MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The Tennessee Housing Development Agency announced it will once again be monitoring federal subsidized housing.
Memphis is reportedly going to be a top priority, the agency said in a prepared statement.
Starting in July, the state will be reviewing all multifamily properties that participate in the Performance-Based Contract Administration program.
The program provides helps supplement the rental income of those complexes that serve low-income residents.
In Shelby County there are currently 49 properties that receive PBCA funds.
There are approximately 394 statewide.
There is no substitute for having compliance officers on the ground, physically looking through the files and seeing property conditions with their own eyes,” said Ralph M. Perrey, the executive director of THDA.
HUD suspended the authority of several agencies including the THDA after a lawsuit was filed against HUD on how PBCA’s were awarded.
However, taking that route is clearly not working Perrey said.
“It’s a bad idea to leave these properties uninspected for years at a time, as we’ve seen right here in Memphis. We’re in the process of hiring compliance officers right now so we can resume our work as quickly as possible.”
Once hired, the agency aims to help make potential or actual problems known before they get out of hand.
Twelve properties in Shelby County are scheduled to be inspected by the end of the summer.