December 01, 2011 - U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) today released income limits for 2012. Click here for links to the 2012 income limits and accompanying information and tables. Under the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 (Public Law 110-289), income limits used to determine qualification levels as well as set maximum rental rates for projects funded with low-income housing tax credits (LIHTC) and projects financed with tax-exempt housing bonds - referred to by HUD as Multifamily Tax Subsidy Projects (MTSPs) - are calculated and presented separately from the Section 8 income limits. 

As of today, HUD has not yet published income limits and remt limits for its HOME program nor has FDIC provided income limits and rent limits for its Affordable Housing Program.

Some anticipation and rumors of FY2012 and an early than ever released HUD income limits is based on the Federal Register Volume 76, No. 190, September 30, 2012 section VII…we'll have to see how committed they are, but this is what is says:

"The FY 2012 Income Limits will be published on December 1, 2011. While the FY 2012 Income Limits do not benefit from any additional ACS data over what was included in the FY 2011 publication, they are updated with the FY 2012 FMRs for the purposes of evaluating areas of relatively high-or low-income to housing cost relationships and further updated with CPI to the end of 2010, trended to the mid-point of FY 2012 in a manner similar to what was done with the FY 2011 Median Family Income estimates and Income Limits. The FY 2013 Median Family Income estimates and Income Limits, published December 1, 2012, would be the first set of median family income estimates and income limits updated with ACS data collected from 2006–2010."

For a full copy of the publication you can visit:

http://www.huduser.org/portal/datasets/fmr/fmr2012f/FY2012_FR_Preamble.pdf

Cycle Opens – October 26, 2011

The new online 2011 Universal Application will be available on the FHFC Website in the “Apply for Funding” link athttp://apps.floridahousing.org/StandAlone/FHFC_ECM/ContentPage.aspx?PAGE=0238 or at https://apply.floridahousing.org .

The final Universal Application, Instructions, and Rules which govern the Universal Application Programs will be available on Florida Housing’s Websitehttp://apps.floridahousing.org/StandAlone/FHFC_ECM/ContentPage.aspx?PAGE=0259 .

Cycle Closes – Early December 2011

The Application Deadline has not been finalized, but we expect that the Application due date will be in early December 2011 with final Board approval in early June 2012.

Prior to the opening of the cycle, the Application Deadline will be finalized and a new time for the 2011 Universal Application Cycle will be posted.

Application Workshop:

Florida Housing Finance Corporation will hold a Universal Application workshop for the 2011 Universal Application Cycle. The workshop is scheduled for:

Dates: Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Time: 9:00 a.m. (start time) until finished – (no later than 4:00 p.m.)

Location: Tallahassee City Hall, Commission Chambers, 300 South Adams Street, Tallahassee, FL

The workshop will also be accessible via telephone at 1-888-808-6959, Conference Code #1374197.

Purpose: Florida Housing encourages all potential applicants to attend the workshop - those planning to apply for the first time or who are unfamiliar with the Universal Application process, as well as persons who are familiar with the Universal Application process. Staff will present basic information about the Universal Application, including a demonstration of the new online Application, and will also discuss the changes between the 2009 and 2011 Universal Applications.

The workshop is open to the public. No pre-registration is required and there is no attendance fee.

The final Universal Application, Instructions, and Program Rules will be used at the workshop and attendees should print and bring copies, as there will not be copies available for the public at the workshop.

IMPORTANT: Due to the complexity of the application process, attendees are encouraged to review the materials ahead of time and be prepared to ask questions at the workshop. If you wish to confirm the date and time for the workshop or if additional information is needed, please feel free to contact Jean Salmonsen by telephone at (850) 488-4197 or by e-mail at Jean.Salmonsen@floridahousing.org.

On October 20, 2011 the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced in Revenue Procedure 2011-52 the inflation-adjusted low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) and private activity bond caps for 2012. For calendar year 2012, the amount used under §42(h)(3)(C)(ii) to calculate the state LIHTC is the greater of $2.20 multiplied by the state population or $2,525,000. The amount used under §146(d)(1) to calculate the state ceiling for the volume cap for private activity bonds in 2012 is the greater of $95 multiplied by the state population or $284,560,000.

In This Edition:

IRC Section 42 First-Year Certification

Taxpayers owning IRC §42 housing are required to complete a “First-Year Certification” under IRC §42(l)(1). The certification is made to identify specific information needed for the administration of the program and document specific elections that will govern how the housing is operated. The certification is made by completing Part II of the Form 8609, Low-Income Housing Credit Allocation and Certification, with Part I executed by the state housing agency. The completed certification is submitted, one time, to the IRS.

While it isn’t possible to discuss each line’s entry in detail, here’s the short list of glitches to watch out for when completing the form. See link for more on this subject.

Other include:

• Adjusting the Year of Disposition by Sale: Credit Recapture Under IRC Sec 42(j)
• Adminitrative Reminders
• Notes from IRS Staff Grace Robertson

Special Needs households, defined as households consisting of homeless families, survivors of domestic violence, persons with a disability, or youth aging out of foster care.

