ADDRESSING TENANT COMPLAINTS AND MISCONCEPTIONS

WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF THIS SESSION?Three learning goals:

•(1) Understand IHCDA’s role in answering tenant inquiries and investigating complaints related to Section 42 and HOME-assisted rental housing.

•(2) Identify common types of tenant complaints and misconceptions

•(3) Discuss what you as property management/compliance can do to diminish tenant misconceptions

IHCDA’S ROLE

WHAT IS IHCDA’S ROLE?

As a Housing Finance Agency (HFA) / Participating Jurisdiction (PJ) •LEGAL/REGULATORY obligation to ensure program compliance

As a State Agency•MORAL obligation to respond to constituents and protect against mistreatment

In both roles•Interest in preserving the integrity/reputation of the program

WHAT DOES IHCDA DO WHEN AN INQUIRY IS RECEIVED?•Intake information

•Ask relevant questions

•If matter cannot be immediately resolved, promise a future response

• Conduct investigation- internal and external

• Follow-up response to constituent

• If needed- work with owner/manager on resolving issue

•NOTE: At all steps, IHCDA is mindful to: • (1) never ASSUME anything• (2) remember there are two sides to every story

HOW FREQUENT ARE TENANT INQUIRIES?

Multiple inquiries are received each week. For example:

Week of November 3, 2013 = 13 inquiries

Week of October 20, 2013 = 10 inquiries

Week of October 13, 2013 = 7 inquiries

Not all inquiries are complaints; may be a general program question or someone simply looking for a list of housing opportunities

THE GOOD NEWS…

Most inquiries, including complaints, do not result in a finding of program noncompliance.

This is good but…•Still exhausts staff time both for IHCDA and management •Even complaints that result in no finding can taint program reputation

• Especially if directed through an elected official representative’s office. • Think about what this means at these different levels:

‐ Local elected official‐ State legislators‐ Congress/ Senate

Root cause is a lack of program understanding

COMMON COMPLAINTS AND MISCONCEPTIONS

WHAT IS THIS PROGRAM?

Two factors are critical to understand the basic program concept:

1. The tax credit is not for the renter

2. There is no subsidy from the program (i.e. Section 42 is not rental assistance)

These both seem basic or even obvious to program staff, but applicants to Section 42 housing often do not understand this.

ELIGIBILITY- PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS

Income eligibility•Applicants/tenants often disagree with the calculation methodology•Explain upfront

• Types of income and assets that are included• Gross not net• Exact income will not affect rent (more on rent later)• At recertification explain this does not affect continued residency

Student eligibility•Student rules are complicated and often misunderstood•Explain upfront for tax credit purposes

• Definition of full or part-time is based on the school’s definition• Do NOT recommend that someone quits school as a solution

‐ May still not qualify- 5 months of calendar year rule, income, other eligibility

ELIGIBILITY- SELECTION REQUIREMENTS

Selection requirements include such items as:•Criminal history•Credit history•Landlord reference•Occupancy size

Generally the most contentious type of complaint•Applicants/tenants associate this with discrimination•IHCDA cannot do much to defend except say management has discretion

You MUST•Have a strong written tenant selection plan (more on this later)•Apply this selection criteria consistently

RENTS

One of the most frequent program misconceptions is that rent is directly related to income. This causes three types of complaints:

1.“My situation changed, so change my rent”2.“The nosy neighbor”3.“The calculation argument”

RENT SCENARIO #1

“My situation changed, so change my rent”

Case Study 1Mr. Johnson lives in Happy Meadows, a mixed-income tax credit project in which all program units are rent and income restricted at 50%. There is no other funding on the property. At recertification he has lost his job. He is outraged to hear management is not lowering his rent.

Case Study 2Ms. Brown also lives at Happy Meadows. She is on a fixed income and her income did not change at recertification. Management is raising her rent by $20. Ms. Brown’s yelling is making things not so cheery at Happy Meadows.

How should you respond?

RENT SCENARIO #1

“My situation changed, so change my rent”

In either scenario, we have a resident that believes Section 42 requires the tenant-based rent portion to be calculated based on actual household income in the same manner you would determine the tenant-paid portion for a rental assistance program.

When individuals move into the property, it is important to explain to them that this is not the case (i.e. that rent will not fluctuate with changes in their income) but that instead their unit has a designated rent restriction based on an area median income set-aside.

