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Voucher Homeownership 

Program Assessment 

Volume I 

Cross-Site Analysis 
Acknowledgments 

The Voucher Homeownership Program Assessment was conducted by Abt Associates Inc. under 

Contract C-OPC-21759, Task Order CHI-T0001 for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban 

Development’s Office of Policy Development and Research. The authors gratefully acknowledge the 

contributions made by many people in completing this work. We wish particularly to thank the 

Government Technical Monitor, Dr. Marina L. Myhre, and her colleagues at the U.S. Department of 

Housing and Urban Development for their ongoing guidance and insight. 

Within Abt Associates, several individuals made important contributions to this effort. The principal 

site visitors and report authors were Jennifer Turnham, Naomi Michlin, Gretchen Locke, Michelle 

Wood, and Michael Baker. Linda Pistilli made contributions to the cross-site report and case studies 

and provided thoughtful guidance during the study design stage. Larry Buron prepared the analysis 

of neighborhood characteristics. Chris Herbert provided guidance on the analysis of purchase 

transactions and financing models. Mary Joel Holin and Jill Khadduri provided technical review on 

the analysis and report. Claudia Solari, Heather Wood, Thomas Plihcik, and Sonia Ahmad assisted 

with the collection and analysis of program data. Laura Talle contributed to the preparation of the 

case studies. 

Finally, the authors would like to thank the voucher homeownership program administrators, partners, 

and participants who so generously shared information and ideas with us. 
Foreword 

One of the top priorities of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development is to 

expand homeownership opportunities for low-income families. Homeownership provides a 

family with a stable environment to live and raise their children. Homeownership increases a 

family's stake in the community. When a family owns their own home they build equity and 

accumulate wealth, which helps the family live the American Dream and improves the national 

economy by increasing the family's purchasing power. 

The homeownership option in the housing choice voucher program (Voucher 

Homeownership Program) offers public housing agencies the administrative flexibility to expand 

homeownership efforts in their communities. The basic premise of the homeownership option is 

that the subsidy payment that assists a program participant with the rent may instead be used to 

help a first-time homeowner pay for their monthly homeownership expenses. The idea to pennit 

tenant-based rental assistance to be used as homeownership assistance was fust authorized when 

the Housing and Community Development Act of 1992 created section 8(y) of the United States 

Housing Act of 1937. However, the program as initially enacted was not viable, and Congress 

subsequently amended section 8(y) as part of the Quality Housing and Work Responsibility Act 

of 1998

HUD issued the proposed and final rules for the Voucher Homeownership Program in 
Table of Contents 

Executive Summary ............................................................................................................................ iii

Chapter 1 

Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 1-1 

1.1 Study Background .................................................................................................................. 1-1 

1.2 Study Objectives..................................................................................................................... 1-5 

1.3 Site Selection.......................................................................................................................... 1-6 

1.4 Data Collection Approach ...................................................................................................... 1-7 

1.5 Report Contents...................................................................................................................... 1-8 

Chapter 2 

Overview of Study Sites.................................................................................................................... 2-1

2.1 Market Characteristics............................................................................................................ 2-2 

2.2 Housing Choice Voucher Program Characteristics................................................................ 2-7 

2.3 Voucher Homeownership Design......................................................................................... 2-10 

2.4 Site Descriptions................................................................................................................... 2-15 

Chapter 3 

Program Design ................................................................................................................................. 3-1

3.1 Targeting and Outreach .......................................................................................................... 3-3 

3.2 Homeownership Counseling .................................................................................................. 3-9 

3.3 Home Search and Inspections .............................................................................................. 3-17 

3.4 Post-Purchase Activities....................................................................................................... 3-19 

3.5 Management and Staffing .................................................................................................... 3-25 

Chapter 4 

Voucher Homeownership Purchase Financing............................................................................... 4-1

4.1 Financing Models................................................................................................................... 4-2 

4.2 Payment Burdens over Time .................................................................................................. 4-9 

4.3 Loan Servicing ..................................................................................................................... 4-12 

4.4 Ensuring the Affordability of Financing .............................................................................. 4-14 

4.5 Additional Sources of Purchase Financing........................................................................... 4-14 

Chapter 5 

Program Outcomes............................................................................................................................ 5-1

5.1 Characteristics of Program Participants ................................................................................. 5-1

5.2 Property and Neighborhood Characteristics........................................................................... 5-4 

5.3 Analysis of Purchase Transactions....................................................................................... 5-15 

5.4 Participant Views ................................................................................................................. 5-25 

i 
Chapter 6 

Lessons Learned ................................................................................................................................ 6-1

6.1 Program Outcomes................................................................................................................. 6-1 

6.2 Implementation Challenges.................................................................................................... 6-3 

6.3 Program Outlook .................................................................................................................... 6-8 

Appendix A 

Voucher Homeownership Programs as of November 2001 and September 2002 ...................... A-1 

Appendix B 

Comparison Between Rental Assistance and Homeownership Assistance under the Housing 

Choice Voucher Program .................................................................................................................B-1 

ii 
Executive Summary 

The idea of allowing low-income families to use voucher assistance to purchase housing is not a new 

one. In 1992, section 8(y) of the United States Housing Act of 1937 authorized the use of tenantbased assistance for eligible families who occupied homes purchased and owned by family members. 

However, it was not until the passage of the Quality Housing and Work Responsibility Act of 1998 

and HUD’s issuance of proposed and final rules for the voucher homeownership program that PHAs 

were able to offer low-income households the option to use their vouchers for homeownership. 

The voucher homeownership program is a component of the housing choice voucher program. The 

principal difference between the housing choice voucher rental program and the voucher 

homeownership program is that homeownership program participants use the monthly housing 

assistance provided by the voucher to help pay the homeownership expenses on a housing unit that 

they purchase, rather than to pay rent. The homeownership program also has some distinct 

regulations. (The differences between the rental and homeownership components of the housing 

choice voucher program are summarized in Appendix B of this report.) The regulations for the 

voucher homeownership program were established in the proposed and final rules for the program, 

published in April 1999 and September 2000 respectively. 

As of September 2002, HUD estimates that the voucher homeownership program has helped 

approximately 500 low-income families become homeowners. (Exhibit A-2 in Appendix A of this 

report provides a list of the approximately 100 PHAs offering the program as of September 2002.) 

The families who have purchased through the voucher homeownership program include families with 

children, families headed by persons with disabilities, and families headed by persons aged 62 and 

over. Minorities make up a substantial share of purchasers to date. The annual incomes of the 

program purchasers sampled for this study range from approximately $5,800 to $35,000.1

 The 

purchase prices of the homes purchased range from $32,500 to $167,300. 

 

Overview of the Study 

HUD contracted with Abt Associates Inc. in 2001 to describe the early implementation of the voucher 

homeownership program and to provide insight into aspects of the program that are working well and 

those that are problematic. The study examines how the program has been designed and implemented 

in different parts of the country, the characteristics of program purchasers and properties purchased, 

and the local factors that affect program implementation. The study also provides practical 

information to PHAs that may be interested in offering the voucher homeownership program. 

