ___, 2003
U.S. App. LEXIS 11656 (Fed. Cir.)(“Cienega
Gardens VIII”); Chancellor Manor v. United
States, ___ F.3d ___, 2003 U.S. App. LEXIS
11674 (Fed. Cir.). In Cienega Gardens VIII, the
Federal Circuit focused on two issues: (1) did
the owners have a protected property right to
prepay their mortgages after twenty years that
was taken by ELIHPA and LIHPRHA and (2) if a
taking occurred, were the owners there enti-
tled to damages? The Federal Circuit answered
both questions affirmatively—at least for the
four plaintiffs who had proceeded to trial in
the lower court on the original contractual
claims in that case. The court in Chancellor
Manor addressed a number of related matters,
reaffirming the earlier decisions in Cienega
Gardens that the owners did not have a con-
tract with HUD but concurring that they may
have suffered a compensable taking, subject
to proving their case at trial.
Concerning the basic property interest of
the owners, the Federal Circuit in the latest
Cienega Gardens decision had no trouble
finding that the “[o]wners had unequivocal
contractual rights after twenty years to prepay
their mortgages” and therefore had a property
interest in those rights. Cienega Gardens VIII at
*23. The court rejected the government’s
argument that because the government
retained the right to amend its prepayment
regulations, it could essentially terminate the
owners’ prepayment rights and therefore, that
those rights never vested. Succinctly, the
Federal Circuit held that “[t]he government’s
contention is, in effect, that Congress could
retroactively alter the Owner’s mortgage
contracts in any way it chose without any
recourse for the Owners. That cannot be, and
is not, the law.” Id. at *27. On the basis of
this analysis, the appellate court concluded
that the owners possessed a vested property
interest in prepayment. Id. at *45.
Next, the Cienega Gardens court turned to
whether ELIHPA and LIHPRHA constituted a
compensable taking of that property right. The
court found that as a regulatory taking, it
would only be compensable if it went “too
far”—that is, that the prepayment statutes
forced the owners to bear a burden that “‘in
all fairness and justice, should be borne by the
public as a whole.’” Id., quoting Armstrong v.
United States, 364 U.S. 40, 49 (1960). The
court applied the well-known Penn Central
analysis to assess the claimed regulatory
taking: (1) the character of the government
action; (2) economic impact of the regulation
on the claimant; and (3) the extent to which
the regulation interfered with distinct invest-
ment-backed expectations. Penn Central
Transportation Co. v. New York City, 438 U.S.
104, 124 (1978).
On each of these points, the court found
for the “model” plaintiffs in Cienega Gardens.
As to the character of the government action,
the court strongly concluded that ELIHPA and
LIHPRHA constituted physical invasions of the
model owners’ property. Id. at *49. As to the
economic impact standard, the appellate court
found that there were sufficient facts in the
record of the contractual damages claim to
support the conclusion that the owners had,
in fact, been injured by the prepayment
legislation. Finally, as to the model owners’
investment-backed expectations, the court
found that they did in fact have expectations
concerning their right to prepay after twenty
years and that HUD’s reserved rights to alter
its regulations did not undermine those expec-
tations. As the court summarized, “[a]t the
very least, one would not reasonably expect
Congress to make legislative changes that
would actually discourage parties from partici-
pating in the program in the future.” Id. at
*85. On the basis of this analysis, the Cienega
Gardens VIII court concluded that the
“model” plaintiffs there were entitled to
compensation for a regulatory taking under
the Penn Central factors. Id. at *96.
Taken together, Cienega Gardens VIII and
Chancellor Manor represent strong vindication
for the owners of HUD-insured housing who
have argued for more than a decade that
ELIPHA and LIHPRHA represented compensa-
ble takings. Obviously, aside from the model
plaintiffs, the plaintiffs in the prepayment
cases have to present timely evidence to
support their claim that the takings were, in
fact, compensable.
Harry J. Kelly, Esq. is a partner in the law firmof Nixon Peabody, LLP in Washington, D.C.Nixon Peabody is CARH’s General Counsel.
Owners of affordable housing suffered when their prepayment
rights were blocked by later legislation.
It occasionally helps to take a look at recent
regulatory pronouncements and see how
agency interpretations are developing,
which I have taken to calling the “regulation
round-up.” There have been a few recent
developments in RHS Administrative Notices
(“ANs”), which are not regulations, but inter-
pretations of regulations. Still it is worthwhile
to see what sort of regulatory issues are
developing before us.
RHS has reissued guidance regarding lead-
based paint compliance through AN 3862
(April 29, 2003), which mainly summarizes
HUD regulations at 24 C.F.R. Part 35. HUD and
EPA are jointly charged with administering the
relevant federal lead-based paint laws. These
laws and rules actually apply to all residential
housing, not just housing receiving federal
assistance, and require notices to residents for
target housing developed before January 1,
1978. The level of regulation and required
action increases for federally assisted properties,
but not every unit is effected. For example,
these rules do not apply to non-residential
property, exclusively elderly property, zero-bed-
room unit dwellings, and properties found to
be lead-based paint free. Of course, there are
exceptions to every category so please consult
AN 3862 for details.
AN 3836 (March 26, 2003) also discusses
lead-based paint, but focuses on just federally
assisted properties receiving more than $5,000
annually in project-based assistance and devel-
oped before January 1, 1978. These properties
must conduct a lead-based paint risk assess-
ment by a qualified assessor by September 1,
2003. Properties built before 1960 should
have already completed such an assessment.
The purpose of the risk assessment is to estab-
lish interim controls or needed repairs, and
also any needed ongoing operations and
maintenance plans.
In a past CARH News we wrote about the
Soldiers and Sailors’ Relief Act, and AN 3846
(April 3, 2003) now contains instructions
about this law and the protections it affords to
families of servicemen and women. Essentially,
families of active duty members have addition-
al statutory rights to either terminate a lease
or continue to reside under the lease, at their
option. This law also provides some additional
procedures prior to eviction.
There has been increasing focus in recent
years on identity-of-interest (“IOI”) entities,
and AN 3867 (May 26, 2003) advises State
Directors about IOI approval. That AN reminds
state offices to require bids from third parties
to verify that IOI costs are reasonable and add
value to the services or goods provided.
There has also been a recent enforcement
development at HUD, which issued a May 27,
2003 memorandum from Beverly Miller,
Director, Office of Asset Management to HUD
field offices. This memorandum clarifies an
enforcement policy we wrote about in the
last edition of CARH News. HUD had issued a
policy that any Section 8 or HUD-insured prop-
erty scoring below 60 in its Real Estate
Assessment Center (“REAC”) inspection would
be automatically sent to HUD’s Enforcement
Center and the owner and manager would
have their Previous Participation Clearance
Form 2530 “flagged,” which can indefinitely
hold up new transactions. This new memoran-
dum clarifies HUD policy and allows the local
HUD Hub Director discretion in deciding
whether or not to place the flag.
On a separate note, there was a recent IRS
revenue ruling that permitted a community
service facility to be included in project basis.
Revenue Ruling 2003-77 determined that the
taxpayer could include a community service
facility in its low-income housing tax credit
project where it contained certain features.
Specifically, it would improve the quality of
life for community residents (such as day care,
literacy training, outpatient clinical health
care); it was designed to provide services to
persons with incomes of 60 percent or less of
area median income (as determined by a mar-
ket study); it was located on the same tract of
land as one of the project buildings; and any
fees for services would be affordable to per-
sons at or below 60 percent of area median
income. This should help finance community
service facilities.
