RAD Communications
RAD decisions are being made on a weekly basis
between HUD, HACEP, and vendors. Keeping each other
informed is crucial to our success.
• The HACEP website: www.haceprad.org “HACEP News”
monthly resident newsletter
• RAD Hotline: (915) 849-3888
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/HACEP
• YouTube: www.youtube.com @ EPHousingAuthority
• Twitter: #ephousingauthority
• RAD Presentations by Oscar Arriaga, Public Information
Specialist: oarriaga@hacep.org, (915) 849-3640
RAD Communications
Other forms of communication HACEP uses to
communicate with residents include the following:
• RAD presentations to JWRC and Resident Councils by Oscar
Arriaga, Public Information Specialist: oarriaga@hacep.org,
(915) 849-3640
• Presentations and meetings by the RAD Team
• Handouts such as this one that we will also upload to the
HACEP website.
• Monthly presentations to the JWRC.
• Presentations to Resident Councils upon invitation.
• Emails to personal accounts once furnished by residents to
HACEP.
Construction Updates
HACEP will renovate and rebuild public housing
communities in two construction phases. Since HACEP
first published the breakdown of RAD properties, some
changes have occurred to the schedule.
RAD Phase I Communities: 2015-2017
Anderson, Alvarez, Baines+, Baird, Bean, Eisenhower (194 units),
Hart, Johnson, Kennedy Brothers, Kennedy Estates, Krupp*,
Marmolejo, Ochoa, Tays (Phase I)*, Telles, Truman, Webber,
Westfall+
No Renovation/Reconstruction
Alamito, Paisano Green, Morehead, Montwood Heights,
Scattered Sites, DeWetter Replacement
Construction Updates
RAD Phase II Communities: 2017-2019
Chelsea, Cramer, DeWetter, Fr. Pinto, Guillen, Kathy White#,
Pooley, Rio Grande, Robinson, Roosevelt#, Salazar, Sandoval,
Sherman, Sun Plaza, Tays (Phase II), Valle Verde, Williams
No Renovation/Reconstruction
Eastside Crossings, Eisenhower (66 flood plain units),
Gonzalez (flood plain), Graham, King (flood plain), Machuca,
Rubin Heights, Scattered Sites
Construction Updates
*Tays and Krupp Update
• HACEP received financing from the State of Texas to rebuild
both properties.
• Tays: 81 Units Demolished and Rebuilt, 2015-2017
• Krupp: 96 Units Demolished and Rebuilt, 2015-2017
+Baines/Westfall Update
• HACEP’s application for financing with the State is on hold.
– Outcome of status will be available end of October.
• Plan is to demolish and rebuild both properties.
#Kathy White and Roosevelt Update
• Both properties were originally part of RAD Phase I, but are
now part of RAD Phase II.
• No construction or renovation will occur until at least 2017.
Construction Schedules
Final construction schedule for RAD Phase II properties
will not be complete until the end of this year. Here are
the facts that are current as of September 6, 2014:
• No resident relocations will occur prior to January 1, 2015.
• Construction will begin in March 2015 with Kennedy Brothers and
Eisenhower. The next properties will be Marmolejo and Ochoa in June
2015.
• HACEP will issue 30-day notices to each family prior to their move
beginning in January 2015.
• Hunt, the construction company, will use two construction crews
operating at the same time at up to six different properties.
• HACEP will pay for allowable relocation expenses using a variety of
professional moving companies.
Swamp Coolers
Refrigerated Air
Construction Work
Work performed in each site will vary based on each
property’s age and design. Generally speaking, the
following work will apply to all properties:
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Permanently remove all asbestos (if present).
Kitchen and bathroom upgrades.
Replace decaying ventilation shafts and ducts behind the walls.
Replace outdated electrical, plumbing, and lighting systems and fixtures.
Replace appliances with new Energy Star certified appliances.
Installing more energy efficient insulation, windows, and doors (where
necessary).
New landscaping and playgrounds.
Install new property signs.
New parking lots.
Improvements to common area lighting.
WE CAN DO IT.
AFTER ALL…
WE’VE DONE IT BEFORE!
HACEP’s Successful Revitalization Record
• HACEP has a successful track record of revitalizing distressed neighborhoods.