 

1

 This study includes PHAs authorized to operate the voucher homeownership program under the proposed 

rule as HUD pilot sites as well as PHAs operating the program under the final rule. The proposed rule did 

not establish a minimum income requirement for program participation. Under the final rule, which applies 

to all PHAs with the exception of the HUD pilot sites, households must have an annual income of at least 

$10,300 in order to participate in the program. 
This study is the first assessment of the program at this early stage of its implementation. The study

focuses on program implementation in 12 locations across the country: 

• Bernalillo County, NM 

• Colorado (state program) 

• Danville, VA 

• Green Bay, WI 

• Milwaukee, WI 

• Missoula, MT 

• Montgomery County, PA 

• Nashville, TN 

• San Bernardino, CA 

• Syracuse, NY 

• Toledo, OH 

• Vermont (state program) 

The 12 study sites were selected to include both PHAs that are operating their programs without 

outside resources (beyond the voucher program) to defray the cost of administering the program and 

PHAs that are offering the program as part of the Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation (NR)’s 

voucher homeownership demonstration. Under the demonstration, as of May 2002, NR has provided 

funding to 21 of its local NeighborWorks affiliates—community-based organizations that work with 

low-income homebuyers and homeowners—to partner with PHAs to implement the voucher 

homeownership program. In fiscal year 2001, Congress provided $5 million to NR to support this 

initiative. In fiscal year 2002, Congress appropriated an additional $10 million to continue support 

for these local partnerships. 

A second site selection criterion was that at least one family at the site had purchased through the 

program as of November 2001 when site selection was conducted. After satisfying these two criteria, 

we selected sites covering a range of program designs, geographic locations, and PHA characteristics. 

However, the 12 study sites were not intended to be representative of any broader pool of 

homeownership programs, housing markets, or PHAs. 

Data Collection and Analysis 

Abt Associates assembled a team of experienced site visitors to spend two days at each of the 12 

study sites interviewing program staff, partners, and participants. In addition to these in-depth 

interviews, we gathered data on families who have purchased through the program and on families 

who are planning to purchase, as well as detailed information on how the purchases are financed. 

Finally, we collected Census data at the neighborhood level to evaluate how the neighborhoods in 

which families purchase compare to the neighborhoods in which they were renting. 

Together, these sources of information provide a rich picture of the early implementation of the 

voucher homeownership program in 12 quite different local contexts. Because the program is at such 

an early stage and the questions of interest about the program are wide ranging, we attempted to 

provide as complete a picture as possible of the program’s early implementation, even if in some

cases the results must be considered preliminary. 

The study draws on complementary analytical techniques—case studies and cross-site analysis. The 

study findings are organized into two volumes based on these different modes of analysis. Volume 1 

of the report—the Cross-Site Analysis—highlights common themes and patterns across the study

sites, including lessons learned from the early implementation of the voucher homeownership 

program. Volume 2 of the report—the Case Studies—provides a detailed examination of the program

at each study site and tells the story of program implementation from the point of view of local 

iv 
program staff, partners, and participants. The case studies discuss in detail the choices made 

regarding program design—including eligibility and recruitment, financing arrangements, and 

counseling—as well as the experiences of PHA staff and program participants to date. 

Findings on Program Design and Implementation 

One of the goals of this study was to document how the voucher homeownership program is being 

implemented across the country. Unlike the regulations applicable to many other HUD programs, the 

voucher homeownership regulations established mandatory requirements covering only a few areas of 

program operations, such as minimum income and employment requirements, mandatory prepurchase counseling, and term limits on the provision of homeownership assistance. Otherwise, the 

regulations give PHAs flexibility in tailoring the program to local conditions. 

We found that within the program’s regulatory framework, the decisions that PHAs and their partners 

made in designing and implementing the program were shaped by local opportunities and limitations. 

Key contextual factors include staff capacity at the PHA, the availability of local partners, lender 

support for the program, the local housing market, and the characteristics of the PHA’s voucher 

population. The study examined how these and other factors influenced five areas of program design 

and implementation: targeting and outreach; pre-purchase counseling; home search and inspections; 

home purchase financing; and post-purchase activities. 

Targeting and Outreach 

• The study sites took varied approaches to identifying prospective homebuyers for the program. 

Some sites conducted broad outreach to current voucher participants, many of whom were not 

expected to be ready to purchase in the short term. Others focused outreach efforts more 

narrowly, targeting households believed to be able to purchase quickly. Decisions about how 

many and what type of households to target for the program were shaped by the local availability

of key program resources, such as resources for homeownership counseling. 

• Several study sites initially planned to target participants in the PHA’s Family Self Sufficiency 

(FSS) Program, but subsequently either eliminated the FSS participation requirement or 

reduced the emphasis on FSS participation as a selection criterion. These sites initially saw the 

voucher homeownership program as a logical extension of FSS activities. However, most sites 

found sufficient numbers of voucher households with stable employment and adequate incomes 

to make the homeownership program feasible without focusing solely on FSS participants. 

v 
Pre-Purchase Counseling 

• Ten of the 12 study sites rely on outside agencies to provide the pre-purchase homeownership 

counseling required for the program. At eight of the 12 sites, the counseling is being offered by

an NR-affiliated NeighborWorks organization. These eight sites include five sites participating in 

NR’s voucher homeownership demonstration and three sites that are not part of the demonstration 

but have nevertheless partnered with local NeighborWorks organizations to provide counseling to 

program participants. Of the four study sites not offering the counseling through NeighborWorks 

organizations, two sites are working with HUD-approved counseling agencies that provide the 

counseling free of charge. At the other two sites, the PHA chose to provide the counseling inhouse. In one case, the PHA could not identify an appropriate counseling provider in the area. In 

the other case, the PHA would have had to pay the outside provider for counseling services. 

• The content of the pre-purchase counseling is similar across the study sites and generally 

covers the topics recommended in the final rule. These topics include: budgeting and money

management; credit; what to look for in a home and neighborhood; how to obtain financing; how 

to avoid predatory lending; Fair Housing issues; and home maintenance. The number of hours of 

counseling required ranges from a low of four hours in Colorado to a high of 16 hours in San 

Bernardino. Most of the study sites use a combination of individual and classroom training 

formats. 

Home Search and Inspections 

• The program does not require that PHAs provide search assistance to participants as they look 

for houses to purchase, and few of the study sites have done so. All of the sites cover the search 

process in the pre-purchase counseling. In addition, some sites have reached out to local realtors 

to educate them about the program and to build support for the program, although other sites were 

concerned about steering participants to particular realtors. Program participants’ opinions of 

realtors were somewhat mixed. Some participants reported that they had a good experience with 

their realtor, but others went through one or two realtors before finding one they felt understood 

the program and had their best interests in mind. 

• Homes purchased through the program must have an independent inspection in addition to 

passing HUD’s Housing Quality Standards (HQS). The dual inspection requirement has played 

an important role in preventing some families from buying homes that may have required major 

repairs in the first few years of homeownership. Program staff noted several cases in which 

participants opted not to pursue a sale following problems identified by either the HQS or the 

independent inspection. 

vi 
Home Purchase Financing 

• The study sites are using three different models for applying the voucher assistance to home 

purchase transactions. In the first model, the voucher subsidy (the Housing Assistance Payment, 

or HAP) is counted as an addition to the household’s monthly income and the lender uses this 

combined income to determine the amount of the mortgage for which the household qualifies. In 

the second model, the amount of the mortgage is determined by adding the full amount of the 

HAP to the monthly payment that the purchaser could have made based on his/her own income. 

In this way, the HAP is not counted as income but is used directly to offset the monthly mortgage 

payment. In the third model, the HAP is used to pay a second mortgage while the borrower’s 

income is used to pay the first mortgage. 