As you can see, there have been
regulatory-type developments in different
areas of the affordable housing industry.
Some of these developments are more helpful
than others, but all of them are worth noting.
Richard Michael Price, Esq., is a partner inthe law firm of Nixon Peabody, LLP inWashington, D.C. Nixon Peabody, LLP isCARH’s General Counsel.
’
Regulation Round-UpBy Richard Michael Price, Esq., Nixon Peabody LLP, CARH General Counsel
Special Thanks To Our Advisory Trustee Members
AcordiaEdward Goesel
E & A ServicesMark English
T & C ServicesJames Poehlman
Belmont Management Company, Inc.
Bruce Baird
Fentress, Brown, CPAs& Associates, LLC
Todd Fentress
Warrior RunDevelopment Corp.
Robert P. Yoder, Sr.
As was reported in the last issue of
CARH News, CARH has joined togeth-
er with other industry groups to
oppose the recent US Postal Service (USPS)
proposals that would require properties to
change the dimensions and location of mail-
boxes for existing multifamily complexes.
According to results of a recent member-
ship survey (representing over 46,901 units
that are owned or managed by CARH
members), CARH members are strongly
opposed to the proposed requirements for
retrofitting existing mailboxes. Based on typical
multifamily mailboxes in use today, the new
requirements that are being proposed by the
USPS will generally result in the need for 25%
or more additional wall area and as much as
10” or more additional wall depth or hallway/
lobby protrusion space for the same number
of tenant boxes.
CARH members’ responses showed that
replacing existing mailboxes to comply with
the proposed regulations would not be possi-
ble for at least 1,474 units due to a lack of
space available to accommodate the proposed
mailbox dimensions. In addition, extensive
levels of work, including claiming dwelling
unit space and/or replacing indoor boxes with
an outdoor kiosk, or extensive remodeling
construction, would be required for at least
20,911 units. Over 10,744 units would require
significant work such as relocating mailboxes
to another area and/or moving plumbing,
hvac, or electrical systems and/or using space
that is already being used for another
purpose, such as storage, utility, office space.
Only 4,772 units could comply with the
regulations with minimal amounts of work,
meaning space is available without using
space that is already being used for another
purpose—the space can also easily accommo-
date the same number of resident boxes and
additional parcel box(es) without significant
remodeling or construction.
As a result of the survey responses from
CARH members, CARH has continued to
work to oppose the proposed retrofitting
regulations alongside other industry groups
including the National Association of Home
Builders, the National Association of Realtors,
The National Multi Housing Council, the
National Association of Housing and
Redevelopment Officials and the National
Leased Housing Association.
In a June meeting with postal service
representatives, the aforementioned industry
groups emphatically communicated their
opposition to the proposed requirements for
retrofitting existing mailboxes. The groups
explained that they do not envision a compro-
mise on the retrofitting since it would be
impossible to develop criteria for changes on
existing mailboxes. An article published in the
July 19, 2003 edition of the Washington Post
recounts that “the groups said replacing the
estimated 16 million boxes in America’s
600,000 apartment buildings would cost more
than $2 billion. Besides the ‘massive’ cost, the
groups contend the changes would inconven-
ience millions of apartment residents as build-
ings underwent major rehabilitations. And
they claim the proposal could ‘force apartment
owners to run afoul’ of other federal laws
on accessibility for the disabled because
the bigger, deeper mailboxes would eat up
floor space.”
The postal service has cited security issues
such as identity theft, among others, as one of
the major reasons for these proposed changes.
A recent survey, of 2,000 building owners
(including at least 115 CARH members)
showed that “fewer than 1 percent of apart-
ment firms reported being aware of any
security problems.”
The proposed requirements to change the
mailbox dimensions in future multi-family
developments seem more palatable to industry
groups (including CARH members) as long as
the effective date for the regulations takes
into account development projects already
underway. Setting the effective date for sever-
al years out from the time that the regulations
are issued may be an acceptable solution. In
addition, the industry groups argue that any
proposed changes for new construction must
be practical solutions to the so-called security
issues cited by the postal service.
The committee is currently in the process
of finalizing a letter to the postal service to
further communicate the industry’s views on
the proposed regulations. CARH anticipates
that the letter will reflect CARH’s position, and
if that is the case, CARH plans to sign onto
that letter.
The postal service is planning to hold
another meeting with the industry groups
within the next several weeks to continue talks
on the proposed regulations. CARH will stay
involved to ensure that CARH-member input is
included in the committee’s actions. As more
news on this matter becomes available, CARH
will report it to members through broadcast
faxes and emails and through the CARH News
and CARH’s Broadcast E-mails. In the mean-
time, members may contact Lauren Block at
the CARH national office (703-837-9001) with
questions or comments.
|
CARH Continues to Oppose Proposed Retrofitting Requirements for MailboxesBy Lauren Block, Director of Marketing and Membership Services
CARH members’ responsesshowed that replacing existingmailboxes to comply with the
proposed regulations would notbe possible for at least 1,474 units
due to a lack of space available to accommodate the proposed
mailbox dimensions.
The industry groups argue thatany proposed changes for newconstruction must be practical
solutions to the so-called securityissues sited by the postal service.
The Community Development Financial
Institutions (CDFI) Fund published a New
Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) notice of
allocation availability in the July 18, 2003 issue
of the Federal Register, inviting applications
for the second round of the program.
As CARH members may know, the NMTC
Program allocates tax credit authority to
Community Development Entities (CDEs),
which in turn make investments in a variety of
businesses and activities in low-income com-
munities across America. The 2003 allocation
round marks the second round of allocations
made under the NMTC Program.
The Fund is making available $3.5 billion
in authority for investments in qualified
community development entities. You can
access the notice of allocation online at:
http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/
14mar20010800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/
2003/03-18213.htm. First-round NMTC
winners are eligible to compete in the
second round. The application deadline is
September 30.
In addition, the CDFI Fund is seeking
reviewers to assist in its review of applications
received under the NMTC program. The Fund
is seeking application reviewers with consider-
able expertise in community and economic
development finance, encompassing business
and real estate development, financing of
community-based organizations, the pooling
of community development loans for sale to
secondary markets, and financial counseling,
particularly for small businesses. Working in
teams but reading each application independ-
ently and without consultation, reviewers will
evaluate the applications using the CDFI Fund’s
established criteria, including such factors as
prior performance of the CDE in funding eligi-
ble activities; raising and managing investor
funds; capacity, skills, and experience of the
management team; proposed deployment of
allocated tax credit authority; and community
impact of the expected investments. For more
information on the application review criteria,
download the 2003 NMTC Allocation
Application from the Fund’s website at
www.cdfifund.gov.
The review process for the 2003 round will
begin in late October. A mandatory reviewer
orientation session will be held in Washington,
D.C. from October 28–October 30, 2003.
Reviewers are expected to free themselves
of all other work obligations during this orien-
tation session. Reviews of applications will
be completed using a web-based review
tool. Reviewers will be able to print applica-
tions at their preferred review venue for
reading convenience, and will submit their
evaluation forms to the Fund on-line. The
Fund will require reviewers to complete
all of their assigned reviews by Friday,
November 21, 2003.
The Fund intends to categorize applications
received by type of eligible activity, and to
assign applications to reviewers based upon
the expertise of the reviewer with that type
of activity. Depending on the volume of
applications in a given category, the CDFI
Fund expects each reviewer to read and score
12–15 applications, with the average review
time of 4 hours per application.