Paisano Green Community (2009-2012)
4000 East Paisano Drive 79905
$15 million
Alamito Community HOPE VI (2005-2010)
509 South St. Vrain (Segundo Barrio)
$58 million
Kennedy Brothers HOPE VI (1995-2000)
400 South Zaragoza 79907
$38 million
Eastside Crossings (2013-2015)
12019 Sarah H. Circle 79938
$22 million funded in part by 9% tax credits.
RAD Inspections
To prepare for the renovations, HACEP’s construction
company, HUNT, performed inspections in 10 percent
of the RAD Phase I communities.
• Wall, floor, ceiling samples to test for asbestos.
• Installed air monitors for air samples.
• Notices were sent 48-hours in advance to occupied units, but
they were in English and did not explain the purpose of the
inspections.
• HACEP is working with HUNT to ensure future notices are in
Spanish and English and include the nature of the inspection.
Utility Service Updates
HACEP is working with all utility companies (water,
electric, gas) so that HACEP will handle all transfers of
service.
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Upon move out, service will be transferred to HACEP.
Upon move in, service will be transferred back to resident.
Burden is lifted from families and fees are avoided.
Sub electric meters will be installed in all units, so residents
will be able to track and be responsible for their personal
electric use.
RAD Changes to HACEP
HACEP always has been, and always will be, a public
entity funded by the Federal Government.
- We are not “privatizing.”
• Through RAD, HACEP will become the owners of the public
housing communities and federal revenue guaranteed for 40
years.
• Converted properties will operate the same as our four
Section 8 New Construction properties (Henderson, Hervey,
Muñoz, Sitgraves).
• HACEP can now access capital in the private market to raise
over $500 million that we will invest back in to the properties.
• This is the only way to do what residents have been asking us
to do for decades.
Program Differences
Section 9 Public Housing
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What residents live in now.
HUD owns the communities; HACEP maintains and leases them.
Centralized wait list.
Units offered based on availability, not preference.
Congress determines how much money HACEP receives each
year to determine rent and maintain the properties.
This is an unsustainable business model.
Program Differences
Section 8 Project Based Rental Assistance (PBRA)
• HACEP will convert all Public Housing to PBRA through RAD.
• HACEP owns the communities and continues to maintain and
lease them.
• Site based wait lists. Residents choose where they want to live!
• Federal funds are guaranteed for 40 years.
• HACEP can access capital in the private market that was
previously inaccessible.
This is a sustainable business model.
From PH to PBRA
No Differences Based on RAD Conversion
• The process by which the amount of rent a family pays.
• The right to establish and operate a resident council and be
eligible for resident participation funds.
• Minimum rents will remain the same at $25 per month.
• Current participants in a family self-sufficiency program (PH-FSS
and ROSS-SC) will continue their FSS participation.
• Residents who are enrolled in an Earned Income Disregard at
the time of conversion will continue until changes to income
occur.
• All inspections (annual, move in, move out, housekeeping) will
continue in the same manner.
From PH to PBRA
Differences Based on RAD Conversion
• No re-screening of tenants upon conversion, except for properties that will
become tax credit properties. (Tays, Krupp)
• Late rent charges: $5 fee on the 6th day of the month and $1 for each
additional day the rent remains unpaid during the month it is due.
• New participants to a self-sufficiency program (PH-FSS and ROSS-SC) will not
be admitted.
• Residents have a right to return to their community, not necessarily their
original unit.
• The Earned Income Disregard (EID) does not apply for new participants after
conversion.
• After 24 months following the conversion to RAD, residents have the option
to apply for the Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8) Program under the
“Choice Mobility” option, subject to program requirements and availability.
Program Differences
Tax Credit Properties
• Also known as known as Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC
or simply Tax Credit
• Rents are not subsidized by federal tax dollars through HUD.
• Properties feature reduced rents for income-qualified residents.
• Income qualifications and eligibility requirements are slightly
different than Section 9 Public Housing.
Program Differences
Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) Program
• Formerly known as Section 8
• Provides rental assistance vouchers to help low-income families
live in privately-owned apartments and houses.
• Program participants can select the home of their choice, the
vouchers are portable, and you can apply the voucher to your
own mortgage through the Family Self Sufficiency Program.
