Led by a knowledgeable local botanist, the team from VHFA and HUD struck out through the conservation land, removing invasive species and clearing a nature trail.  The land was altered dramatically during Tropical Storm Irene in 2011.

VHFA-ers faced weeds, downed trees, and automotive surprises on the drive back to Burlington with their typical bravado.  All ended well thanks to astute driving skills of vintage Volvo aficionado and multifamily program director, Sam Falzone, and AAA.

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Tuesday, May 21

Continuums of Care Workshop

• 1:00 PM-3:00 PM
• The Vermont Tech Enterprise Center, VT RT 66 East, Randolph, VT

Join members of the Chittenden Continuum & Vt Coalition to End Homelessness to dive deep in how we measure results of our work (federal & state funded programs). See your own private report card and how it stacks up to established benchmarks & statewide averages. Hear about best practices from high performing Vt peers. Then, how do we know when we (collectively-not just as single programs) are creating the change we wish to see? @ Vt Tech Enterprise Ctr, Randolph, www.vtc.edu/right.php/pid/2/sid/267/tid/723. All Continuum Agencies are encouraged to attend. Please RSVP at: http://doodle.com/azriuwz2ztrck28u.

Wednesday, May22

Smokefree Housing: Let’s Clear the Air

• 9:00 AM-1:30 PM
• Franklin Conference Center, 1 Scale Avenue, Rutland, VT

This free summit will focus on the benefits, implementation, and enforcement of smokefree multi-unit housing policies. This event is ideal for landlords and housing providers, property managers, and housing support staff. Community coalition staff and volunteers and tobacco treatment specialists are encouraged to attend. Morning coffee & lunch will be served. Each participant will receive a toolkit of resources. No charge, but registration is required.   Hosted in partnership by: Rutland Area Prevention Coalition, Burlington Housing Authority, Rutland Housing Authority, Housing Trust of Rutland County, Support and Services at Home (SASH), & the American Lung Association. More information: Rutland Area Prevention Coalition, 802.775.4199, rap@rmhsccn.org.

Thursday, May23

Fair Housing Accessibility Training

• 8:00 AM-4:30 PM
• Thomas P. O’Neill Jr. Federal Building – 1st Floor Auditorium, 10 Causeway Street, Boston, MA

Promote compliance with the Fair Housing Act design and construction requirements. The program offers comprehensive and detailed instruction, useful online web resources, and a toll-free information line for technical guidance. AGENDA –   8:00 – 8:30 Registration. 8:30 – 8:45 Welcome, Opening Remarks & Section 3 Presentation. 8:45 – 10:15 Design & Construction Requirements of the Fair Housing Act, Technical Overview – Module 10 –  Part I. 10: 15 –10:30 Break. 10:30 – 12:00 Design & Construction Requirements of the Fair Housing Act, Technical Overview – Module 10 – Part II. 12:00 – 1:15 Lunch (not provided, plan accordingly). 1:15 – 2:45 Accessible Routes – Module 7. 2:45 – 3:00 Break. 3:00 – 4:30  Accessible Public & Common Use Areas –Module 8. Free Admission. More information: John Ritzu, 312.913.1717, jritzu@lcmarchitects.com, http://www.fairhousingfirst.org/training/signup.asp?location=boston.

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Next weekend’s Burlington City Marathon will feature the swift Robin Howe, Joe Erdelyi, and George Demas.   In fact, Erdelyi and Demas’s relay team, IRunMan3, has been nominated for best 3-5 person relay team name.  Cast your vote at:   https://www.facebook.com/#!/RunVermont.

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VHFA helped sponsor the conference, along with many of our Vermont statewide partners including Maloney Properties, Dousevicz, Housing Vermont, Vermont State Housing Authority, Vermont Resident Service Coordinators, Cathedral Square Corporation, Julow & Weltin PLC, and Vermont Housing Managers Association.

The role of resident service coordinators is to improve the quality of life for residents living in family and senior housing properties and to build a sense of community in those settings. More information on Vermont resident services coordinators is available on line.

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Tuesday, May 14

Rural Edge Homebuyer Education Workshop

• 5:30 PM-9:30 PM
• Gilman Housing Trust Office, 48 Elm Street, Lyndonville, VT

You’ll learn about….. the home buying process. Choosing a home. Types of mortgages. Closing costs. Talking with a lender. Possible incentives. Register early and take advantage of our reduced rate of $50.00. Please sign in at 5:15pm. Registration Fee $60.00. More information: 888.698.8466, staceyd@nekhome.org, http://www.myvthome.org.

Wednesday, May15

Home Share Now Informational Meeting

• 5:30 PM-6:00 PM
• Home Share Now’s Barre office, 115 N. Main Street, Barre, VT

Call ahead of time to ensure sufficent refreshments. Program Manager Ry Parcell said “all of Home Share Now’s home providers offer depth–local history, forgotten skills and technique, and life experience; all of this plus affordable housing!”Home Share Now is waiving its enrollment fee for the months of April, May, and June 2013. Background checks, interviews, and personal references required. Furthermore, those people matched in those same months will get 50% off their final match fee, a potential savings of up to $300. Home Share Now is especially looking for home seekers who are flexible, are willing to live in central Vermont, and can provide 5-10 hours of work per week for a local elder in exchange for low cost or no cost housing. Possible work to include transportation, grocery shopping, cooking, companionship, and/or a protective presence. More information: Ry Parcell, Home Share Now, 802.479.8544, http://www.homesharenow.org.

