Word: opt
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...owners, however, have been suffering from what critics call "HUD fatigue" - frustration with dealing with government bureaucracy when it comes to getting the government to fork over the subsidies. Dean Chaussee, who has owned and managed properties in suburban Seattle through his Westwood Management since 1975, is waiting to opt out of his Section 8 contract when it expires because of what he says is unfair treatment from HUD. "We sign a contract to provide housing for people who otherwise wouldn't be housed by the private sector," he says. "HUD's job is to pay us for doing...
...historic law a significant change will be under way in the next few years. As a result, building owners who participate in the program - receiving subsidies from the Department of Housing and Urban Development in exchange for taking in lower-income renters - will be able to opt out of those contracts. And many are thinking of doing just that. America's two largest cities, New York and Los Angeles, will be severely affected as will many smaller communities...
Community activists say a mass opt-out by landlords would leave many poor people with only the alternative of receiving HUD vouchers to help pay their rents. While the voucher system has advantages, the current wait to qualify for it is already extremely long. And while renters can try to use the vouchers to pay for the housing they currently occupy, landlords are not required to accept them...
...housing game. Mark Carbone is the head of the division of New York-based Related Properties that deals with affordable housing. He says his company is well-financed enough to weather the current housing bust and continue to offer low-cost dwellings. "When we've had the opportunity to opt out, we've chosen to stay in," says Carbone, whose company has holdings in several states. "It doesn't mean we've forfeited a great deal of profit." He says with a strong cash flow, there is no need for Related to go out and raise money the way smaller...
...enough landlords opt out, the challenges will be forbidding - and not just for the poor renters who will need government help to find places to live. Building owners hope to attract wealthier tenants to fill the vacancies. But there just might not be enough of these to go around. Says Howard Husock, vice president of policy research at the Manhattan Institute, a conservative New York-based think tank: "If you look at the location of many of the buildings that are discussed, there is not an unlimited supply of investment bankers who are going to move into lower-income areas...