RENT SCENARIO #2“The nosy neighbor”

Case Study 3Matt and Scott are neighbors at a tax credit property for seniors. One night while having a few beers together on the patio, Scott finds out Matt pays $400 a month for rent.

The next day Scott confronts the property manager. He is furious that he is also paying $400 a month for his rent. He says he knows Matt has more income and even has assets! He says management is mistreating him by charging him the same rent when he has less money.

How should you respond?

RENT SCENARIO #2

“The nosy neighbor”

Management’s knee jerk reaction is often to tell the complainer that he/she doesn’t in fact know his/her neighbor’s income and that that information is none of his/her business. Maybe he/she does know, maybe he/she doesn’t. Either way that response does not address the issue, as it in fact leads him/her to continue to believe that rent and income are still connected.

The correct response here is to inform the resident that the reason they are both paying the same rent is because they are living in units of the same bedroom size that are both assigned the same rent set-aside.

RENT SCENARIO #3

“The calculation argument”

Case Study 4

IHCDA recently had an individual file a complaint because he believed management was over-calculating his income by around $240 at annual recertification. He believed his income was being reported higher to justify a higher rent rate. The manager told the tenant he just didn’t understand the program and that if he didn’t sign his TIC she would evict him.

IHCDA investigated and discovered that management was in fact performing due diligence by using a year-to-date calculation for income which ended up being slightly higher than the calculation based on base pay rates.

How should the manager have handled this issue?

RENT SCENARIO #3

“The calculation argument”

Management should have explained that:•the tenant rent portion is not based on the income calculation; and•they are using a conservative calculation methodology and taking the maximum possible income to show that there is no doubt he income qualifies (since this case was a recert he was already qualified for occupancy anyway).

PRIVACY CONCERNS

Types of privacy concern complaints

• Why are they asking for this information?• What will be done with this information?• Why and who is coming into my unit for an inspection?

*Note: Think about how your office organization may contribute to concerns?• Are verification documents out on display?• Are tenant files easily accessible? • Would the organization in the leasing office lead an applicant or resident to have

concerns about the security of confidential information?

HOUSING FOR OLDER PERSONS

Different possible definitions of housing for older persons leads to confusion and often complaints, especially if there are children at perceived “elderly” housing

The key is to properly define the restrictions at your property and to correctly explain this both verbally and in writing.

•100% at 62; or•80% at 55

• If so what about the 20%?• If so what about the other household members?• This all needs defined

WHAT CAN I DO?

INFORM THE APPLICANT

Do not assume the applicant is unwilling or incapable of understanding the basics of the program.

During application intake, give brief explanation of eligibility and rent structure•Walk through tenant selection policy•Explain process and anticipated timeline•Explain documentation and retention

During lease signing explain lease terms

IHCDA has created documents for applicants/tenant resources•1 pagers what is HOME rental housing & what is Section 42 rental housing•Program summaries (about 8 pages each) on each program

STRONG TENANT SELECTION PLAN

A well-written tenant selection plan can prevent many complaints or questions about the application process

Policy should include:•Program and selection eligibility factors•Occupancy size restrictions•Application process, waiting list process, denial process, and appeal process•Explanation of transfer policies•Explanation of any special preferences or set-asides in place

BIGGEST PITFALL•Vague language, especially about selection factors such as criminal and credit•Explain specifics of what is evaluated and what constitutes a denial

STRONG LEASE LANGUAGE

A well-written lease can prevent some of the complaints related to management practices and rules

A good lease should include, for example

•Clear language about rent requirements• Due dates• Late fees• Method of payment

•Language addressing program compliance such as cooperation with recertifications and physical inspections

•Lease renewal and termination process

MISCELLANEOUS FINAL THOUGHTS

LOOK AT POLICIES AND PROCEDURES

Revisit your internal policies and procedures

Questions to ask:

•Which policies are not mandated by regulation or IHCDA requirement? (caution: be mindful of investor or owner mandated requirements)

•Are these policies effective and purposeful or just red tape?

Selection criteria often have a strong purpose and are justified

Extra verification requirements or especially conservative calculation procedures are often “over-kill”•Extra burden on staff•Possibly considering qualified applicants as unqualified•Remember the purpose of the program

USE INDIANAHOUSINGNOW.ORG

The #1 inquiry received by IHCDA is for assistance locating housing options

IHCDA (in conjunction with Social Serve) maintains a housing database entitled Indiana Housing Now (www.indianahousingnow.org). •Free to list•Newer Section 42 properties are required per QAP•Recommended for all properties•Now part of monitoring review