• The financing models have different implications for the borrowing power of program 

participants and for the payment burden that participants may face at the end of the term of 

assistance. For example, the second model, known as the HAP as offset model, creates the 

greatest borrowing power for the participant but also carries the greatest risk that the participant 

will face a high payment burden at the end of the term of voucher assistance (10 or 15 years for 

non-elderly, non-disabled buyers and 30 years for elderly buyers or buyers with disabilities, 

depending on the term of the mortgage). Chapter 4 provides a full discussion of the different 

financing models and their implications. 

• All of the PHAs in the study have established basic policies to help prevent program 

participants from obtaining financing that will not be affordable over the long term. For 

example, all of the sites prohibit mortgages with balloon payments. Some sites also disallow 

seller financing and/or adjustable rate mortgages. 

• Many program purchasers need—and all of the study sites make available—additional 

subsidies beyond the voucher assistance. These additional subsidies include grants and loans to 

cover down payment and closing costs and first mortgages with below-market interest rates. 

Across the 12 study sites, the amount of additional subsidy that participants received at the time 

of purchase (mainly through grants and forgivable loans) ranged from $1,500 to $13,500, with an 

average subsidy at purchase of $4,784. All participants also receive an ongoing monthly subsidy

through the voucher program and, in some cases, through below-market interest rate loans. The 

value of the ongoing monthly subsidy over the life of the mortgage is typically much greater than 

the value of the subsidy at purchase. The majority of the monthly subsidy comes from the 

voucher assistance. The amount of voucher assistance can vary significantly based on the income

of the purchaser, the purchaser’s household size, and total housing costs. The monthly voucher 

assistance among the purchasers sampled from the study sites ranged from $87 to $762, with an 

average of $341. 

vii 
Post-Purchase Activities 

• Thus far, the sites have focused their resources on the pre-purchase components of the 

program—helping families to get to the point of purchasing. Few sites have developed a 

counseling component for program participants after they purchase. The program regulations do 

not require PHAs to provide post-purchase counseling; however, such counseling is advisable to 

help program participants learn to budget effectively for home repairs and other homeownership 

expenses beyond the mortgage. In addition to not providing post-purchase counseling, most sites 

have not yet developed effective mechanisms for monitoring participants’ monthly mortgage 

payments and providing early intervention in the case of delinquency. 

Findings on Program Outcomes 

An important goal of the study was to analyze the early outcomes of the voucher homeownership 

program based on information gathered during site visits and supplemented by data from HUD and 

the U.S. Census Bureau. Because the program is still at an early stage of implementation, the study

overall focuses more on process issues than on program outcomes. However, the study findings on 

outcomes—based on a sample of 84 purchasers—provide an initial picture of the characteristics of 

program participants, the units they have purchased, how the purchases were financed, and 

participants’ views of the program. 

Characteristics of Program Participants 

• More than three-quarters (78 percent) of the purchasers in the sample are female heads of 

household. Seventy-two percent of purchasers in the sample are households with children. By

comparison, female heads of household make up 75 percent of participants in the rental voucher 

programs at the 12 sites. Households with children make up 55 percent of participants in the 

rental voucher programs at the 12 sites.

• The voucher homeownership program is serving the same share of persons with disabilities as 

the rental program. In one of the 12 study sites, the voucher homeownership program serves 

exclusively persons with disabilities. In two other sites, the PHAs have partnered with local 

organizations that help persons with disabilities become homeowners. Overall, 35 percent of the 

purchasers in the sample were persons with disabilities. Persons with disabilities represent 

approximately the same share (35 percent) of rental voucher participants across the 12 study sites.

• The median income of the purchasers in the sample is $17,377, which is more than twice that 

of rental voucher participants at the sites. The voucher homeownership program has generally

been successful in serving higher income voucher-eligible families who are most likely to be able 

to afford homeownership. However, households with annual incomes at the program minimum

($10,300) have also been able to purchase through the program.

2

 2 At the HUD pilot sites authorized to offer the program under the proposed rule, in which there was no 

minimum income requirement, households with incomes as low as $5,800 have been able to purchase 

homes. 

viii 
• Almost half (48 percent) of the purchasers in the sample are minorities. In addition, 58 percent 

of the households working toward homeownership across the 12 study sites are headed by

minorities. By comparison, 54 percent of the households in the rental voucher program across the 

12 sites are headed by minorities. 

Characteristics of Units and Neighborhoods 

• The majority of voucher homeownership program participants in the sample bought two- or 

three-bedroom single-family detached houses. However, some purchasers have bought 

condominiums and townhouses. About one in five purchasers bought units built within the last 

two years.

• The program participants in the sample tended to purchase in neighborhoods with slightly 

higher incomes and greater residential stability than the neighborhoods where they had been 

renting. Based on neighborhood characteristics measured from 1990 and 2000 Census data, 

participants tended to purchase in neighborhoods with slightly higher homeownership rates and 

more single-family detached housing than existed in the pre-purchase neighborhood. In addition, 

the average poverty rate in the neighborhoods where participants purchased is slightly lower 

(based on 1990 data) than in the pre-purchase neighborhoods (16 versus 18 percent). Twelve of 

the 84 purchasers in the sample bought the unit that they had been renting through the voucher 

program. 

Characteristics of Home Purchase Financing 

• The voucher homeownership program has the capacity to serve families with a range of 

incomes in a range of housing markets. However, in sites where housing is particularly 

expensive, additional subsidy may be needed beyond the voucher to make homeownership 

affordable to program participants. The additional subsidy typically includes: mortgages with 

below-market interest rates; grants, forgivable loans, or deferred loans for down payment and 

closing costs; or some combination of these types of subsidies. 

• Analysis of the sample of 84 purchase transactions suggests that more than half of program 

purchasers have loan-to-value ratios of 100 percent or higher. These purchasers have no equity

in the property at the time of purchase, although they will gradually build equity as they pay the 

mortgage. Many participants also receive loans at the time of purchase (for example, to help with 

the down payment) that are forgivable and will become equity if the purchaser remains in the 

home for a certain period of time, usually five years. 

• Monthly homeownership expenses (which include the monthly mortgage payment plus utilities 

and additional estimated expenditures for maintenance and repairs) represent less than 50 

percent of gross monthly income for 87 percent of program purchasers. The monthly mortgage 

payment alone (principal and interest plus taxes and insurance) represents less than 30 percent of 

gross monthly income for close to 90 percent of program purchasers. 

ix 
Participant Views 

• Program participants are generally satisfied with their houses and neighborhoods, comfortable 

with their financing terms, and pleased with the assistance provided by PHA staff, counselors, 

and lenders during the purchase process. Most participants interviewed were overjoyed at 

having been able to purchase a home. Several conveyed a sense of disbelief that they had 

achieved their long-held goal of homeownership. 

• Most participants reported that they chose the voucher homeownership program as a way to 

stabilize their families and build an asset for the future. Many described the program as a 

chance to do better for themselves and their children. 

• Participants generally found the counseling useful, but given the many details associated with 

the home purchase process, they also described it as overwhelming. Several participants 

suggested that they would benefit from additional counseling now that they are homeowners, 

particularly on budgeting and home maintenance. 

 

Findings on Implementation Challenges 

A final goal of the study was to investigate the challenges that PHAs and their partners have faced in 

implementing the program and to identify issues that might present future challenges for the program. 