The CDFI Fund will provide non-Federal
government reviewers with a consulting fee
for participating. The consulting fee should be
approximately $2,000 per reviewer, but may
vary based upon the number of applications
reviewed. Reviewers will be provided with a
schedule of review completion deadlines as
part of the contractual agreement with the
CDFI Fund. The CDFI Fund will also provide all
reviewers (with the exception of non-local
Federal government employee reviewers) with
approximately $180 to cover all out-of-pocket
expenses (meals, travel—excluding common
carrier—and all other incidentals) incurred
during the 3-day orientation session and the
review period. Common carrier and lodging
costs will be paid for by the Fund, however,
all other costs incurred by the reviewers at the
hotel will be charged by the hotel to each
readers personal credit card.
The consulting fee and stipend will be paid
within two weeks after sign-off by the NMTC
staff that application review duties have been
completed.
The Fund intends to make its initial
selection of reviewers and alternates in early
September, with the possibility of adding addi-
tional reviewers in early October. Individuals
that are selected will be required to complete
detailed disclosure forms to uncover potential
conflicts of interest with the applications sub-
mitted. These forms will be made available to
reviewers at the time of their selection.
However, it is important to note that the
Fund’s conflict of interest policies will, at a
minimum, prohibit the following individuals
from serving as readers in the 2003 round:
• Employees or partners of organizations
(or affiliates of organizations) that have
applied under the 2003 round of the
NMTC Program;
• Employees or partners of organizations
(or affiliates of organizations) that have
indicated an intent to make NMTC quali-
fied equity investments in organizations
that have applied under the 2003 round
of the NMTC Program;
• Employees or partners of organizations
(or affiliates of organizations) that intend
to receive loans or investments from
organizations that have applied under the
2003 round of the NMTC Program, where
such loans or investments were funded by
the proceeds of NMTC qualified equity
investments; and
• Individuals that have financial interests
that are specifically contingent upon the
selection of an application for the receipt
of a New Markets Tax Credit allocation
(including consulting fees, bonuses or
prospective employment opportunities).
If you are interested in serving as a
reviewer, you must indicate your interest by
logging on to http://www.cdfifund.gov/
programs/nmtc/application/readers/
index.asp, completing a brief questionnaire
on-line, and submitting an electronic version
of your resume. You must submit these docu-
ments to the Fund by August 22, 2003 to
ensure consideration for the New Markets
Tax Credit review session. For more informa-
tion, please contact Lauren Block in the CARH
national office at 703-837-9001.
New Markets Tax Credit Update
CARH’s 2004 Mid Year Meeting CARH’s 2004 MidYear Meeting will be held from January 25–27, 2004at The Westin Kierland Resort and Spa in Scottsdale,Arizona. Register online at www.carh.org or contactthe national office staff at 703-837-9001 for moredetails.
Carolinas Council for Affordable Housing Annual Meeting The Carolinas Council forAffordable Housing (CCAH) 2003 Annual Meeting is scheduled for August 10–12, 2003 in Asheville,North Carolina. For further information, please contact Nancy Cross at 919-774-7713.
Florida CARH 2003 Annual Meeting Florida CARHwill hold it’s 2003 Annual Meeting in conjunctionwith USDA RD Florida State Meeting at the HotelOrlando North in Maitland, Florida from August19–21, 2003. Please contact Kate Scatko at 727-449-1182 for more information.
Organizational Meeting to Plan Colorado CARHChapter CARH will hold an organizational meetingto begin planning a new CARH chapter in Colorado.The meeting will be held on August 21, 2003 at theAdams Mark Hotel in Colorado Springs, Colorado.For more information, please contact Lauren Block atthe CARH national office at 703-837-9001.
CARH’s Basic Apartment Management Course The Council for Rural Housing & Development ofOhio (CRHDO) will be cosponsoring CARH’s BasicApartment Management Course from August20–21, 2003. For more details, contact theEducation Chairperson for CRHDO, Carie Lutes, at 330-325-1828 or [email protected].
Council for Rural Housing & Development ofOhio’s 2003 Annual Meeting The Council for RuralHousing & Development of Ohio (CRHDO) is holdingtheir 2003 Annual Meeting September 8–9, 2003 atthe Hilton Columbus, located in the town center ofEaston. They will be holding a golf outing and bikeouting at the Bent Tree Golf Course on September 8,followed by a 20th Anniversary sit-down dinner atthe hotel. For more details, contact the CRHDOPresident, Jeff Woda, at 614-459-3929 [email protected].
Minnesota CARH’s 2003 Annual MeetingMinnesota CARH’s 2003 Annual Meeting is sched-uled for September 22–23, 2003 at the GrandCasino in Hinkley, Minnesota. For more details,please contact Tara Falteysek, Executive Director of Minnesota CARH at 800-944-3078 [email protected].
Michigan Rural Development Council’s 2003Annual Meeting Michigan Rural DevelopmentCouncil’s (MRDC) 2003 Annual Meeting is scheduledfor September 23–24, 2003 and will be held at theHoliday Inn in Mount Pleasant, Michigan. For moreinformation, contact Melissa at 517-347-9665.
Housing Association of Mississippi’s 2003 AnnualMeeting The Housing Association of Mississippi(HAM) will hold their 2003 Annual Meeting at theSilver Star Resort and Casino in Philadelphia,Mississippi from October 15–17, 2003. Please contactOlis Price, HAM Executive Director, at 601-709-6000Ext. 135 for more details.
CARH Board of Directors Meeting CARH’s Boardof Directors will meet at the Ritz Carlton, PentagonCity in Arlington, Virginia on October 19–20, 2003.Please contact the national CARH office at 703-837-9001 for more details.
Rural Rental Housing Association of Indiana’sHousing Harvest 2003 Rural Rental HousingAssociation of Indiana and Rural Development ofIndiana will host their second annual joint meeting,Housing Harvest 2003 from October 21–22 inIndianapolis, IN, at the Sheraton North Hotel &Suites. For more information, including registration,visit www.rrhain.org or contact RRHAIN’s ExecutiveDirector, Amanda Simmons at 866.546.7742.
CARH’s 2004 Annual Meeting & LegislativeConference CARH’s 2004 Annual Meeting & LegislativeConference will be held June 6–8, 2004 at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, Pentagon City in Arlington,Virginia. For further information, please contact the national office staff at 703-837-9001.
CARH’s 2005 Mid Year Meeting-- The 25thAnniversary Celebration CARH’s 2005 Mid YearMeeting will be held January 23–25, 2005 at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in New Orleans, Louisiana. For further information, please contact the national office staff at 703-837-9001.
CARH’s 2005 Annual Meeting & LegislativeConference CARH’s 2005 Annual Meeting &Legislative Conference will be held June 5–7, 2005 atthe Ritz-Carlton Hotel, Pentagon City in Arlington,Virginia. For further information, please contact thenational office staff at 703-837-9001.
CARH Meetings
CARH’s Legislative Update
The first session of the 108th Congress
began on January 7, 2003. As a result
of the November 2002 elections,
party control of the United States Senate
changed hands from the Democrats to the
Republicans. In the United States House of
Representatives, control remained with the
Republicans. While the new fiscal year for the
federal government began on October 1,
2002, the Omnibus Appropriations bill for
Fiscal Year 2003 was not signed into law by
President George W. Bush until February 20,
2003. For information on the Fiscal Year 2003
funding levels for affordable housing pro-
grams of interest to CARH members, please
refer to the Press Release section of CARH’s
home page.
