New, five-year rental assistance renewal contract terms reduce administrative barriers within program supporting housing for low-income seniors.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Office of Multifamily Housing Programs announced its intent to begin issuing Section 202 Project Rental Assistance Contracts (PRACs) with renewal terms of up to five years rather than the one-year terms that have previously been authorized. This administrative streamlining will reduce contract renewal and other administrative work for both owners of properties participating in the Section 202 Supportive Housing for Low-Income Elderly program and HUD.
“Our aim is to help housing providers focus more on providing affordable homes and supportive services to residents and less on administrative efforts to maintain funding streams,” said HUD Office of Multifamily Housing Deputy Assistant Secretary Ethan Handelman. “We are pleased that Congressional action has allowed us to streamline this important program.”
Execution of the new five-year contracts will be phased in as contracts become due for renewal over a three-year period between 2023 and 2025.
About the Section 202 Project Rental Assistance Program
Section 202 grants provide very low-income elderly persons 62 years of age or older with the opportunity to live independently in an environment that provides support services, such as nutritional, transportation, continuing education, and/or health-related services, to meet their unique needs. Section 202 program eligibility requires residents to be very low-income or earning less than 50 percent of the area median income.