Among the 12 study sites, the main implementation challenges were developing relationships with 

lenders, preparing voucher households for homeownership, and finding staff resources to administer 

the program. 

• Developing partnerships with local lenders has been one of the biggest challenges to program 

implementation. Building effective partnerships with lenders is crucial to assisting households to 

purchase. In some communities, however, lenders have been reluctant to participate in the 

program due to concerns about loan servicing and selling the loans on the secondary market. 

These sites are still struggling to build effective lender relationships. 

• Preparing households for homeownership has been a challenge for all sites, particularly given 

the poor credit of many program applicants. Most sites have partnered with local nonprofit 

counseling agencies to provide the required pre-purchase homeownership counseling to program

participants and to help prepare participants for homeownership. However, the need for an 

extended period of support (in some cases one to two years) to help program applicants repair 

their credit and build savings has strained staff capacity at some sites. 

x 
• Even with effective partnerships in place, the voucher homeownership program at this early 

stage requires considerably more PHA staff time than the rental voucher program. At several 

sites, program staff reported that staff capacity at the PHA and partner agencies is a limiting 

factor on the number of households that can be served through the program. Planning and 

designing the voucher homeownership program tends to require a high level of staff effort by

senior PHA staff, such as the Executive Director or Housing Choice Voucher Program Director. 

Once the program is implemented, the amount of staff time and the involvement of senior staff 

decrease significantly, but assisting families to purchase continues to require a high level of staff 

effort. However, the likelihood that homeowners are much less likely to move, coupled with the 

fact PHAs do not evaluate and approve rent increases and are not required to conduct annual HQS 

inspections for homeowners, should eventually offset the “up-front” costs of implementation and 

the initial transition of families into homeownership. 

Program Outlook 

At this point in the implementation of the voucher homeownership program, less than two years since 

the publication of the final rule, PHAs and their partners have focused on assisting qualified 

households to purchase houses in good condition and under financing terms that will be affordable 

over the long-term. The 12 programs that form the basis of this study have been effective in 

developing the partnerships, financing arrangements, and management strategies necessary to 

maximize the opportunities presented by their local markets and minimize the constraints. 

Given the experiences of the study sites, it is reasonable to expect that the program will be able to 

assist eligible households to purchase modest housing in a variety of housing markets, with the 

possible exception of the most expensive markets in the country. However, homeownership vouchers 

are unlikely to become a large share of the overall voucher programs at those PHAs offering the 

homeownership option. Most PHAs in this study anticipated that between 10 and 20 households 

would be able to purchase through their programs each year. The size of a PHA’s voucher 

homeownership program is constrained by the number of qualified households (particularly

households with sufficient credit standing to qualify for a mortgage), the availability of staff resources 

to assist households to become purchase ready, the availability of additional subsidies beyond the 

voucher (such as below-market interest rate loans and down payment assistance), and the availability

of affordable housing stock for purchase. 

Supporting program participants after they purchase—through counseling, loan tracking, and other 

activities—is likely to be a key challenge for PHAs and their partners as the number of homebuyers 

grows. The ultimate measure of the program’s success will be the extent to which participants are 

able to meet their mortgage payments, build equity, and become self-sufficient over the long term. 

Although it is too early in the program’s history to evaluate its success along these dimensions, this 

study sets the stage for continued assessment and monitoring that will be critical to understanding the 

long-term results of the program. 

xi 
Chapter 1 

Introduction 

In 2001, Abt Associates Inc. began a HUD-sponsored study of the early implementation of the 

voucher homeownership program. The program is also known as the Housing Choice Voucher 

Homeownership Program or the Housing Choice Voucher Program—Homeownership Option. (For 

the remainder of this study, we refer to the program as the voucher homeownership program.) Abt 

assembled a team of site visitors with experience in the housing choice voucher program to study 12 

public housing agencies (PHAs) across the country that had implemented voucher homeownership 

programs. 

This document presents the final report on the study findings. The report is structured in two parts. 

Volume 1 presents the findings on program implementation and outcomes across the 12 study sites.1

 

Volume 2 presents case studies on the 12 study sites that describe in detail the individual voucher 

homeownership programs and form the basis for the cross-site analysis. 

The remainder of this chapter introduces the study and the report, discussing the study background, 

objectives, site selection process, data collection approach, and report structure. 

1.1 Study Background 

The voucher homeownership program is authorized by section 8(y) of the Housing Act of 1937, as 

amended by section 555 of the Quality Housing and Work Responsibility Act of 1998. Under the 

program, homeownership is considered a “special housing type,” like shared housing or group homes. 

Like other special housing types, PHAs have the choice of whether or not to offer homeownership as 

part of their housing voucher programs. Furthermore, like other special housing types, HUD does not 

provide additional units or special funding for PHAs that elect to provide the homeownership option 

for program participants. 

The proposed rule for the voucher homeownership program was published in the Federal Register on 

April 30, 1999.2

 Fifteen PHAs, including six sites in this study, were ultimately approved to operate 

pilot programs under the proposed rule. When the final rule was issued, these PHAs were given the 

choice to continue operating under the proposed rule or to amend their policies and procedures to 

comply with the final rule. HUD issued the final rule for the voucher homeownership program on 

September 12, 2000.3

 After the study was conducted, HUD issued a final rule on October 18, 2002, 

and an interim rule on October 28, 2002, that made several changes to the voucher homeownership 

program regulations that were in effect at the time of the site visits.4

 1

 The study sites are: Bernalillo County, NM; Colorado (statewide program); Danville, VA; Green Bay, WI; 

Milwaukee, WI; Missoula, MT; Montgomery County, PA; Nashville, TN; San Bernardino, CA; Syracuse, 

NY; Toledo, OH; and Vermont (statewide program). 

2

 64 Fed. Reg. 23,488 (April 30, 1999). 

3

 65 Fed. Reg. 55,134 (September 12, 2000). 

4

 67 Fed. Reg. 64,484 (October 18, 2002) and 67 Fed. Reg. 65,864 (October 28, 2002). 

1-1 
The differences between the proposed rule for the pilot sites and the final rule that were in effect at 

the time of the site visits are discussed in detail in the text of the final rule. For the purposes of this 

study, the most significant differences include: the establishment of a national minimum income

requirement; the establishment of a national minimum employment requirement;5

 the provision that 

homes that are either under construction or already existing are eligible for purchase through the 

program; and the requirement that PHAs wishing to offer the voucher homeownership option 

demonstrate the capacity to operate a successful homeownership program. 

