HUD Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) Protection Package

This new product helps owners comply with the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013 (VAWA) Final Rule—with new regulatory requirements affecting owners participating in HUD’s Multifamily rental assistance programs. The customized package will include all required components of a VAWA Policy, including: new TSP language, new required tenant notices and forms related to VAWA, and an Emergency Transfer Plan. Save yourself the headache and hassle—let us do the legwork for you!

Tenant Selection Plans (TSP)

Continuously incorporating changing regulations into eligibility determinations is stressful. Rest assured your screening criteria include all required elements. Our team will create a customized TSP to fit your property’s needs and current programmatic screening and eligibility requirements.

Tenant File Forms

Accurate eligibility determinations and recertification tasks start with well-developed, succinct tenant file forms. Do your forms accomplish verification tasks efficiently and compliantly? Have they been updated to incorporate new requirements? If not, this product can save you time and stress during your next MOR.

Housing Application & Recertification Questionnaire

A thorough application is key to accurate eligibility determination and identification of a household’s financial circumstances to correctly calculate tenant rent. If you have not updated the content and/or format of your Application and/or Recertification Questionnaire within the last year, now is the time to revisit the questions on this key document. Do not get caught off guard with audit findings resulting from missing required elements on this crucial document for the tenant file. 

Limited English Proficiency (LEP) Analysis & Language Access Plans (LAP)

Federal Law requires housing professionals provide equal access and effective communication to applicants/residents that do not speak, write or understand English. How do you track the language diversity in your area? What alternative methods do you use to communicate verbally and in writing with LEP persons? Utilizing a four-factor analysis, our team will identify any weaknesses in your communication protocol and customize written procedures for staff to follow to identify and adapt appropriately during future LEP encounters. Next, we can incorporate valuable resources and cost effective methods into a Language Access Plan that will ensure access to your programs and effective communication with a diverse community of applicants and residents.

Resident Handbooks (House Rules)

Resident Handbooks protect both landlords and residents by establishing parameters and expectations for both parties to follow. One required element of a Resident Handbook is House Rules – a required lease attachment of the HUD Model Lease. A comprehensive set of rules supports owners in legal proceeding while incomplete policies may significantly hamper an owner’s ability to defend their position. Whether your community rules need minor polishing or significant topic expansion, our team can design and draft this fundamental document for you, incorporating in our best practices learned through real world experience.

Affirmative Fair Housing Marketing Plans

You must review your property’s HUD Affirmative Fair Housing Marketing Plan (AFHMP, Form HUD-935.2A) every five years. If your property’s community demographics, marketing methods or ownership/managing entities have changed, your plan must be revised. These revisions require owners to gather census information, pinpoint specific advertising methods and provide proof of applicable Fair Housing training to gain approval. Our team can prepare and submit the AFHMP plan for you! Or, we can assist your staff with the demographic research and marketing assessment.

Written Preventative Maintenance (PM) Plan

When routinely implemented, Preventative Maintenance (PM) can preserve reliability and extend the useful life of equipment, reduce the number of on-demand maintenance word orders and improve customer satisfaction. Our PM Plan is an easy to use tool with dozens of detailed PM schedules and PM checklists for managers and maintenance to quickly implement at the property. Our PM Plan covers unit inspections, HVAC systems, plumbing, lighting, roofs, grounds, playground and more.

Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Plan

Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is an environmentally sensitive approach to pest management that incorporates tasks to effectively prevent the presence or infestation of roaches, rodents, bed bugs and other pests in your apartment community without the excessive use of pesticides. Our IPM Plan establishes an ongoing monitoring and record-keeping system for maintenance staff to follow, as well as waste         management, food storage and housekeeping techniques for residents to use to prevent infestation.

Reasonable Accommodation/Modification Policies

The Fair Housing Act requires that housing providers accept written and oral requests for Reasonable Accommodations from persons with disabilities. These requests may involve modifying rules, policies, practices, procedures and/or services to afford a person with a disability an equal opportunity to use and enjoy the housing services offered. A solid Reasonable Accommodation/Modification Policy is a must to ensure your staff address any accommodation requests fairly and appropriately. This product includes a Request Form to document all incoming requests, as well as an Assistive Animal Policy embedded within the policy.

EIV Policies & Procedures

HUD Properties Only 

Written EIV policies are a HUD requirement. Our team will customize written EIV policies and procedures for your property that meet all HUD security and regulatory requirements. The document will serve as detailed leasing staff procedures to ensure appropriate use of HUD’s EIV system and will establish a consistent review and filing schedule for staff to follow.