In comments to HUD, LeadingAge urged the agency to develop a robust physical inspection oversight mechanism that can be operationally implemented by housing providers through HUD’s new NSPIRE property inspection protocol. LeadingAge balanced full support for measures that provide the highest quality housing for older adults with caution regarding infeasible new physical inspection standards at federally-assisted properties.

In a Request for Comments published in June titled “National Standards for the Physical Inspection of Real Estate and Associated Protocols,” HUD had proposed the development of new NSPIRE standards, to been monitored by HUD’s Real Estate Assessment Center (REAC). The proposed new standards, which have not been fully developed by HUD, involve banning certain types of space heaters, monitoring the indoor unit temperature at HUD-assisted properties, and inspecting the drinking water quality in HUD housing.

HUD’s efforts to overhaul the agency’s oversight mechanisms of the physical state of the affordable housing portfolio began in 2019 with a demonstration program called “NSPIRE.” Many LeadingAge members opted in to participate in the demonstration, which is currently testing the new oversight mechanism with new standards. HUD intends to end the demonstration program and roll out the NSPIRE protocol to the broader portfolio in 2023.

More information about the newly proposed standards is available here, and LeadingAge’s NSPIRE comments to HUD are available here.

Robust Fire Safety Standards

Recent fires in federally-subsidized properties have led to devastating and yet fully preventable deaths among HUD-assisted households. In its comments, LeadingAge fully supported HUD’s proposed adjusted smoke and CO detection standards, and because of the associated fire and carbon monoxide risk, LeadingAge strongly supported the creation of a new deficiency under the HVAC standard for HUD-assisted properties for the presence of unvented, fuel-burning space heaters.

While HUD updated many of the fire safety standards to bring requirements up to National Fire Protection expectations and the International Fire Code standards, HUD stopped short of requiring hardwired smoke and CO detectors in existing HUD-assisted units. LeadingAge therefore called on HUD to consider implementing a gradual phase-in of tamper proof fire and CO alarms, including either ten-year sealed batteries or hardwired alarms. LeadingAge also encouraged HUD to consider adding a requirement for self-closing doors at unit entry and hallway entrances to minimize the spread of smoke throughout a property during a fire.

HUD also proposed a new approach by REAC inspectors to monitor the indoor unit temperature of HUD-assisted units, rather than monitoring the functionality of the heating or cooling unit, which could potentially restrict tenant choice in keeping windows open in the winter or using their own air conditioning units. LeadingAge pushed back on the newly proposed approach and instead urged HUD to focus on the functionality of HVAC, rather than the tenant’s choice of temperature inside their own home:

“The ambient in-unit temperature is sometimes determined by a lack of functionality of heating and cooling systems, and it is sometimes determined by resident actions. For example, a unit’s heat source may be fully functional and capable of reaching appropriate temperature levels, and yet the ambient room temperature may be below the minimum temperature standard because the resident chooses to live with open windows for fresh air. Similarly, a resident may choose not to utilize their fully functioning air conditioning system. Because HUD physical property inspection is not intended to monitor and oversee the behavior of tenants in their own homes, any inspection standard adjustment by HUD should make a clear distinction between a deficiency that results from the heating/cooling source functionality, which is provided and controlled by the property, and any consequences in temperature that results from the heating/cooling system use, which is controlled by the resident.”

Shared Responsibility for Safe Drinking Water

In its comments, LeadingAge strongly urged HUD to clarify proposed new standards requiring the agency to conduct visual inspections of water service points of entry into HUD-assisted properties and would potentially assign a property’s REAC score based on the safety of drinking water as supplied by the public water authority, which falls largely outside of the control of the property.

LeadingAge’s comments read: “LeadingAge fully supports the role of the federal government in remediating water quality through partnerships with private property owners. The unique nature of privately-owned, publicly subsidized housing results in shared responsibility to ensure the safety of drinking water. That said, much of water quality is determined by the sourcing system, which is managed outside of the property owner’s responsibility by local and state water authorities. HUD’s proposed addition of the term ‘safe’ to existing drinking water standards has the potential to drastically change the scope of current inspection methods and owner responsibility at HUD-assisted properties.”

Scope and Transparency of New Property Standards

In addition, LeadingAge called on HUD to limit the reach of new standards that oversteps into controlling tenant behavior, and requested that the agency provide additional opportunity for comment:

“The concepts for additional standards in some cases significantly broaden the scope and reach of HUD’s physical inspection oversight. Overall, we caution against several of the proposed new standards as reaching beyond the scope of what a housing provider can and should control in terms of a tenant’s living conditions in their own home. We also strongly urge HUD to provide an additional opportunity for public comments if and when the conceptionally-proposed standards are fully developed, prior to imposing new standards onto the HUD-assisted housing portfolio,” LeadingAge wrote in comments to the agency.

LeadingAge also urged HUD to improve transparency for new scoring associated with standards updates; a new scoring methodology associated with the new standards, which HUD has said will take effect in 2023, has not yet been released.

As the agency transitions from REAC’s current UPCS protocol to NSPIRE, LeadingAge will continue to work with members to provide the highest quality of housing for older adult households with low incomes, and with HUD to provide consistent and fair oversight.

To join the LeadingAge monthly workgroup on HUD Oversight Mechanisms, email Juliana Bilowich, LeadingAge’s Director of Housing Operations and Policy, at jbilowich@leadingage.org.

LeadingAge’s NSPIRE comments to HUD are available here.