There are currently more than 100 PHAs at various stages of implementing voucher homeownership 

programs. The majority of these PHAs are operating under the final rule, although a handful of 

former pilot sites have continued to operate under the proposed rule. In several areas, the 

Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation (NR) has made funding available through its local 

NeighborWorks affiliates to provide technical assistance and capital funds for homeownership efforts 

as part of its voucher homeownership demonstration. In fiscal year 2001, Congress provided $5 

million to NR to develop partnerships between PHAs and NeighborWorks organizations to 

implement the voucher homeownership program. In fiscal 2002, Congress appropriated an additional 

$10 million to expand these activities.6

 As of May 2002, approximately 30 PHAs were participating 

in NR’s voucher homeownership demonstration and offering the voucher homeownership option in 

partnership with 21 NR-funded NeighborWorks organizations.7

 

Unlike the regulations applicable to many other HUD programs, the voucher homeownership 

regulations established guidelines and specific mandatory requirements covering only a few broad 

areas of program operation—minimum income and employment requirements, mandatory prepurchase counseling, and term limits on the provision of homeownership assistance. Otherwise, the 

regulations allow—and PHAs have exercised—broad flexibility in tailoring the program to local 

conditions. Exhibit 1-1 provides a schematic of the components of the voucher homeownership 

program, highlighting some of the key program regulations at each stage of the process.8

 

As noted above, HUD continues to work at fine-tuning the program design and has made several rule 

changes subsequent to the time the case studies for this report were conducted. These changes 

include: 

• the establishment of a separate HUD minimum income eligibility requirement for 

disabled families and PHA administrative flexibility to set higher minimum income

requirements for both disabled and non-disabled families; 

 5 The employment requirement does not apply to households headed by elderly persons or persons with

disabilities. In addition, for elderly and disabled families, the income used to determine whether the family 

meets the minimum income requirement may include welfare assistance. 

6

 Ellen Lazar, “Helping Section 8 Families Move to Home Ownership,” NeighborWorks bright ideas, Spring 

2002. 

7 NeighborWorks organizations are autonomous, locally funded, nonprofit corporations that are supported by

NR and Neighborhood Housing Services of America. The NeighborWorks organizations in this study are 

housing counseling providers, nonprofit lenders, and, in some cases, affordable housing developers. It is

possible for NeighborWorks organizations to provide counseling or other services to PHAs even if those 

PHAs are not participating in NR’s voucher homeownership demonstration. 

8 For detailed program regulations, readers should consult the proposed and final rules for the program. 

1-2 
• clarification that otherwise eligible units owned or controlled by the PHA may be 

purchased by program participants provided certain conditions are met: and 

• the elimination of the requirement that the PHA recapture some or all of the housing 

assistance provided if the family subsequently sold the home. 

On June 13, 2001, as required under the American Homeownership and Economic Opportunity Act 

of 2000, HUD issued a proposed rule for one-time down payment assistance for eligible homebuyers 

as an alternative to the provision of monthly homeownership assistance during the term of the 

mortgage. This proposed rule proposed other “streamlining” amendments to the final rule, which 

when finalized would allow PHAs to set local eligibility income and work requirements, explicitly

authorize the use of manufactured housing in the homeownership program, and eliminate the 

requirement for recapturing some or all of the housing assistance provided when a unit is sold. 

1-3 
Exhibit 1-1

Key Concepts in the Voucher Homeownership Program

Eligibility 

Screening 

9 First-time homebuyers only 

9 Under the proposed rule, pilot PHAs may set minimum income and employment requirements 

9 Under final rule at the time of the site visits, the income of the adult members of the family who 

will own the home must equal or exceed the Federal minimum wage multiplied by 2,000 hours 

($10,300), and welfare assistance may not be considered unless the family is elderly or disabled

9 Non-elderly, non-disabled families must be employed full-time for a year before purchasing 

Homeownership 

Counseling 

9 Pre-purchase counseling is required under both the proposed and final rules (post-purchase 

counseling is optional) 

9 Counseling may be provided by the PHA, an entity retained by the PHA for this purpose, or a local 

HUD-sponsored counseling agency 

9 Format and content of counseling may vary 

Home Search 9 Units purchased can be single-family units, co-ops, or condo units, including manufactured homes 

on owned property 

9 Units purchased must be existing units or already under construction 

9 The family is responsible for finding a unit to purchase 

9 The PHA may set time limits for finding and purchasing units 

Home 

Inspections 

9 Units purchased must pass an HQS inspection by the PHA and have a professional home 

inspection by a qualified independent home inspector 

9 The family has the primary responsibility for securing financing, but the PHA may review the 

proposed financing to determine whether the lender and loan terms meet the PHA’s requirements 

9 The voucher subsidy is equal to the lower of the monthly homeownership expenses or the 

voucher payment standard, minus the family total tenant payment (typically 30 percent of monthly 

adjusted income) 

9 The term of assistance is 15 years for a mortgage term of 20 years or longer, or 10 years for a 

shorter mortgage term. The term limits do not apply to elderly or disabled families.

Home Purchase 

Financing 

Post-Purchase 

Activities 

9 Families must complete annual and interim reexaminations in accordance with the PHA’s 

voucher program policies 

9 The PHA may conduct post-purchase HQS inspections; require post-purchase counseling; or 

establish procedures to track families’ mortgage payments 

1-4 
1.2 Study Objectives 

The primary objective of the Voucher Homeownership Program Assessment is to provide HUD with 

an analysis of the early implementation of the voucher homeownership program at 12 sites across the 

country. The study is intended to describe how PHAs have designed and are implementing their local 

programs and to provide insight into the aspects of the program that are working well and those that 

are problematic. Thus, one of the study goals is to identify the “best practices” that have emerged at 

this early stage of the voucher homeownership program as well as the key implementation challenges 

that PHAs have encountered. 

The study is not designed to evaluate long-term outcomes of the program, such as program

participants’ ability to meet their mortgage obligations, to build equity, or to reduce their dependence 

on housing assistance. The voucher homeownership program is simply too new for that type of 

analysis—most PHAs have been operating programs for less than two years and most participants 

who have purchased have owned their homes for less than one year. However, the study does explore 

fully the lessons learned in the program thus far and highlights areas for future research. 

The objectives of the study may be summarized as follows: 

• Provide a comprehensive description of voucher homeownership program development and 

early implementation; 

• Document organizational aspects of the homeownership initiatives, including management 

and staffing structure, roles of program partners and other participating agencies, and 

performance monitoring systems; 

• Describe outreach and recruitment methods, including determining eligibility criteria and 

identifying eligible participants; 

• Document the status of program implementation, including the number of households who 

have applied for the program, the number who have completed each component of the 

program, the characteristics of program applicants and participants, the types of financing 

arrangements used, and the number of program participants who have purchased homes; 

• Describe the characteristics of program purchasers, the characteristics of the properties 

purchased, and the sources and level of financing for home purchases accomplished through 

the program; and 

• Describe key contextual factors in the areas where the voucher homeownership program has 

been implemented. These include characteristics of the local housing market, availability of 

housing stock for purchase, and the willingness of local lenders to provide access to loans, as 

well as characteristics of the PHAs implementing the program. 

1-5 
1.3 Site Selection 

In identifying the sites to include in this study, we began with two basic selection criteria. First, we 

wanted to strike a balance between PHAs that are operating their programs without outside resources 

(beyond the voucher program) and PHAs that are offering the program in partnership with local 

NeighborWorks organizations as part of NR’s voucher homeownership demonstration. We did not 

want a majority of the study sites to be places where the PHA has partnered with NR and 

NeighborWorks, because the NR partnerships give PHAs access to technical assistance and capital 

funds that are not provided under the regular voucher homeownership program. However, we 

thought that it would be beneficial to include some sites where PHAs have partnered with NR and 

NeighborWorks because these are some of the sites with the most experience administering the 

program. In addition, at the time of the site selection, the NR-affiliated sites accounted for 

approximately one quarter of all of the sites identified that had closings through the program, and 

more than half of the total number of closings. Finally, we anticipated that it would be useful to 

compare the experiences of PHAs in NR’s demonstration to PHAs implementing the program without 

these formal partnerships and attendant additional funding. 