Legislation that was not enacted at the
end of the 107th Congress will have to be
reintroduced in the new Congress. In addition
to Fiscal Year 2004 funding levels for several
housing programs, support for enactment of
legislation that would restore owners’ prepay-
ment rights also remains a top priority.
The following chart reflects the issues of
concern to CARH. This chart will be updated
throughout the year to reflect other issues
that may come to the forefront during the
first session of the 108th Congress. Updated
information on these issues will also be sent
to CARH members through CARH’s Broadcast
Email system.
| |
Subject CARH Position
Section 515 ProgramBudget proposes $71 million for FiscalYear 2004. No new construction.
Oppose administration’s request. At least $120million for Fiscal Year 2004. This is the level sup-ported by the Senate Appropriations Committeefor Fiscal Year 2003.
Section 521 Rental AssistanceBudget proposes $740 million for FiscalYear 2004. Not sufficient should addi-tional funds be added for new construc-tion in the Section 515 program.
Oppose administration’s request. An additional$60 million should be added for Section 515new construction.
Section 538 Rural Rental HousingLoan Guarantee ProgramBudget proposes $100 million forFiscal Year 2004.
Support administration’s request.
Section 502 – Guarantee ProgramBudget proposes $2.725 billion forFiscal Year 2004.
Oppose administration’s request. At least $4.528 billion or Fiscal Year 2003 level.
Income Limits for Low IncomeHousing Tax Credit (LIHTC) properties
Support legislation which would allow statesto use the higher of area median income orstatewide income for the purpose of calcu-lating LIHTC application income limits.
New Housing Production Programs Support production programs.
Nonelderly Occupancy in ElderlyProjects
Extend Section 8 provision, which gives ownersoption of limiting non elderly to lesser of 10% toSection 515.
PrepaymentReinstate owners’ prepayment rights.
Permit prepayment in all cases whereowner’s original contract with RHS permitted prepayment.
Section 502 – Direct ProgramBudget proposes $1.366 billion forFiscal Year 2004.
Support administration’s request.
National Housing Trust Fund Support legislation that would establish anational affordable Trust fund. Fund wouldprovide for the development, rehab and preservation of housing.
9% Credit for RHS Properties Current Internal Revenue code should bechanged to permit the 9% Low IncomeHousing Tax Credit (LIHTC) for RHS proper-ties, similar to the treatment of HUDfinanced properties.
Overturn recent TAMs issued bythe IRS. Technical Advice Memoranda(TAMs) issued by the IRS would reverseindustry practices for including typicaldevelopment costs in basis.
Support legislation that would clarify that certaindevelopment costs typically included in tax crediteligible basis as generally accepted practices. Theconcept of “development cost basis” would besubstituted for “eligible basis” as currently existsin Section 42(d)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code.
Elimination of Double Taxation ofCorporate Dividends. Administrationproposes as part of it economic stimu-lus proposal to eliminate double taxa-tion of corporate dividends.
If enacted in its current form, the administration’s proposalto eliminate double taxation of corporate dividends couldnegatively impact several tax credits used for new con-struction and rehabilitation of existing housing in ruralareas throughout the country. Specifically, the Low IncomeHousing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program would be adverselyimpacted. The affordable housing crisis facing ruralAmerican would be worsened and the major economicstimulus that the LIHTC provides would be lost.
House Action Senate Action Conference Action
H.R. 2673 passed the full House on July 14,2003. $731.3 million approved for the programfor Fiscal Year 2004.
S. 1427 passed the Senate AppropriationsCommittee. $721.3 million approved for theprogram for Fiscal Year 2004.
N/A
H.R. 2673 passed the full House on July 14,2003. $116.5 million—includes funds for newconstruction—for the program for Fiscal Year2004.
S. 1427 passed Senate AppropriationsCommittee. $115.1 million—includes funds fornew construction—for the program for FiscalYear 2004.
N/A
H.R. 2673 passed the full House on July 14,2003. $100 million approved for the programfor Fiscal Year 2004.
S. 1427 passed the Senate AppropriationsCommittee. $100 million approved for theprogram for Fiscal Year 2004.
N/A
H.R. 2673 passed the full House on July 14,2003. $1.366 billion approved for the pro-gram in Fiscal Year 2004.
S. 1427 passed the Senate AppropriationsCommittee. $1.359 billion approved for theprogram in Fiscal Year 2004.
N/A
H.R. 284 introduced by Representatives AmoHoughton (R-NY) and Richard Neal (D-Mass.)would allow the income flexibility as support-ed by CARH.
S. 595 introduced by Senators Orrin Hatch(R-UT) and John Breaux (D-LA) would allowthe income flexibility as supported by CARH.
N/A
Discussions ongoing Discussions ongoing N/A
Discussions OngoingDiscussions Ongoing
N/A
H.R. 2673 passed the full House on July 14,2003. $2.725 billion approved for the pro-gram in Fiscal Year 2004.
S. 1427 passed the Senate AppropriationsCommittee. $2.725 billion approved for theprogram in Fiscal Year 2004.
N/A
Hearings being conducted on the budget. Hearings being conducted on the budget. N/A
H.R. 1102 introduced by RepresentativeBernard Sanders (I.VT) would support CARH’sposition.
S.1411 introduced by Senators LincolnChaffee (R.-RI) and John Kerry (D.-Mass)would support CARH’s position.
N/A
Discussions ongoing Discussions ongoing N/A
H.R. 1928, introduced by RepresentativesNancy Johnson (R-Conn.) and Charles Rangel(D-NY) would support CARH position.
Discussions Ongoing N/A
H.R. 2, the Jobs and Growth Tax Act of 2003, aspassed by the House would reduce both the dividendand capital gains tax rates of 15% for those in thehigher tax income tax brackets and to five percent forthose in the 15% and 10% tax brackets. The Houserejected the administration’s proposal on the elimina-tion of double taxation of corporate dividends.
S. 2, the Jobs and Growth Tax Act of 2003 aspassed by the Senate would allow a 50% exclu-sion for corporate dividend income in 2003, 100percent in 2004 through 2006 and then sunsetprovision.
Tax rates for both dividends and capital gainswill be cut to 15% for most taxpayers begin-ning this year. Taxes on dividends and capitalgains for individuals in lower income bracketsare reduced to five percent and eliminatedentirely in 2008.
| |
On June 19, 2003, the Housing and Community Opportunity
Subcommittee of the House Financial Services Committee held
a hearing on rural housing issues. This was the first hearing in
almost ten years that the subcommittee has held that focused solely on
rural housing. Betty Bridges, CARH’s 2003–2004 President testified on
behalf of CARH. Betty appeared on a panel with individuals represent-
ing the National Housing Law Project, the National Rural Housing
Coalition, Housing Assistance Council, the Mortgage Bankers and the
National Association of HomeBuilders. In her testimony Betty empha-
sized the following:
CARH members generally have had a productive working
relationship with the Rural Housing Service (RHS), but they have also
experienced a high degree of frustration at the lack of resources and
consistency from state to state. The RHS has not been fully able to
meet its intended purpose and goals because—
• It is organized in a manner that inhibits the sharing of information
and training, thereby greatly adding transaction costs and prevent-
ing many meritorious transactions;
• The agency is not adequately funded to either expand or maintain
its housing stock, and is unable to effectively coordinate with exist-
ing resources from other agencies; and
• RHS’s programs are subject to artificial statutory restrictions that
limit development and preservation.
