Title
Resolution to Approve the FY21 Payment Standard for the Ann Arbor Housing Commission Voucher Program
Memorandum
The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) annually sets Fair Market Rents (FMRs), for determining eligibility of rental costs in Section 8 programs, including Housing Choice Vouchers (HCV), Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing Vouchers (VASH) and Project Based Vouchers (PBV). FMRs are gross rent estimates representing rent and utility costs in private sector rental housing, pegged at approximately the 40th percentile, not including new construction in the past 2 years and not including subsidized housing.
The AAHC must review its payment standards schedule annually and amend it as needed to ensure that the payment standards remain within the HUD-required range of between 90% and 110% of the HUD FMRs. The FMR, in general terms, is the amount needed to rent a moderately-priced dwelling unit in the local housing market and the payment standard is used to calculate the maximum amount of rental subsidy housing assistance a family will receive from HUD for a moderately-priced dwelling unit.
The Commission's jurisdiction includes two counties, Washtenaw and Monroe. The AAHC removed Wayne County from its jurisdiction in 2015; however, AAHC has eight (8) participants that are grandfathered into this jurisdiction. Over 90% of voucher holders reside in Washtenaw County. Most residents reside in 1-4-bedroom units; the 2 bedroom is the average unit size and payment standard.
Based on the attached review of proposed FY21 Fair Market Rents, all FMR's for all units sizes for Washtenaw, Monroe, and Wayne counties increased by up to 13%.
As a result of the increase in HUD's FY21 FMR's; staff propose to increase the FY21 Payment Standard for all three counties, which would enable the AAHC to stay in compliance with HUD regulations. The result is that the FY21 Payment Standards will be between 95%-110% of the FY21 FMR.
Staff recommend that the Board ...
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