The second criterion for selecting the study sites was the number of home purchases completed to 

date. We thought that it was important that the study sites have experience managing purchases 

through the program. The more purchases a PHA had managed, the more likely it was to have 

insights into the different aspects of program implementation and administration. However, given the 

modest number of purchases through the program when we began the site selection, we agreed to 

consider PHAs with just one closing.9

 

In addition to these two basic criteria, we considered program design, geographic location, and PHA 

characteristics in selecting the study sites to cover a range of these characteristics. However, the 12 

study sites were not intended to be representative of any broader pool of homeownership programs, 

housing markets, or PHAs. 

To identify the potential sites to be included in the study, we initiated a reconnaissance effort in 

October 2001 to generate a list of PHAs offering the voucher homeownership program. The 

reconnaissance effort involved a variety of outreach activities, including: 

• Literature and media searches; 

• Discussions with HUD headquarters and Field Office staff; 

• Solicitations from a posting on the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment 

Officials (NAHRO) web site; and 

• Discussions with Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, the Local Initiatives Support Corporation 

(LISC), and the National Housing Law Project (NHLP). 

Following these outreach efforts, we conducted brief telephone interviews in October and November 

2001 with all PHAs identified as having had purchases through the program or approaching that stage 

in their program implementation. Based upon these efforts, we identified 47 PHAs that had 

 9 Based on early reconnaissance, we estimated that as of November 2001 there had been between 100 and 

150 closings nationwide. As of September 2002, HUD estimates that the program has grown to

approximately 500 closings nationwide. 

1-6 
implemented the voucher homeownership program and either had or expected to have a closing by

early 2002. Exhibit A-1 in Appendix A presents the list of 47 PHAs and the number of closings that 

they reported as of November 2001. Taken together, the 47 PHAs reported approximately 140 

closings. The candidate list was narrowed to 14 sites and, upon further review, the following 12 

study sites were chosen: 

• Bernalillo County, New Mexico (Bernalillo County Housing Department) 

• Colorado (Department of Human Services, Division of Supportive Housing and Homeless 

Programs) 

• Danville, Virginia (Danville Housing and Redevelopment Authority) 

• Green Bay, Wisconsin (Brown County Housing Authority) 

• Milwaukee, Wisconsin (Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee) 

• Missoula, Montana (Missoula Housing Authority) 

• Montgomery County, Pennsylvania (Montgomery County Housing Authority) 

• Nashville, Tennessee (Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency) 

• San Bernardino, California (Housing Authority of the County of San Bernardino) 

• Syracuse, New York (Syracuse Housing Authority) 

• Toledo, Ohio (Lucas Metropolitan Housing Authority) 

• Vermont (Vermont State Housing Authority) 

Since November 2001, when the site selection for this study took place, the voucher homeownership 

program has grown significantly. As of September 2002, HUD estimates that there are approximately

100 PHAs with active voucher homeownership programs and that approximately 500 families have 

purchased homes through the program. Exhibit A-2 in Appendix A presents the list of PHAs offering 

the program and the number of closings that they reported as of September 2002. 

1.4 Data Collection Approach 

This study combines qualitative and quantitative data collection and analysis methods. The most 

important source of data was in-depth interviews conducted in the course of two-day visits to each 

site. The majority of the site visits were conducted in March and April 2002. Although the 

respondents differed from site to site depending on the structure of the program and the role of 

partners, on-site interviews were typically conducted with: 

• PHA staff responsible for designing and implementing the voucher homeownership program; 

• Staff from partner organizations providing homeownership counseling or other services; 

• Participating lenders and representatives from other entities assisting with financing 

purchases through the program; and 

• One to two program participants who had purchased houses through the program. 

The in-depth interviews with PHA staff, partners, and program participants were the principal source 

of information on the main topic areas of the study. We also conducted a property and neighborhood 

assessment for three properties purchased through the program (or fewer if the site had fewer than 

three closings). 

We collected two types of quantitative data from the study sites. First, at each site we collected 

detailed data on up to 10 households who had purchased homes through the program. For the five 

1-7 
sites that had fewer than 10 closings at the time of the site visit, we collected data on all purchases to 

date. For the seven sites with 10 or more closings, we collected data on a sample of 10 closings, 

including closings from early on in the program as well as recent purchases. For each purchase 

transaction, we collected information on the: 

• Demographic characteristics of the purchasers (including income, race/ethnicity, and 

household size); 

• Characteristics of the property purchased (including the size and type of unit and what kinds 

of repairs were required prior to purchase); and 

• Financing of the purchase (including purchase price, closings costs, loans, grants, and level of 

voucher subsidy). 

At each site, we also collected demographic data on up to 20 households who had begun 

homeownership counseling but had not yet purchased through the program. These data include 

income, race/ethnicity, and household size. 

In addition to the data collected on program participants, we collected data from HUD’s Multifamily 

Tenant Characteristic System (MTCS) on the characteristics of the rental voucher populations at 

each of the study sites. At the time of the site visits, the latest MTCS data available were from May

2001. 

Finally, we collected 1990 and 2000 Census data to analyze the characteristics of the neighborhoods 

where program participants purchased houses, using census tract as a proxy for neighborhood. As of 

July 2002, when this report was being written, several key variables were not yet available from the 

2000 Census at the census tract level. As a result, we based our analysis on a combination of data 

from 1990 and 2000. For each of the study sites, we collected data on the PHA’s jurisdiction, and on 

the individual census tracts where the sample of program participants had purchased houses and 

where they had been living prior to purchasing. The Census data collected include: poverty rate, 

race/ethnicity, homeownership rate, vacancy rate, age of housing, type of housing units, and housing 

tenure by race. 

1.5 Report Contents 

The remainder of this report details the study findings. They are presented using complementary

analytical techniques—cross-site analysis and case studies. The cross-site analysis—which forms 

Volume 1 of the report—highlights common themes and patterns across the study sites, including 

lessons learned from the early implementation of the voucher homeownership program. The crosssite analysis also provides a forum for analyzing the quantitative data collected on site, which for the 

most part has too few observations to analyze at the individual site level. The case studies—Volume

2 of the report—are an essential complement to the cross-site analysis in that they provide the details 

of the voucher homeownership programs at each study site and tell the story of program

implementation from the point of view of program staff, partners, and participants. 

1-8 
Chapter 2 

Overview of Study Sites 

The 12 sites selected for this study were not designed to be representative of the voucher 

homeownership program as it has been implemented across the country. Nevertheless, the sites 

reflect a range of housing markets, PHA types, and program types. In addition, the sites exhibit a 

variety of experiences implementing the voucher homeownership program. Some sites, particularly

those that began offering the program more than two years ago, have made substantial progress in 

assisting program participants to purchase. Other sites have only had a few closings to date, either 

because of the relative newness of their programs or because they have encountered significant 

implementation challenges. 

Exhibit 2-1 presents the list of sites and PHAs participating in the study, the year they started offering 

the program, and the number of closings that they reported through May 2002. The remainder of this 

chapter provides an overview of the markets that these PHAs serve, the characteristics of their 

voucher programs overall, key elements of their voucher homeownership programs, and the common 

challenges they have faced in implementing the program. The chapter concludes with brief 

descriptions of each study site. 