Betty asked the
committee to enact
legislation that would
restore owners’ prepay-
ment rights and to
authorize additional
funding for the programs
administered by the
RHS as well as the
Department of Housing
and Urban Development.
In addition to Betty’s
full testimony, a copy of
CARH’s Aging Portfolio
Position Paper was also
entered into the perma-
nent committee record.
CARH would urge the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban
Affairs Committee to also hold rural housing hearings in the near
future. We hope that these hearings will lay the foundation for a
comprehensive rural housing bill to be considered by the Congress
in the 108th Congress.
House Subcommittee Holds Rural Housing Hearing
Betty Bridges, CARH’s 2003–2004 President,testifying on behalf of CARH in front of theHousing and Community OpportunitySubcommittee.
MINC Update (MINC, Management Agent Interactive
Network Connection)
January 1, 2003. Yes, that was the date RHS
has said you need to be MINC compliant. Are
you ready? Is your software provider ready?
You need to check on it.
SPAMYou have probably heard it and if you have an email address you proba-
bly get it, and are annoyed like the rest of us. Unfortunately, the August
2003 edition of Consumer Reports says it is not going to go away any-
time soon. In fact, their investigation turned up some very interesting
facts: a spammer can pay as little as $500 to cast over a million, yes,
that is a million emails for that price tag. Imagine the cost of printing
and direct mailing through the post office a million pieces ... now
you know why spam is so attractive to spammers. Additionally, they
only need a few takers of their message and it is well worth their
investment.
On a personal note, my inbox is so polluted with emails, last month
I asked my staff to explore an email filtering software. (At 50 spams a
day, it got to be way too intruding.)
What is the solution/answer? There isn’t a very good one. However,
here are the options available to you:
1. Your ISP (Internet Service Provider), if its one of the big ones, has
filtering software in their own network. As a matter of fact, AOL
already filters out billions a day.
2. You can purchase spam-blocking software. I am currently doing a 30
day trial with a product called “iHateSpam” by Sun Belt Software. So
far, it is helping. I don’t have full understanding of all its functionality,
and, therefore, am not in a position to recommend it. There are sev-
eral others out there: Stata Labs, Mailshell, Symantec, Blue Squirrel,
MailFrontier. Check out their websites if you want further information.
3. This month’s (July) Consumer Reports offers several suggestions to
reduce being added to spam lists. Avoid posting your email address
on public sites and using it in chat rooms. Refuse to patronize spam-
mers or even open their emails (that is the only way in the long run
they will stop). If your email program (MS Outlook) offers a “preview
pane” disable it to prevent a return message from going to its sender
validating you received it. Report spam to your ISP and forward it to
the FTC at [email protected] (uce = unsolicited commercial email). If you
receive a spam that promotes a brand, complain to the company.
And last, if you have broadband access, install a firewall. CU also
made one more interesting point, don’t click on the emails
“unsubscribe” link unless you trust the sender. It simply informs
the sender you are there and tells them you are a valid address
for future spam.
This is one of those situations we will have to work together to
control. Good luck, lets stamp out spam together!
Happy Computing!
Mitch Copman is President of CLASSIC Real Estate Systems, LLC,located in Norcross, Georgia. Mitch is also CARH’s 2003 Treasurer.
Tech-No-Helper!?By Mitch Copman, President CLASSIC Real Estate Systems, LLC
|
CARH has scheduled an organizational meeting for the rural
housing professionals who are interested in forming a state-
affiliation association in the state of Colorado. There is currently
no organized group specifically focusing on the needs of rural proper-
ties in Colorado, and it appears there is a need for more training and
services for those properties.
Joseph Deihl, RAHP and Executive Director of Washington CARH,
spoke at the Rural Development conference in Greeley, Colorado in
April. He also manned a booth with information on CARH membership.
Due to the response generated at that meeting, CARH will hold an
organizational meeting in August to provide a forum for owners,
managers, developers, nonprofits, and any other interested industry
professionals to meet and to formally organize a state association.
Colleen Fisher, CARH’s Executive Director, will attend the meeting
and will give an industry report from the national prospective. Lauren
Block, CARH’s Director of Marketing and Membership Services, will also
attend to provide more information on the benefits of CARH member-
ship and of forming a CARH chapter. Mr. Deihl, the co-chair of CARH’s
state associations committee, will give a “school of hard knocks”
presentation on starting a state association. The attendees will then
have time to discuss the administrative details of starting the chapter
and take the first few steps toward that goal.
Letters of invitation have been sent to all borrowers and manage-
ment companies in Colorado. In addition, anyone interested in
participating in the formation of this new CARH chapter is welcome
to attend the meeting. The meeting will take place on Thursday, August
21, 2003 at the Adams Mark Hotel (4 South Cascade Ave., Colorado
Springs, CO 80903; Hotel Phone: 719-473-5600) in Colorado Springs,
Colorado. If you would like to attend, please contact Lauren Block in
the national CARH office at 703-837-9001.
CARH looks forward to serving the needs of the rural housing
industry in Colorado!
CARH Plans Organizational Meeting in Colorado
Experienced legal counsel and consulting concerning Rural Development housing
There are few places where owners and developers of USDA financed housing can turn for knowl-
edgeable assistance, but Nixon Peabody’s Affordable Housing Practice Group and independent rural
housing consultant John Meyers have now teamed up to offer an array of services in the complex,
highly-regulated area of federally funded rural housing. From refinancing and prepayment to compli-
ance and planning, our extensive experience enables us to provide valuable services to investors, lenders,
owners, and managers of properties financed by the Rural Housing Service (formerly the Farmers
Home Administration).
• Coping with the complexities of rural housing finance
• Prepayment, preservation, and refinancing
• Regulatory compliance matters
• Adverse agency decisions and appeals
• Experience that counts
Richard Price • 202.585.8716 • [email protected] • www.nixonpeabody.comJohn Meyers • 502.451.2727 • [email protected] • www.johnmeyers.com
Turning plans into projects.
Launching officially in Washington, D.C.
at CARH’s 2003 Annual Meeting and
Legislative Conference, CARH and
Association Preferred ISP (APisp) began provid-
ing members a full range of Internet Services.
Inquiring members posed good questions that
we have chosen to share in this issue.
Question: What is APisp and exactly what do
you offer?
Answer: APisp is providing dial up Internet
access to CARH members, their properties and
tenants through out the United States and
Canada under the name Business Preferred ISP,
or www.BPisp.com. For just $16.95 per
month, CARH members will receive unlimited
local Internet access, 5 email accounts, 5
megabytes of personal Web space, 24/7 toll-
free customer assistance and technical support
and access to over 40 online news services.
National Internet access providers such as
AOL, CompuServe, MSN and Earthlink all cost
considerably more ($21.95 to $23.95) and do
not have the breadth of coverage in rural
areas that so many of our CARH members
need. Having surveyed properties nationwide,
we know we can offer service in at least 75%
of all rural areas.
Question: How do I get started?
Answer: Enrolling is as easy as a ten-minute
toll free phone call to (877) 204-2051, or for
those who already have internet access, a brief
sign up process on the Web by going to
www.BPisp.com and clicking on the “Sign Up
Now” star. There are several payment options
including the best value of an additional 5%
discount for a 1-year subscription, bringing the
monthly fee to $16.09.