Thursday,May16

1. Vermont Community Development Association Annual Spring Conference

• 9:00 AM-3:00 PM
• VFW Club – Post 792, 1 Pioneer Street, Montpelier, VT

The focus of this year’s conference is “Developing Your Community as a Workforce — How to Make it Happen!” The conference will explore what the demographic data and trends for your area show, the role of quality of life in attracting and retaining businesses and employers, workforce development tools and techniques, and more! More information: Theresa Bachand, VLCT, 802.229.9111, tbachand@vlct.org, http://www.vhfa.org/redirect.php?url=www.vtaffordablehousing.org/news/2013/04/vcda-spring-conference-register-today/.

2. Rural Edge Homebuyer Education Workshop

• 5:30 PM-9:30 PM
• Gilman Housing Trust Office, 48 Elm Street, Lyndonville, VT

You’ll learn about….. the home buying process. Choosing a home. Types of mortgages. Closing costs. Talking with a lender. Possible incentives. Register early and take advantage of our reduced rate of $50.00. Please sign in at 5:15pm. Registration Fee $60.00. More information: 888.698.8466, staceyd@nekhome.org, http://www.myvthome.org.

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“Today, more than 30 million Americans use a wheelchair or have difficulty walking or climbing stairs and they have every right to live in housing that is accessible to them,” stated John Trasviña, HUD Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity. “This new guidance promotes access and helps developers construct housing that complies with the Fair Housing Act from the start so they don’t have to retrofit later.”

The guidance states that the Fair Housing Act requires all covered multifamily dwellings designed and constructed for first occupancy after March 13, 1991 be readily accessible to and usable by persons with disabilities.  In buildings with four or more units and at least one elevator, all units and public and common use areas are subject to the design and construction requirements.  In buildings with four or more dwelling units and no elevator, all ground floor units and public and common use areas are subject to the requirements.  Some units may also be subject to additional accessibility requirements as mandated by other laws, such as the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act.

Read HUD’s full press release.

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If current corporate tax reform efforts are successful, the resulting changes to the tax code will affect the amount of equity that can be raised from the low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC), according to a report, “Affordable Rental Housing After Tax Reform: Calculating Corporate Tax Reform’s Possible Effects on Equity Raised from Low-Income Housing Tax Credits.”

The principal efforts of affordable housing advocates during the corporate tax reform debate should be focused on the preservation, and even expansion, of the low-income housing tax credit. As Ways and Means Ranking Member Sander Levin noted during a recent hearing on tax reform, the LIHTC is not a loophole but a tax expenditure adopted on a bipartisan basis during the last major tax reform effort. At the same hearing, Ways and Means Select Revenue Subcommittee Chairman Pat Tiberi noted that the LIHTC “gets the best of both worlds.” As such, the report’s analysis is based on the LIHTC’s continued existence as a permanent part of the tax code.

To gauge the effect of lower corporate tax rates and longer depreciation periods on LIHTC yields and investor equity pricing, Novogradac & Company conducted an analysis that contemplates the possible ripple effects of these two tax reform outcomes on LIHTC investor yields, investor equity pricing and the amount of equity raised. The analysis was based on a series of calculations using an investor internal rate of return model, at a range of investor equity prices from $0.80 to $1.00, for 9 percent investments and 4 percent tax-exempt bond investments. The calculations considered the effect of the corporate tax rate dropping from the current level of 35 percent to 30 percent, 28 percent and 25 percent. The calculations also estimate the effect of extending the depreciation period for residential rental property.

Our evaluation found that if the amount of investor equity is held constant, lower top corporate tax rates lower LIHTC yields, therefore creating downward pressure on LIHTC investor equity pricing. Layering in the effect of extending depreciation periods would further exacerbate these reductions. For the equity market as a whole, this could mean a loss of $220 million to nearly $1 billion dollars, or more, in equity used to finance affordable rental housing. A loss this large in annual equity raised could lead to a reduction in the total number of affordable rental units built or rehabilitated each year to as high as 9,500 units or more.

The estimates presented in “Affordable Rental Housing After Tax Reform” are meant to serve as a reference point for the affordable rental housing community to consider as tax reform efforts advance. In light of the report’s findings, it would serve the future of affordable housing well to consider proposals that could help offset the projected losses from certain tax reforms. Such proposals could include a higher tax credit percentage, allowing the LIHTC to be claimed over a shorter period of time, allowing the full credit in the initial year of lease-up, or allowing more rapid depreciation of affordable rental housing properties.

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About 15% of Vermont’s population are at least 65 years old.  The only segment of the population that growing, older Vermonters will comprise nearly 17% of our population by 2016.

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“We know these modest investments in housing and serving our homeless neighbors not only saves money, but saves lives,” said Donovan. “These local programs are on the front lines of the Obama Administration’s efforts to prevent and end homelessness as we know it once and for all.”

Read HUD’s press release or review the list of Vermont grants.

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Ms. Roman described the Center’s newly released report, Housing America’s Future: New Directions for National Policy, which recommends a myriad of changes to federal housing support levels and the delivery mechanisms through which it is provided.

Expanding the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit by 50 percent over current levels to increase housing supply and targeting a reformed Housing Choice Voucher program to the most vulnerable households are also among the Center’s recommendations.

In addition to being a commissioner on the Bipartisan Policy Center’s Housing Commission, Ms. Roman is Executive Director of the National Alliance to End Homelessness.

Photo: Maura Collins

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