BROADCAST EMAIL –
Regulatory Update

October 3, 2014

1)  Final Fair Market Rents (FMR) for the Housing Choice Voucher Program and Moderate Rehabilitation Single Room Occupancy Program for Fiscal Year 2015

Today, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) published Notice in the Federal Register of the Final Fair Market Rents for the Housing Choice Voucher Program and Moderate Rehabilitation Single Room Occupancy Program Fiscal Year 2015.  The new FMRs became effective October 1, 2014.

The primary use of FMRs are to determine payment standard amounts for the Housing Choice Voucher program, to determine initial renewal rents for some expiring project-based Section 8 contracts, to determine initial rents for housing assistance payment contracts in the Moderate Rehabilitation Single Room Occupancy program and to serve as a rent ceiling in the HOME rental assistance program.

2)  Statutorily Mandated Designation of Difficult Development Areas (DDAs) and Qualified Census Tracts (QCTs) for 2015

HUD also published in today's Federal Register a Notice of Statutorily Mandated Designation of Difficult Development Areas and Qualified Census Tracts for 2015 for purposes of the low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC). LIHTC developments in DDAs or QCTs are eligible for as much as 30 percent more LIHTC subsidy. The 2015 metropolitan DDA designations will be the last designated for entire metropolitan areas. HUD has previously announced that beginning with the 2016 DDA designations, metropolitan DDAs will use small area FMRs, instead of metropolitan-area FMRs, for designating metropolitan DDAs.

Please contact the CARH national office at carh@carh.org or 703-837-9001 should you have questions or concerns.