Question: I have had my email address for
years and I am really attached to it. How can I
switch to BPisp.com and also keep my existing
email address with my old ISP. How do I
inform all my friends and associates of my
new email address?
Answer: In the case of free email services
such as Hotmail, Yahoo, Juno and others,
there is no need to change your email address.
If you choose to use Outlook or Outlook
Express as your email client, you may refer to
the “How To” tab on the www.BPisp.com
Web site for a detailed explanation of how to
set this up.
Should you choose to change your email
address to a “bpisp.com address”, consider
overlapping services for 30 days, during which
time you may send email notification to all
those listed in your address book. There
are some fun or professional postcards that
you may find on any of several services
which offer free greeting cards such as
www.bluemoon.com, www.americangreet-
ings.com or yahoo.com.
You may also create and add an “auto-
signature” to all of your correspondence
indicating “New Email Address” at the bottom
of each email which you send out. The
“Signature” function is found under the
“Tools” heading in Outlook.
In many cases, your ISP will offer the
service of “email only” for a nominal fee.
If your previous email address was used for
business, this may be quite worth the extra
$4.95/month. If you use an email client such
as Outlook or Outlook Express, you may auto-
matically forward your email into the same
email client. Most of the larger ISP’s like MSN
or AOL offer this option of a stand-alone email
account, or minimal usage service, which
includes email. You may make these arrange-
ments by calling a toll free number listed on
their sites or going to the link on their sites
which list the various plans available, selecting
the service choice that would best suite
your need.
Question: How do I cancel my old ISP?
Answer: Go to the “How To” tab found at
the top of all BPisp.com pages. Select this
question and voila! You will find a detailed list
of how to cancel the most frequently used
ISP’s with contact information for each.
As always, Kathleen Weaver is available inthe APisp office, 541-761-1007, to answer anyadditional questions or to enroll multipleproperties in one fell swoop. We are pleased tobe of service!
Q & A on CARH’s Newest Preferred Buyer ServiceBy Kathleen Weaver, APisp
Frequently AskedAPisp Questions
� What is APisp andexactly what do youoffer?
� How do I get started?
� I have had my emailaddress for years and I am really attached toit. How can I switch toBPisp.com and alsokeep my existing emailaddress with my old ISP.How do I inform all myfriends and associatesof my new emailaddress?
� How do I cancel my old ISP?
SUBSCRIPTION FORM
Are you ready to start receiving CARH’s Electronic AN Express?
Please complete the form below and mail or fax back to the national office with your payment of $225.
Make checks payable to the Council for Affordable and Rural Housing.
Company Name
Your Name
Phone Number
❍ I would like to receive the Electronic AN Express
Email Address
CARH is dedicated to making sure that you
receive the latest industry news as quickly as
possible. Therefore, we are proud to offer you a
subscription to CARH’s Electronic AN Express.
The AN Express is CARH’s subscription-based
publication that contains key Federal Register
excerpts from the Rural Housing Service, the
Department of Housing and Urban Development,
the Internal Revenue Service, the Federal Housing
Finance Board, and other agencies that impact
the industry. It also includes Rural Development
Administrative Notices; procedure manual changes;
and data sets such as the Income Limits, Difficult
Development Areas, and notices of funding
availability. With your electronic subscription, this
critical industry information is delivered to you
each day in one email. (On days that no relevant
material is released, you will receive no email.)
Your Electronic AN Express provides a list of the
relevant industry regulations and notices released
that same day. Items on the list are hyperlinks
so with one click, you can instantly view the
documents through your web browser. If you
prefer to keep ANs on file, simply print out the
documents you need.
It has never been easier or faster to access this
information. Searching for these documents on
your own is time-consuming. For a thorough
search, you can spend anywhere from a half an
hour to several hours per day, depending on the
amount of information released each day. Now,
with the Electronic AN Express, all the information
comes to you in one easy list for your review,
at your convenience. CARH does the hard work
for you: each day we search through thousands
of agency documents to present you with a
list of only the information that is relevant to
your business.
No other organization can get you this infor-
mation faster! And no other organization can get
you this information for a more affordable price!
An annual subscription price of $225, means that
your subscription will cost you about $19 per
month which is only about $4.70 per week—
less than $1 per day for this daily service!
Serving you Faster—CARH’s Electronic AN Express
On July 22, 2003, CARH, along with
nine other housing trade associations,
sent comments to the Department of
Housing and Urban Development (HUD)
regarding the agency’s Management Review
Form (HUD-9834). The joint comment letter
began with a recognition that the agency had
issued numerous policy and procedural
changes involving the Section 8 program and
that these changes necessitated an update to
the agency’s Form 9834. Changes to the form
have been anticipated by the industry for sev-
eral years. While the industry letter applauds
the agency for its efforts to change the form
so that it corresponds to industry practices, it
also outlines significant flaws and urges HUD
to take another look at not only the form
itself, but also the scope and purpose of a
management review.
In the past, HUD has relied heavily on
Form 9384 to review physical, financial and
occupancy practices of Section 8 housing
owners/managers as it had no reliable process-
es in place to accomplish such oversight. As a
result of the creation of the Real Estate
Assessment Center (REAC), HUD has made
significant advances in its ability to oversee
property operations. The formulation and
implementation of a standard physical inspec-
tion protocol as well as a process for the elec-
tronic submission and review of audited finan-
cial statements have significantly improved
HUD’s ability to monitor the performance of
properties that receive Section 8 project-based
subsidies. In addition, HUD created a
Departmental Enforcement Center to resolve
any problems identified as a result of the
physical or financial assessment conducted
by REAC. The agency has further refined its
data collection abilities with the development
of the Real Estate Management System
(REMS). Finally, the agency has revised
procedures for the administration of Section 8
(HAP) contracts.
These new tools that have been imple-
mented by the agency significantly reduces the
scope of the management review. HUD’s
revised form 9834 generally ignores the REAC
physical and financial reviews and the available
REMS data. In many respects, the manage-
ment review form requires gross duplication
of effort—not an efficient use of the
Performance-Based Contractor Administrators
or the HUD staff. The industry recommended
that the agency substitute an industry-devel-
oped form that formulated a few years ago
when the agency provided its first re-write of
the form. This form would separate compli-
ance issues from “best practice” issues and
provides for scoring on compliance issues.
CARH Submits Comments on HUD’S Management Review Form
Pull on your cowboy boots and your
ten-gallon hats! CARH is heading
“out west” to Scottsdale, Arizona for
the 2004 mid year meeting, and you won’t
want to it miss it!
The meeting
will be held from
January 25–27,
2004 at The
Westin Kierland
Resort and Spa
in Scottsdale,
Arizona, which is
located in north-
east Phoenix,
adjacent to Kierland Commons, a 38-acre
specialty retail development featuring shops,
boutiques and restaurants. The 735-room
resort offers a multitude of civilized charms—
from exceptional dining and entertainment to
a spa that honors the healing cultures of old
Arizona to 27-holes of Troon-managed
world-class golf at the Kierland Golf Club.
At the end of the day, Westin’s signature
Heavenly Bed® and Heavenly Bath® await—
just two of the special touches that have
earned Westin the #1 rating in the upper-
upscale category of Business Travel News
“2001 Survey of Top Hotel Chains.” Rest-
assured that your will be in good hands at
The Westin Kierland Resort and Spa, the
only Westin property in the Phoenix/
Scottsdale region.
