HUD Cuts Multifamily Mortgage Insurance Rates, Spurs Affordability
HUD Secretary Julián Castro announced on Jan. 28 that the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) will cut multifamily mortgage insurance rates to spur the financing of affordable housing and energy-efficient apartments. According to the…
Utility Regulation Exemption Advances in Florida
TALLAHASSEE – Florida apartment owners with individually metered properties are one step closer to exemptions from utility regulations. Florida HB 491 successfully passed the House Regulatory Affairs Committee on February 4. The bill…
Iowa City Looks to Expand Protected Classes Status to Section 8 Voucher Holders
IOWA CITY – The Iowa City Council is considering an amendment to its Human Rights Ordinance that would make participants in the Housing Choice Voucher Program – better known as Section 8 – a protected class under local fair housing laws. This would…
Seattle Task Force Examining Housing Protections for Criminal Background
SEATTLE - Mayor Ed Murray has announced a new 18-member task force to work on how the city can reduce barriers to housing for people with criminal records. The volunteer task force will develop proposals to address rental-housing discrimination,…
Your Voice Matters. Can You Be Counted on to Advocate for Apartments?
Be part of the apartment industry’s most ambitious advocacy campaign ever! This year NAA is challenging members of the apartment industry to reach all 535 Congressional offices during the NAA Capitol Conference and Lobby Day, March…
An Industry On Point in 2015
Congress has called it a wrap for the holidays and 2015. But before heading out for their long winter break, lawmakers and the nation breathed a sigh of relief after the omnibus $1.8 trillion Fiscal Year 2016 federal government spending bill was…
In a Nutshell: Apartment Housing and FY 2016 Omnibus Funding
The Omnibus legislation funding the federal government for Fiscal Year 2016 that was approved by Congress and signed by President Obama included wide-ranging provisions that touched many aspects of the industry from housing finance reform to…
EB-5 Program Reauthorized and Temp Staff Gets More Flexibility
After months of contentious debate, troubling press coverage and oversight reports calling into question parts of the EB-5 “Jobs for U.S. Visa” Immigrant Investor Program, Congress decided to reauthorize the program unchanged through September 2016…
Cyber Info Sharing Bill Becomes Law
Shortly before leaving town for their holiday break, Congress passed the Cybersecurity Act of 2015 as part of the large end-of-year omnibus spending bill. This bipartisan, compromise legislation was born out of three separately passed bills that NAA…
Omnibus Leaves Water Rule on Cutting Room Floor
The Omnibus federal government funding bill failed to include a prohibition on funds to enforce the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Army Corps of Engineers’ (Corps) controversial “Waters of the U.S.” (WOTUS) rule. But the legislation did…