On March 23, the President signed the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2018 (H.R. 1625), a $1.3 trillion dollar spending bill that funds the federal government through September 30, 2018. In addition to preventing a government shutdown, this omnibus spending bill incorporated the following key provisions that help to strengthen and expand the Low Income Housing Tax… Continue Reading
The Maryland Affordable Housing Coalition (MAHC) held its annual Housing Day in Annapolis today. The event brings together over 200 affordable rental housing advocates to inform legislators of the value of affordable housing and funding needs to continue to develop and rehabilitate affordable housing in Maryland. Housing Day also provides the opportunity to hear from State… Continue Reading
As we know, the President has signed what was originally titled Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, the most significant overhaul to the U.S. Tax Code since 1986. The President signed the Act into law after the first of the year in order to avoid some automatic spending cuts. In its final form, this Tax Code overhaul… Continue Reading
As we head into the fourth quarter, HUD sent out an e-mail reminder Friday afternoon about flexibility when establishing Housing Assistance Payments (HAP) contract effective dates in Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) transactions. The January 2017 revision to the RAD Notice at Section 1.13(B)(5) gives Project Owners the ability to establish a HAP contract effective date… Continue Reading
On September 11, 2017, HUD published a Notice designating the 2018 Qualified Census Tracts (QCTs) and Difficult Development Areas (DDAs) for the Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program. Qualified Census Tracts are those areas where either (1) 50% or more of the households have incomes below 60% of the area median gross income or (2)… Continue Reading
At the National Housing Conference 2017 Annual Policy Symposium on June 9, 2017, HUD Secretary Ben Carson delivered the keynote address and participated in a Q&A session with Chris Estes, President and CEO of NHC. While much of the keynote address focused on homeownership issues, remarks made during the Q&A included such topics as the… Continue Reading
Last week at the annual meeting of the American Bar Association Forum on Affordable Housing and Community Development (Forum), Michael Novey, Associate Tax Legislative Counsel, Office of Tax Policy, U.S. Department of the Treasury, encouraged the Tax Credit Equity and Financing Committee of the Forum to consider submitting a request to the IRS for priority… Continue Reading
After legislation to repeal the Affordable Care Act was pulled from the House floor last Friday, news headlines across the country began reporting that tax reform is next on the Trump Administration’s agenda. As noted in our prior blog post, tax reform that changes the corporate tax rate, the tax-exempt bonds program and the tax-credit… Continue Reading
We are excited that Maia Shanklin Roberts has joined Ballard Spahr LLP and our Housing Plus team. Maia’s background is in community development. She worked with the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development and the Citywide Coordinating Committee on Youth Violence Prevention in Washington, D.C. Maia is looking forward to bringing her keen insights about community development… Continue Reading
In an announcement on January 12th, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) published a significant third revision to the Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) Notice (PIH 2012-32/ H 2017-03 Rev-3). According to HUD, the RAD notice was revised in order to maintain the increased pace of RAD transactions in a manner that is… Continue Reading
After several years of litigation, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas recently dismissed disparate impact claims filed against the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA) in the fair housing case, The Inclusive Communities Project, Inc. v. The Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs. The Inclusive Communities Project (ICP)… Continue Reading
Congress recently passed a short-term extension to keep the EB-5 Regional Center Program (commonly known as the EB-5 Program or the Immigration Investor Program) from expiring. The EB-5 program adds versatility to the financing options available to affordable housing, and can be used with certain Low Income Housing Tax Credits. The extension of this program… Continue Reading
Last week, HUD’s Office of Multifamily Housing Programs announced Thomas R. Davis as the new Director of the Office of Recapitalization. Mr. Davis will oversee the Office’s efforts to further financial stability and viability for the preservation and recapitalization of affordable housing. The Office’s key programs include Mark-to-Market (M2M), Section 236 Preservation, Senior Preservation Rental… Continue Reading
On May 5, 2015, Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Pat Roberts (R-KS) introduced the “Improving the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Rate Act” (S. 1193), which would create a permanent 9% minimum low-income housing tax credit rate for non-tax-exempt bond-financed new buildings or substantially rehabilitated buildings, and a permanent 4% minimum rate for acquisition credits. The… Continue Reading
Would private developers build affordable housing if there were no government subsidies? Rep. Mike Capuano (D-MA) and his colleagues explored that question and other topics during a House Financial Service Subcommittee hearing held last Thursday on private sector participation in affordable housing programs. The hearing covered a wide range of housing programs that help leverage… Continue Reading
Last week, HUD has announced a proposed rule to implement protections arising under the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2103 (VAWA). The reauthorization added a number of programs covered by VAWA, including: HOME Investment Partnerships program for rental housing; Section 202 supportive housing for the elderly; Section 236 Rental Program; Section 811 supportive housing for people… Continue Reading
In the last few years, we have seen an increase in the number of multifamily housing projects being sold at the completion of the 15-year low-income housing tax credit compliance period. Strong rental demand in many areas of the country and low financing rates have created a favorable market for selling these types of projects.… Continue Reading
As in prior years, the Obama administration’s FY 2016 budget includes a number of impactful, and generally positive, tax credit proposals. With respect to the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC), the budget retains many of last year’s proposed modifications, and adds a new proposal to remove the population cap for Qualified Census Tract designations. Specifically, the… Continue Reading
In an interview with Affordable Housing Finance, Amy M. McClain (one of our bloggers!) was among industry leaders interviewed about the impact of HUD’s Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) program. While the article profiled the Cambridge (MA) Housing Authority and its closing of the first tranche of a portfolio-wide conversion, the article also assessed the prospects for RAD. Amy offers insights… Continue Reading
The Senate passed the “Tax Increase Prevention Act of 2014” (H.R. 5771) on Tuesday night just before Congress adjourned for 2014. As Molly Bryson described in her December 5, 2014 post following the House’s passage of the bill, the tax extenders package provides a one-year retroactive extension of certain tax provisions that expired at the… Continue Reading
On Wednesday, December 3, 2014, the House of Representatives passed a one-year tax extender bill that will shore up two key housing and community development programs. The Tax Increase Prevention Act of 2014 (H.R. 5771) (the “Act”), passed 378 to 46, extends a favorable provision in the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (“LIHTC”) program, by providing… Continue Reading
Yesterday Ballard Spahr held its 9th annual National Housing Symposium in Washington, D.C.. The theme of the Symposium was “Beyond the Horizon: Housing and Community Development Strategies for the Future”. Government officials, investors, developers, lenders, and other housing professionals spent the day discussing affordable housing issues. To give a flavor of what was discussed, below is a… Continue Reading
At yesterday’s Housing Authority Summit, representatives from housing authorities, HUD’s Office of Public Housing Investments and RAD teams, housing legislative advocates, key industry financial and advisory consultants and members of Ballard Spahr’s Housing Group gathered for a day of informative and engaging dialogue around key issues impacting housing authorities. Some things heard at the Summit… Continue Reading
On November 5, 2014, the Philadelphia office of Ballard Spahr LLP hosted a lively and informative discussion of Tax Credit Hot Topics. The panel, moderated by Ballard Spahr partner Monique DeLapenha, included representatives of all aspects of a tax credit transaction, providing each unique perspective on a variety of important areas in the tax credit… Continue Reading