Phoenix has garnered well-earned praise
as one of the world’s top five golf destina-
tions. As the sixth-largest city in the United
States, with nearly 1.3 million residents,
Phoenix offers a multitude of cultural and
recreational activities.
Greater Phoenix gives visitors the opportu-
nity to enjoy countless activities ranging from
outstanding museums, galleries, performing
arts, fine dining, horseback riding and cowboy
shoot-outs. The climate makes outdoor
activities, such as desert jeep tours, hot-air
ballooning, and water recreation a way of life.
Not to mention, scenic Arizona destinations
like the Grand Canyon and Sedona are just
easy day trips away!
You can register for the meeting online at
www.carh.org to take advantage of the early
registration discounts. All CARH members will
also receive a registration form and more
details about the meeting in an August
mailing from the CARH national office.
CARH’s 2004 Mid Year Meeting: Westward Bound!By Lauren Block, Director of Marketing and Membership Services, CARH
The Westin Kierland Resort and Spa, site ofCARH’s 2004 Mid Year Meeting.
As a result of the elections held at the 2003 Annual Meeting and
Legislative Conference, CARH welcomes two new members to
the board of directors.
Rodney Dudley was elected to fill the second year of the first term
of a board member who was elected for an executive officer position.
After his first year, Mr. Dudley will then be eligible for two two-year
terms. Mr. Dudley is the Vice President and fifty-percent owner of
Intervest Development Corporation, which is located in Madison,
Mississippi. Intervest Development Corporation has developed over 40
properties (1,500 units) in the last ten years, primarily through acquisi-
tion/rehab. They manage 57 properties, and about eighty percent of
their work is with Rural Development. Mr. Dudley is also the President
of the Housing Association of Mississippi, Inc. (HAM) which is the pri-
mary liaison between USDA Rural Development and the owners and
managers in the state. HAM is also a state-affiliated CARH chapter. In
addition, Mr. Dudley is also on the board of directors of the Mississippi
Multifamily Council, an arm of the Homebuilders Association of
Mississippi. Prior to his position at Intervest, Mr. Dudley was a CPA
for 20 years and partner in a regional CPA firm, specializing in real
estate taxation.
Kenyon Salo was elected to serve two two-year terms on the board.
Mr. Salo is the General Manager of SK Companies, CEO of SK
Management, CEO of SK Maintenance and owner’s representative of
Rural Development section 515 properties in five states: Vermont,
Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut and New Hampshire, where
SK Companies is based. He represents 1,130 units of Rural
Development Section 515 properties layered with four percent Low-
Income Housing Tax Credits. Mr. Salo is also on the board of directors
of the Rural Rental Housing Association of Southern New England
(RRHASNE), a CARH state-affiliated chapter.
In addition, CARH salutes Bruce Baird, of Belmont Management
Company, Inc. in Buffalo, New York, for his service on the executive
committee. Mr. Baird served as the secretary for five years. Following
Mr. Baird’s retirement, Bill Shumaker, of Provident Management, Inc.,
in Mansfield, Ohio, was elected to serve on the executive committee
as the secretary.
CARH Welcomes Two New Board Members
National Family Housing Site Manager of the Year:Sherrie PerkinsSherrie Perkins began her career in Rural
Development properties with Investors
Management Company of Valdosta, Georgia,
in May of 2000. She managed two multifamily
complexes and one elderly complex totaling
115 units. In October 2002, two additional
multifamily complexes were added to her
responsibilities, making her overseer of 163
units. All five complexes remain at 90 percent
or greater occupancy. She was promoted to
Regional Property Manager in October 2002
and now oversees 20 complexes in Georgia
and one in Florida.
Ms. Perkins is married to Anthony Perkins
and lives in Lake Park, Georgia. They have four
sons ranging in age from 28 to 15 years old.
She enjoys time with family, bowling, loves
animals, and is an avid reader.
National Farm Labor Housing Site Manager of the Year:Carmen RoquetaCarmen Roqueta joined Everglades
Community Association in 1993 as its initial
Tenant Resource Liaison to bolster services to
migrant and seasonal farmworkers then
residing in Miami-Dade county’s largest labor
camp. One year later, those 400 units were
completely destroyed by Hurricane Andrew,
and Ms. Roqueta was responsible for helping
over 300 families move across town to the
hurricane shelter. Today, Carmen serves as
Director of Tenant Services managing 448
single-family, duplex, and townhouse apart-
ments, 66 mobile homes and 80 beds for
“unaccompanied” or “single” workers. It is a
project unmatched in its on-site services: it
has a community health center, a community
center, a 10-acre park, three childcare centers
and 10,000 square feet of neighborhood retail
space. The sense of community shared by its
nearly 2,250 residents makes it an outstanding
place to live.
Carmen Roqueta has faced tasks that few
property managers in the nation have faced.
She has twice moved over 300 families across
town as new rental housing replaced the hur-
ricane shelters. She has converted an adjacent
20-year old PHA-managed site into one that is
now physically and socially integrated into
Everglades Village. She has helped tenants
conform to new rules, new leases and new
oversight. She has leased up two new sites of
239 and 143 units. But most importantly,
Carmen is the person most responsible for
the sense of community that permeates
“Everglades Farmworker Village.” Under her
leadership, ECA set out fair and firm tenant
rules and believes migrant and seasonal farm-
workers possess the strength to meet them.
Her personal philosophy is to “manage to
families strengths not their weaknesses”
and to “manage to the hopes of 98% of
our tenants not to the cynicism of the
remaining 2%.” The results are self-evident.
Once prospective tenants were fearful of
ECA’s tough love style and rules, but today
tenants believe that firm and fair rules
make a more livable neighborhood. Current
tenants spread the word about their beloved
community and constantly recruit new
residents through a word-of-mouth
marketing campaign.
Site Managers continued from page 4
WHEN YOU NEED FLOORCOVERINGS, CALL SHERWIN-WILLIAMS. AND MAKE IT QUICK.
www.sherwin-williams.com
SHERWIN-WILLIAMS HAS A GREAT NEW WAY TO HELP YOU TURN
APARTMENTS QUICK. HERE, LET US LAY IT OUT FOR YOU.
You know we have coast-to-
coast locations and coatings to
help turn units faster, but did you
know we also have the largest coast-to-coast network
of wholesale floorcovering centers? That means a com-
plete selection of popular brand name carpet,
vinyl and tile. All of which can be purchased,
delivered and professionally installed with one simple
phone call. Make it right now. Call 1-800-524-5979
for the location nearest you. Together with our com-
petitive pricing, trained representatives, helpful credit
programs and centralized billing services, you’ll find
that Sherwin-Williams has really got this whole
floorcovering thing down.
Floorcovering Centers
services of a renowned expert in the Section
515 arena.
After the excitement of Monday night’s
auction, attendees welcomed Tuesday’s more
abbreviated schedule. Three sessions were
offered Tuesday morning. During “Changes in
the Tax Credit World: Business In 2003,” Rick
Goldstein, Nixon Peabody, LLP and John
Hughes, National Council of State Housing
Agencies shared with attendees the implica-
tions of the recently enacted Jobs and Growth
Tax Act of 2003 and the behind the scenes
maneuvering not to include the administra-
tion’s dividend tax proposal by CARH, a
coalition of housing groups and key members
of Congress. The possibility of another com-
prehensive tax bill this year was discussed,
as were the status of other tax proposals of
the administration, including the single-family
housing tax credit and tax proposals by
members of Congress.