Exhibit 2-1 

Study Sites and PHAs, Ordered by Number of Closings as of May 2002

Site Name PHA Name Start Date Closings 

Nashville (TN) Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency 2000 33 

Colorado Department of Human Services, Supportive 

Housing and Homeless Programs 

2000 21

Vermont Vermont State Housing Authority 2000 15 

Bernalillo County (NM) Bernalillo County Housing Authority 2001 15 

Syracuse (NY) Syracuse Housing Authority 2000 12 

Montgomery County (PA) Montgomery County Housing Authority 2000 12 

Green Bay (WI) Brown County Housing Authority 2001 11 

Danville (VA) Danville Housing and Redevelopment Authority 2000 10 

Missoula (MT) Missoula Housing Authority 2001 5 

Milwaukee (WI) Milwaukee Housing Authority 2001 3 

San Bernardino (CA) Housing Authority of the County of San 

Bernardino 

2000 3

Toledo (OH) Lucas Metropolitan Housing Authority 2001 2 

2-1 
2.1 Market Characteristics 

The 12 study sites represent a range of geographic locations and market characteristics. Exhibit 2-2 

provides select demographic, economic, and housing market data for each of the sites based on the 

2000 Census. In this table, the study sites are ordered by median house value, moving from the 

lowest median house value to the highest. The geographic boundaries of the study sites are defined 

by the PHA’s jurisdiction, which also determines where voucher homeownership program

participants can purchase, unless they choose to “port” their vouchers to another PHA’s jurisdiction.1

 

Two of the 12 programs under study (Vermont and Colorado) cover entire states, eight cover single 

counties, and two (Milwaukee and Missoula) cover cities. At half of the sites, at least 10 percent of 

the population lives in rural areas (based on 1990 Census data). In Vermont, 68 percent of the 

population lives in rural areas. 

The sites represent a range of income levels and poverty rates. The poorest sites are Milwaukee and 

Missoula, which both have median household incomes under $35,000 and poverty rates around 20 

percent. At the other end of the spectrum is Montgomery County, PA, with a median household 

income of $60,829 and a four percent poverty rate. 

There is significant variation among the study sites in the cost of housing, but for the most part the 

sites are not located in the most expensive housing markets in the country. Seven of the 12 sites have 

median house values at or below $119,600, the median house value for the country as a whole. The 

other five sites have median house values less than 150 percent of the national median. 

Among the study sites, Danville and Milwaukee have the least expensive housing—with median 

house values just over $80,000—and Montgomery County and Colorado have the most expensive 

housing—with median house values over $160,000. At some sites, however, housing appears to be 

either particularly affordable relative to the overall wealth of the population or particularly expensive. 

For example, Syracuse, which has a relatively high median income level (higher than 7 of the 12 

sites), has the third lowest median house value ($85,400). By contrast, Missoula has the lowest 

median income ($30,366) but the third highest median house value ($132,500). The University of 

Montana, which is located in Missoula, drives up housing costs in this area. 

Although the average income of purchasers and the prices of units purchased vary across the study

sites, 80 percent of the voucher homeownership program participants sampled for this study bought 

houses for less than $100,000. The percentage of the housing stock valued at less than $100,000 is, 

therefore, another important indicator of housing affordability across the study sites. 

 1 Generally, households determined eligible for homeownership assistance by the initial PHA may purchase 

a unit outside of the initial PHA’s jurisdiction, if the receiving PHA is administering a voucher 

homeownership program and is accepting new homeownership households. None of the study sites had 

had a participant port in or out of the jurisdiction to purchase through the voucher homeownership program. 

2-2 
Exhibit 2-2 

Characteristics of Study Sites, Ordered by Median House Value in 2000

Site Name Danville Milwaukee Syracuse Toledo Vermont Jurisdiction Pittsylvania 

County, VA 

City of Milwaukee, WI 

Onondaga County, NY 

Lucas County, OH 

State of Vermont 

Total Population 61,745 596,974 458,336 455,054 608,827 Percent of Pop. in Rural Areas (1990) 15.6% 0% 16.7% 5.2% 67.9% 

Percent of Pop. in Poverty 11.8% 21.3% 12.2% 13.9% 11% Median Household Income $35,153 $32,216 $40,847 $38,004 $39,417 Homeownership Rate 80.1% 45.3% 64.5% 65.4% 70.6% Homeowner Vacancy Rate 1.4% 1.3% 2.0% 1.4% 1.4% Rental Vacancy Rate 9.2% 6.0% 9.4% 8.3% 4.2% Age of Housing Stock 

1990 to 2000 24% 3% 8% 8% 12% 1980 to 1989 17% 4% 11% 9% 16% 1940 to 1979 48% 59% 54% 56% 41% 1939 or earlier 11% 34% 27% 27% 31% 

Value of Owned Units 

Less than $50,000 16% 19% 6% 16% 4% $50,000 to $99,999 55% 54% 61% 41% 35% $100,000 to $149,999 19% 21% 21% 22% 35% $150,000 to $199,999 6% 3% 7% 10% 15% $200,000 or more 4% 2% 5% 10% 11% 

Median House Value $80,300 $80,400 $85,400 $90,700 $115,288 

Source: 2000 Census unless otherwise noted.

2-3 
Exhibit 2-2 (cont.) 

Characteristics of Study Sites, Ordered by Median House Value in 2000

Site Name Green Bay Bernalillo Co. San Bernardino Missoula MontgomJurisdiction Brown County, 

WI 

Bernalillo County, NM 

San Bernardino County, CA 

Missoula, MT Montgome

County, PA 

Total Population 226,778 556,678 1,709,434 57,053 750,097 Percent of Pop. in Rural Areas (1990) 16.8% 4.4% 7.1% 24.1% 9.8% 

Percent of Pop. in Poverty 6.9% 13.7% 15.8% 19.7% 4.4% Median Household Income $46,447 $38,788 $42,066 $30,366 $60,829 Homeownership Rate 65.4% 63.7% 64.5% 50.2% 73.5% Homeowner Vacancy Rate 0.9% 1.8% 3.1% 1.0% 1.0% Rental Vacancy Rate 3.8% 11.5% 7.3% 3.6% 5.6% Age of Housing Stock 

1990 to 2000 22% 21% 17% 8% 13% 1980 to 1989 15% 19% 27% 9% 12% 1940 to 1979 50% 56% 52% 64% 55% 1939 or earlier 13% 4% 4% 17% 20% 

Value of Owned Units 

Less than $50,000 2% 2% 3% 1% 1% $50,000 to $99,999 35% 24% 27% 18% 12% $100,000 to $149,999 37% 39% 33% 47% 31% $150,000 to $199,999 16% 18% 19% 20% 26% $200,000 or more 10% 16% 18% 14% 31% 

Median House Value $116,100 $128,300 $131,500 $132,500 $160,700 

Source: 2000 Census unless otherwise noted.

2-4 
In addition to the cost of housing, the age of the housing stock varies across the study sites. The age 

of the housing stock—particularly the portion of the stock that is affordable to program participants—

affects the voucher homeownership program because any repairs required for the unit to pass HUD’s 

Housing Quality Standards (HQS) must be done at the seller’s expense. As a result, program

participants have a better chance at purchasing if they can find units that are in good condition. 

Across the 12 study sites, Milwaukee, Vermont, Syracuse, and Toledo have the oldest housing stock. 

At these sites, more than 25 percent of the housing stock was built before 1940. By contrast, in 

Colorado, San Bernardino, Danville, and Bernalillo County, more than 40 percent of the housing 

stock was built after 1979, and less than 12 percent was built before 1940. 

