HUD-REAC is REAC’s parent agency. It is responsible for the management, collection, analysis, and dissemination of HUD’s multifamily housing data, including all assisted multifamily housing data. HUD-REAC collects and compiles multifamily housing data from HUD’s field offices, facilitates the development of tools to process the data, and distributes the data to public and private sector organizations.
In any HUD-insured or assisted housing project, the housing authority (HA) must follow HUD’s Minimum Property Requirements (MPRs). MPRs include HUD’s Health and Safety Standards and Guidelines for the inspection and repair of housing projects. If a housing unit fails to meet one of these standards, HUD’s guidelines for MPR enforcement allow the HA to enter into a Voluntary Compliance Agreement (VCA) with the owner of the housing. If the owner of the unit fails to make the necessary repairs, HUD can perform the repairs and bill the owner for the costs.
HUD makes a point of requiring all public housing authorities to conduct annual inspections of properties it subsidizes. HUD calls these inspections HUD-REAC inspections, and they are meant to ensure that your property is in a habitable condition and that any problems that do exist are fixed.
Why is HUD-REAC Inspection Different From A Typical Home Inspection?
For starters, HUD-REAC inspectors are dedicated to making sure the properties they inspect are safe, decent, and sanitary. They will usually check the property for a list of HUD-approved housing quality standards (HQS), which cover key features of the house such as the foundation, roof, plumbing, electrical, and more. HUD inspectors will also review all of the property’s available documentation, ranging from previous inspections to the property’s original sales agreement.
HUD-REAC Inspection is difficult to explain, but a lot easier to understand once you see it in action. In short, HUD-REAC puts a number on each home in a community that shows how well that home is being maintained. For example, let’s say that there’s a HUD-REAC score of 50 out of 100. That means that the home is under the average for that community. HUD-REAC scores are calculated by HUD-REAC Inspectors and are usually based on five categories: physical living conditions, safety, energy efficiency, indoor environmental quality, and services and maintenance.
HUD-REAC inspection identifies problems with housing developments and then assists developers to fix them. The program is split into 2 parts. The first part is a comprehensive inspection of a portion of the development. During the inspection, HUD-REAC analysts inspect the properties and take photos documenting the inspection. During the second part, the developers are expected to fix any problems found in the inspection. HUD-REAC will then inspect the properties again, and if there are no problems, the developers will receive a HUD-REAC certification, signifying that the properties are ready for HUD’s next inspection.
Final Words
The purpose of HUD-REAC inspections is to make sure that HUD program participants (the owners and managers of HUD-assisted properties) are meeting their obligations under the HUD program. HUD requires that HUD-assisted properties meet certain physical, financial, and personnel management standards, and HUD-REAC inspections are REAC’s primary vehicle for confirming that properties meet those requirements.
To know more about the purpose of HUD-REAC inspections, attend the Compliance Prime webinar.
