House Financial Services Committee Passes Housing Preservation and Tenant Protection Act of 2010 – August 2, 2010
Please click here for more information.
Text of the Act can be found here.
Dept. of Energy Announces New Regulations to Facilitate Weatherizing Subsidized Affordable Housing – January 25, 2010
From the National Housing Trust – The Department of Energy (DOE) today announced new regulations that will help improve the energy efficiency and livability of HUD, Low Income Housing Tax Credit, and USDA assisted apartments by minimizing barriers to the participation of these homes in the Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP). As outlined in a final rule released today, DOE has concluded that hundreds of thousands of subsidized apartments meet certain WAP eligibility requirements without the need for further evaluation or verification by the state WAP administering agency or local subgrantee. In doing so, DOE has significantly reduced the burden of evaluating WAP applications for these multifamily properties.
The National Housing Trust has prepared a summary of DOE’s final rule. Click here for the summary.
The final rule amends the eligibility provisions of the Weatherization Assistance Program so that certain properties identified by HUD and USDA will be considered automatically income eligible for the program without further evaluation and verification.
In addition, DOE has clarified that administering state agencies can take into consideration benefits other than reduced utility costs when ensuring that weatherization benefits accrue primarily to tenants. As a model, DOE cited the State of Washington’s policy recognizing that preserved low-income housing, added comfort, and environmental health benefits as a result of weatherization upgrades can be considered direct benefits to tenants. This guidance will help ensure that low-income families who do not directly pay utilities have an opportunity to participate in the program.
The Weatherization Assistance Program received $5 billion under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA)- a 20-fold funding increase over previous years.
Urban Land Institute Releases Report on Housing and Transportation Costs in Greater Boston – April 12, 2010
Please click here to download the report.
Bay State Foreclosure Deeds Continue To Climb In July; Petitions Drop 20 Percent (Banker & Tradesman) – August 31, 2010
More than 1,200 foreclosures were recorded in Massachusetts in July, a near 80 percent increase from the same month in 2009, while foreclosure petitions decreased by more than 20 percent, according to The Warren Group, publisher of Banker & Tradesman.
In July, 1,243 foreclosure deeds were recorded, up from 692 in July 2009. Foreclosure deeds declined from a month ago, when there were 1,315 completed foreclosures. The Bay State is on track to outpace foreclosure activity from the past two years. A total of 8,676 foreclosure deeds have been completed this year, up 60 percent from the same period last year. There were 12,430 and 9,269 foreclosure deeds in 2008 and 2009, respectively.
Please click here for the full article from Banker & Tradesman.
Coalition for Senior Housing Releases Letter on Group Adult Foster Care Program – September 7, 2010
Please click here to read the letter.
Economic Contributions of Housing Permitted through Chapter 40B (UMass Donahue Institute) – September 15, 2010
BOSTON, MA – September 15, 2010 – The affordable housing law has been a boon to the Massachusetts economy, according to a new study released today by the University of Massachusetts Donahue Institute. In the last decade, nearly 22,000 homes have been built under the affordable housing law, also known as Chapter 40B. These homes have resulted in a total of 47,700 jobs and $9.25 billion in economic activity, according to the study.
To read the full press release, click here.
To read the full report, click here.