• Family pays the difference between the actual rent charged by
the landlord and the amount of the voucher.
RAD Impact to Residents
HACEP developed an initial set of RAD goals, including
the goal to keep 100 percent of children enrolled in the
school that they currently attend.
• This goal has changed to where we will try our best to keep as
many children in the same schools, but we cannot guarantee
this.
• HACEP must finish construction of the RAD Phase I
communities by 2017 and RAD Phase II properties by 2019.
• We can only renovate and remove asbestos when the entire
building is vacant for health and safety reasons.
• HACEP needs hundreds of vacancies to begin renovations and
have flexibility to accommodate relocated families with the
least inconvenience as possible.
HCV Option
Families living in a RAD Phase I property have the
option to permanently move out of Public Housing and
in to the private market through the Housing Choice
Voucher (HCV) Program.
• This is option is a choice, it is not a requirement or obligation.
• Eligible families must qualify based on income by earning less
that 50 percent of area median income ($25,100 per year for a
family of four).
• Families are responsible for paying security deposits and to turn
on utilities just like all other clients of the HCV Program.
• Utility allowances apply unless landlord pays for utilities.
Rent Calculations
No changes will occur to the manner in which rents are
calculated for residents through the RAD conversion to
project based rental assistance (PBRA).
• The only exception occurs when a property is financed with a
tax credit such as Tays and Krupp.
• Residents will be placed in renovated units according to
current occupancy standards and reasonable accommodation
requirements.
Flat Rents Changes
Rents will increase for families who are currently paying
a “flat rent,” which is based on the fair market value of
the unit.
• This is NOT related to RAD. It happens to coincide with our
conversion.
• Changes to flat rents required by 2014 Appropriations Act and
affect all public housing authorities across the United States.
• Law states that flat rents may not fall below 80 percent of fair
market rent (FMR).
Flat Rents Changes
Unit Type
2014 FMR
Proposed
2015 FMR
HACEP Flat
Rent Rate
Difference
Increase
# Families
Affected
Efficiency
$553
$588
$408
$ 180
44%
2
1BR
605
643
408
235
58
20
2BR
747
794
496
298
60
89
3BR
1059
1,125
595
530
89
91
4BR
1270
1,350
718
632
88
20
5BR
1460
1,552
826
726
88
5
6BR
1651
1,755
950
805
85
0
Total Families Paying Flat Rent (Aug. 19, 2014):
227
Over Income Families
A family is “over income” when their total family
income exceeds 80 percent of area median income.
• A few hundred families who are over income currently reside
in Public Housing, including all families who pay a flat rent.
• After the RAD conversion, over income families will have the
option to pay the revised flat rent at 100 percent of fair
market value.
• HACEP strongly encourages over income families to find living
accommodations in the private market so that these units can
be available to the 10,000 families who are currently waiting
for housing assistance.
Earned Income Disregard
Earned Income Disregard (EID) defers wage increases
from rent calculations for up to 48 months when public
housing residents gain employment.
• Under PBRA, the EID exclusion will end after conversion.
• Families who have an EID exclusion at the time of conversion
may continue to receive it until the tenant endures a break in
employment, ceases to use the EID exclusion, or if the EID
exclusion expires.
• Tenants whose EID ceases or expires after conversion shall not
be subject to the rent phase-in provisions; instead, the rent will
automatically be adjusted to the appropriate rent level based
upon tenant income at the time.
Refrigerated Air Tips
HACEP will replace evaporative coolers (swamp coolers)
to refrigerated air conditioners. Residents need to
know how to use them to maximize their comfort and
not waste money on excess electricity.
• Close blinds during summer days so that the hot sunlight does
not come in, but keep them open during winter days.
• Do not keep a window open when running your refrigerated
air conditioner.
• When home during the summer, set your thermostat to a
comfortable 78 degrees during the day and 74 degrees at
night.
• When you leave your unit for an extended period, turn your
air conditioner off.
HACEP’s success is dependent on our
partnership and effective
communication with our residents.
HACEP exists to serve you. There will be
some short term inconveniences, but
our goal is to ensure the sustainability
of our communities for many
generations to come.
Website:
RAD Hotline:
www.haceprad.org
(915) 849-3888