|
Details
on the Legal Aid Bureau's Housing
Preservation Program (HPP)
|
More on the
Mark-to Market Program |
-
Office of Affordable Housing
Preservation
- the office created in October 2004 in
the federal Housing and Urban Department
to administer the Mark-to-Market
program. -
Basic overview
provided the
Department of Housing and Urban
Development Office of Affordable Housing
Preservation. -
Definition
of the term Mark-to-Market
(Technical and may be
hard to read)
|
The Housing
Preservation Program (HPP) with Legal Aid
attorneys, aim to preserve affordable housing for
low-income people by educating tenants, negotiating with property
managers and, engaging in policy advocacy and
litigation. The project focuses on properties whose section 8 subsidies may
be expiring or those where the owner of HUD may be trying to end the
subsidy.
HPP
with tenant organizations in properties subject to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development "Mark
to Market" program (M2M) to ensure that a
property owner who may renew project-based subsidies:
-
to
facilitate sales to
residents or nonprofit organizations;
- to
ensure decent, affordable housing for tenants with continued
Section 8 assistance;
-
to
restore deteriorated properties; create more responsive property
management and help prevent troubled properties from
going into default.
Services for the community
-
Workshops
-
HPP
conducts
site visits and workshops for expiring Section 8 properties in
Maryland. A typical, interactive workshop includes briefing
tenants on all relevant aspects of the M2M program,
the status of the property and the
opportunities and potential ramifications for tenants.
- Help with
forming a
tenant association - HPP provides technical assistance
and workshops in which tenants receive information on tenants'
rights, community resources, and the M2M
and other HUD programs. Legal Aid may also
litigate for clients in court. Tenant Protection Kits make it easier
for tenant organizations to plan, document and organize
paperwork about apartments. During a training, tenants
may work
together to draft a letter to management about on-site problems
at the apartment complex, including issues such as forced
evictions and excessive maintenance fees. At
the request of tenants, HPP may provide legal assistance for the
formation of tenant association.
- Tenant -
Management
Negotiations -
HPP also
assists tenant associations with their negotiations with
management, provides legal counseling.
Finding help
through the HPP program
Contact: Gregory
Countess at the Legal Aid
Bureau, Inc.
500 E.
Lexington St.
Baltimore, MD
21202
410-951-7687
TTY:
800-735-2258 |