HUD has published HOME program income limit and rent limit schedules on its website with an effective date of July 13, 2011 (30 calendar days from the HUD memorandum date).

HUD elected to hold HOME Program rent limits at last year's level, however, HUD did not hold the HOME Program income limits. The specific rent limits that were held harmless were identified by HUD with an asterisk on the rent limit tables.

The hold harmless policy for HOME rent limits is described in the May 17, 2010 Federal Register "Final Notice on Ending the "Hold-Harmless" Policy in Calculating Section 8 Income Limits under the United States Housing Act of 1937." Rents used in the HOME program will continue to be held harmless, although the income limits used to determine eligibility for HOME projects may decrease up to the maximum of 5 percent or increase up to 5 percent or twice the change in national median family income, per year, whichever is greater.

If you have questions regarding HOME Program Rent Limits, please contact HUD's Office of Affordable Housing Programs at 202-708-2684.

2011 Income Limit and Rent Limit Schedules

Florida Housing has posted income limit and rent limit schedules for 2011 on the its Property Owners and Managers webpage. These income limits and rent limits were effective 5/31/2011. Please note that income limit and rent limit schedules used by the SHIP program and HOME program, both rental and homeownership, as well as FDIC's ADP program are different from the MTSP income limit and rent limit schedules used by other programs administered by Florida Housing.

Income Limits
http://www.floridahousing.org/PropertyOwnersAndManagers/IncomeLimits/

Rent Limits
http://www.floridahousing.org/PropertyOwnersAndManagers/RentLimits/

HUD will publish income limit and rent limit schedules and determine the effective date for the HOME program at a later date. When Florida Housing becomes aware that HUD has published its 2011 HOME income limit and rent limits, the HUD schedules will be posted on the Florida Housing web site and notification will be sent via the Asset Management listserv. Developments with HOME-assisted units that are also HC-qualified units shall not apply the MTSP or SHIP limits to the HOME-assisted units if doing so would exceed the still-current HOME limits published last year by HUD.

FDIC will publish income limit and rent limit schedules for its Affordable Housing Program (AHP) at a later date. When Florida Housing becomes aware that FDIC has published its 2011 AHP income limits and rent limits, the FDIC schedules will be posted on the Florida Housing web site and notification will be sent via the Asset Management listserv. Developments with FDIC AHP units that are also qualified under other programs shall not apply 2011 income limits or rent limits to the FDIC AHP units if doing so would exceed the still-current AHP limits published last year by FDIC.

HUD has released income limits for 2011. The income limits are effective today, May 31, 2011 which means they must be implemented no later than June 14, 2011. A separate data set was used for Multifamily Tax Subsidy Projects or MTSPs which includes both Tax Credit and Tax-Exempt Bond properties financed under Section 142. The following links will take you there:

Multifamily Tax Subsidy Income Limit Data Set

Section 8 Income Limit Data Set

In this edition...
Guide available on IRS website, e-filing bug partnership, verifying income and assets, instructions for rescinding form 8823, IRS audit:what to expect, interviewing taxpayers, and administrative reminders.

Verifying Income and Assets
When determining whether a household is income-qualified, owners are required to verify the amount of income from all known sources of income, including the income derived from assets. Acceptable methods of verifying information include third party verifications, reviews submitted by the tenant (such as check stubs) and tenant certifications made under penalties of perjury.

Another source of documentation, specifically identified in Treas. Reg. §1.42-5(b)(viii) for households receiving housing assistance payments under Section 8 is a statement from the public housing authority declaring that the tenant’s income does not exceed the applicable income limit.

The regulation reads:

(vii) Documentation to support each low-income tenant's income certification (for example, a copy of the tenant's federal income tax return, Forms W-2, or verifications of income from third parties such as employers or state agencies paying unemployment compensation)…In the case of a tenant receiving housing assistance payments under Section 8, the documentation requirement…is satisfied if the public housing authority provides a statement to the building owner declaring that the tenant's income does not exceed the applicable income limit under IRC §42(g).

IRS has released Low-Income Housing Credit Newsletter Issue #23. In this issue you will find news on Suitable for Occupancy: Law, Inspections, Adjusting the Applicable Fraction, and more.

Although this was adapted by FHFC, it is expected as well from all other states.

Effective September 13, 2010 Florida Housing's Compliance Monitors will be required to report the presence or existence of bed bugs at any property being inspected. The inspection requirements are applicable to all properties reported to have or suspected of having bed bug infestation.

All of the 2010 HOT TOPICS - 8823 Guide "Hot Topic" Revisions, PHA Allowances, HERA Data Collection, 2010 Income Limits, IRS Form 8609 Line B, Enterprise Income Verification, IRS Audit Techniques Guide, Tax Extenders Bill Defeated in Senate.

Florida Housing Finance Corporation has released a revised version of their Compliance Guidebook. To download a copy visit http://apps.floridahousing.org