“Serving Seniors: Meeting the Needs of
Older Low-Income Renters,” featured Michael
Reardon, Esq. and Kate Sullivan, Esq., both of
Nixon Peabody LLP. Like the Section 515 pro-
gram, other federal loan programs provide
financing and subsidy to house seniors.
Michael relayed some recent resyndication
transactions involving the Section 202 pro-
gram, the major seniors housing program.
Kate discussed recently revised rules which
will hopefully facilitate non-profit and for-
profit participation in the program.
Non-profit and for-profit owners continue
to grapple with preservation challenges. The
session “Preservation Activities” explored
preservation-related activities and pending
transactions. The speakers who included
Linda Goldstein, Esq., Goulston & Storrs; Pat
Sheridan, Rural Housing Service; Richard Price,
Esq., Nixon Peabody, LLP; Patrizia Bailey,
AIMCO; and Norm McCloughlin, Kitsap
County Consolidated Housing Authority,
discussed the underlying challenges they have
all experienced which unnecessarily complicat-
ed preservation transactions. In order for the
agency to begin to successfully implement
procedures that will preserve the existing port-
folio, the transfer process must be streamlined
and the agency must be willing to look at
financing options currently not in place but
are everyday practices in the real estate and
mortgage communities.
CARH’s closing luncheon at the hotel
honored the RHS 2002 National Mangers of
the Year. Unfortunately, due to the length of a
congressional hearing, Representative Robert
Ney (R. OH), Chair of the Housing and
Community Opportunity Subcommittee who
was to be one of two keynote speakers, was
not able to attend our luncheon. However, in
his place was Clinton Jones, Senior Republican
Staff to the House Financial Services
Committee. Our other keynote speaker
Representative Mike Ross (D-AK), a member
of the House Financial Services Committee
was able to attend the luncheon. Mr. Ross is
quite familiar with rural issues in that a large
section of his district and surrounding districts
are rural. He praised the site managers of the
year for their dedication to the affordable
housing industry.
From the 18,000 properties in the RHS
portfolio, each state Rural Development office
selected candidates to submit to an RHS
appointed panel, which included Lauren
Block, CARH’s Director of Marketing and
Membership Services, for consideration of the
national awards. The panel selected four
award recipients. The 2002 awards went to
the following individuals: Elderly Housing—
Brenda Witcher, Martins Landing II Apartments
(Harris Brown Management), Martinsville,
Virginia and Cathy Wortham, Windsor Place
Apartments (Sun Belt Management)
Wedowee, Alabama; Family Housing—Sherrie
Perkins, Arbor Trace Apartments, Brookhaven
Apartments, Francis Lake Apartments
(Investors Management), Lake Park, Georgia;
and Farm Labor Housing—Carmen Roqueta,
Everglades Village (Everglades Community
Association), Florida City, Florida. (See page
4 of this issue of CARH News for further
descriptions of these outstanding managers’
accomplishments.)
Despite the official conclusion of the
meeting following the luncheon, many CARH
members went to Capitol Hill and met with
their members of Congress and staff and dis-
cussed CARH’s legislative priorities, particularly
increased funding for all affordable housing
programs. In case you missed this year’s meet-
ing, the 2004 meeting will again be held at
the Ritz-Carlton, Pentagon City in Arlington,
Virginia, on June 6–8, 2004. As indicated earli-
er, our opening reception will be held at the
world famous International Spy Museum in
Washington, D.C. You will not want to miss
next year’s meeting. Mark your calendars now!
Annual Meeting continued from page 6
George Washington’s Mount Vernon estate, site of the opening reception for CARH’s annual meeting.
the SPECTRUM companiesSPECTRUM ENTERPRISES
SPECTRUM SEMINARS INC.
Compliance Monitoring, Consulting and Trainingfor the Low Income Housing Tax Credit
contact Keith Garovoy, Director
[email protected](207) 767-8000
LA
YO
UT
AN
D P
ROD
UC
TIO
N B
Y A
LLIA
NT
STU
DIO
S, F
AIR
FAX
, VA
CARHnewsCOUNCIL FOR AFFORDABLE AND RURAL HOUSING 121 N. Washington Street, Suite 301Alexandria, VA 22314
(703) 837-9001 voice(703) 837-8467 fax
WEB SITE http://www.carh.orgE-MAIL [email protected]
Address Service RequestedFirst Class Mail
Presorted First Class
U.S. PostagePAID
Permit No. 5659Merrifield, VA
PRESIDENTBetty Bridges
Third Renaissance, Inc.
VICE PRESIDENTBob Rice, RAHECrest Realty, Inc.
SECRETARYBill Shumaker
Provident Management, Inc.
TREASURERMitchell A. Copman
Classic Real Estate Systems, LLC
CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARDRobert P. Yoder, Sr., RAHE
Warrior Run Development, Inc.
PAST PRESIDENTRay Huff, RAHE
Auburn Realty
BUDGET COMMITTEE CHAIRMitchell A. Copman
Classic Real Estate Systems, LLC
EDUCATION COMMITTEE CHAIRDeneen Mulligan
Quantum Management, Inc.
HOUSING AUTHORITY COMMITTEE CO-CHAIRS
Norman McLoughlinKitsap County Housing Authority
Perry O’Malley, RAHPButler County Housing Authority
INITIATIVES COMMITTEE CO-CHAIRSMark English
E & A Services, Inc.Tom Flynn, RAHE
Flynn Management & Development Corps.
LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE CHAIRPamela Borton, RAHE
Southwind Management Services, Inc.
MANAGEMENT COMMITTEECO-CHAIRS
Sandi SampsonSun Belt Management, Inc.
Kevin FlynnFlynn Management and Development Corps.
OWNER COMMITTEE CHAIRJim Poehlman, RAHET & C Associates, S.C.
STATE ASSOCIATION COMMITTEE CO-CHAIRS
Joe Diehl, RAHPWashington State CARH
Arrice FaughtAlabama CARH
BOARD OF DIRECTORSKatie Alitz
Boston Capital
Amy Brown, CPAFentress, Brown, CPAs & Associates, LLC
Rodney DudleyIntervest Development Corp.
Mark EnglishE & A Services, Inc.
Tashia Hale Jotar Management Services, Inc.
Mary-Heitt Doyle, RAHE National Management Corporation
Bob MargolisT.M. Associates, Inc.
Perry O’Malley, RAHP Butler County Housing Authority
Joseph G. PoehlerJoseph G. Poehler & Associates
Kenyon SaloSK Companies
Sandi Sampson Sun Belt Management, Inc.
Stephen N. Singleton Royal American Management, Inc.
Michael Sivia A. F. Evans Development
Peter Talbot Michel Associates, Ltd.
Mark ValentiValenti Held Property Management
Ex-Officio MemberTravis A. Miller
The Miller Companies
NATIONAL OFFICE STAFFEXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Colleen M. Fisher
EXECUTIVE ASSISTANTEppie Marecheau
DIRECTOR OF MARKETING AND MEMBERSHIP SERVICES
Lauren E. Block
MEETINGS AND SPECIAL EVENTS CONSULTANT
Anne R. Stuart
GENERAL COUNSELNixon Peabody
LEGISLATIVE REPRESENTATIVERaymond K. James, Esq.
Coan & Lyons
Top Related