Several sites noted that the local housing market presents a challenge for their voucher 

homeownership programs and a potential limiting factor on program growth. These sites include 

Colorado, Vermont, Montgomery County, Missoula, and San Bernardino. With the exception of 

Green Bay, these sites have the highest median house values of the sample. Moreover, they also tend 

to be places where the local Fair Market Rent (FMR) is low relative to the cost of owned housing 

(represented by the median house value). 

The FMR is used in the rental voucher program and is designed to approximate the average rent at the 

middle of the market (in most markets, the FMR is set at the 40th percentile of local rents). The 

voucher payment standard is typically set at between 90 and 110 percent of the FMR. The voucher 

payment standard, which applies to the homeownership program as well as the rental program, forms 

the upper bound on the amount of subsidy that a program participant can receive. If the FMR is high 

relative to the median house value, housing will be more affordable to program participants because 

the amount of subsidy available (based on the FMR) is high relative to the local cost of housing for 

purchase. By contrast, if the FMR is low relative to the median house value, housing will be less 

affordable to program participants because the amount of subsidy available will be low relative to the 

local cost of housing for purchase. 

Exhibit 2-3 compares the local FMRs to the median house values at each of the sites. Using this 

measure, Missoula, Green Bay, and San Bernardino have the least affordable housing markets of the 

12 study sites, because their FMRs are the lowest relative to their median house values. Milwaukee, 

Syracuse, and Toledo, by contrast, have high FMRs relatively to their median house values, 

indicating that these sites have the most affordable housing markets for program participants.

2-5 
Exhibit 2-3 

Two-Bedroom Fair Market Rent (2002) as a Percentage of Median House Value (2000)

Study Site Fair Market Rent Median House Value FMR as a % of 

Median House Value 

Milwaukee $658 $80,400 0.818% 

Syracuse $588 $85,400 0.689% 

Toledo $561 $90,700 0.619% 

Vermont $815a

 $135,000a 0.604% 

Nashville $660 $115,800 0.570% 

Danville $452 $80,300 0.563% 

Montgomery Co. $839 $160,700 0.522% 

Bernalillo Co. $654 $128,300 0.510% 

Colorado $893a $176,600a

 0.506% 

San Bernardino Co. $656 $131,500 0.499% 

Green Bay $563 $116,100 0.485% 

Missoula $540 $132,500 0.408% 

a For the two state programs, Vermont and Colorado, we did not have a single FMR for the whole area. For Vermont, 

we used the FMR (and median house value) for the Burlington MSA, the only metropolitan area in the state. For 

Colorado, we used the FMR (and median house value) for the Denver PMSA, where many program participants have 

purchased and where affordability is a particular problem. 

Sources: 2000 Census; HUD FY 2002 Fair Market Rents.

2-6 
2.2 Housing Choice Voucher Program Characteristics 

The 12 study sites reflect a variety of PHA types and sizes. The size of the housing choice voucher 

programs (including both homeownership and rental vouchers) ranged from about 700 vouchers 

(Missoula) to about 7,800 vouchers (San Bernardino).2

In addition to differences in program size, the study site PHAs serve somewhat different populations. 

Exhibit 2-4 presents select data on the characteristics of housing choice voucher program participants 

at each of the sites. Most notably, Colorado’s Supportive Housing and Homeless Programs (SHHP), 

a division of the state Department of Human Services, primarily serves persons with disabilities. 

Vermont, Syracuse, Toledo, and Green Bay also serve a relatively high percentage of persons with 

disabilities, although non-elderly, non-disabled households make up the largest share of their housing 

choice voucher populations. 

The median annual income of housing choice voucher program participants across the sites ranges 

from $6,654 (Danville) to $10,998 (Milwaukee). The four sites with the lowest income housing 

choice voucher populations are Danville, Colorado, Missoula, and Toledo. In the case of Colorado, 

the low median income reflects the fact that the majority of housing choice voucher participants are 

persons with disabilities. In the other three sites with the lowest income housing choice voucher 

populations, the median income for the population of the PHA’s jurisdiction as a whole is also 

relatively low. 

The 12 study PHAs vary in the racial and ethnic composition of their housing choice voucher 

populations. More than half of housing choice voucher participants in the Milwaukee, Nashville, 

Syracuse, Toledo, Montgomery County, and Danville sites are African American. In the Vermont, 

Colorado, Green Bay, and Missoula sites, more than three-quarters of the housing choice voucher 

participants are white. The Bernalillo County and San Bernardino housing choice voucher programs 

serve a significantly higher proportion of Hispanic households than the other sites. In Bernalillo 

County, 68 percent of BCHD’s housing choice voucher participants are Hispanic. In San Bernardino, 

25 percent of HACSB’s housing choice voucher participants are Hispanic. 

Finally, 10 of the 12 PHAs have active Family Self Sufficiency (FSS) programs for housing choice 

voucher program participants.3

 Among the study sites, Syracuse and Toledo have the largest FSS 

programs as a proportion of their total housing choice voucher programs. These are also the only two 

sites where enrollment in FSS is required for participation in the voucher homeownership program

(discussed further in Chapter 3). 

 2 These figures reflect the size of the voucher programs in March and April 2002, when we conducted the 

majority of the site visits for this study. The program sizes reported in Exhibit 2-4 are based on an extract

of MTCS data from May 2001. 

3 Two sites—Danville and Milwaukee—have FSS programs targeted at public housing residents and not 

voucher participants. 

2-7 
Exhibit 2-4 

Housing Choice Voucher Program Characteristics at Study Site PHAs, Ordered by Program Size

Site San Bernardino Milwaukee Nashville Vermont Syracuse PHA HACSB HACM MDHA VSHA SHA Number of Households 7,228 4,533 4,258 2,977 2,652 Percent Elderly 18% 10% 6% 22% 14% Percent with Disabilities 24% 23% 16% 41% 32% Percent Non-Elderly/Non-Disabled 58% 67% 78% 38% 55% Percent Female-Headed 86% 94% 92% 75% 87% Mean Household Size 2.9 2.8 2.9 2.1 2.8 Percent with any Wage Income 36% 50% 47% 28% 38% Median Household Income $10,049 $10,998 $8,537 $8,364 $9,732 Race/Ethnicity of Household Head 

White, non Hispanic 24% 10% 11% 99% 34% Black, non Hispanic 48% 86% 88% 0% 57% Hispanic 25% 3% 1% 0% 7% Other Races, non Hispanic 3% 0% 0% 0% 2% 

Number of Voucher Participants 

Currently Enrolled in FSS 

589 -- 117 158 412 

Source: HUD’s Multifamily Tenant Characteristics System, May 2001. 

2-8 
Exhibit 2-4 (cont.) 

Housing Choice Voucher Program Characteristics at Study Site PHAs, Ordered by Program Size

Site Name Colorado Green Bay Montgomery Co. Bernalillo Co. Danville PHA SHHP BCHA MCHA BCHD DRHA Number of Households 2,381 2,128 1,592 1,454 642 Percent Elderly 5% 17% 13% 13% 19% Percent with Disabilities 88% 32% 28% 23% 24% Percent Non-Elderly/Non-Disabled 7% 51% 60% 64% 58% Percent Female-Headed 14% 77% 87% 77% 88% Mean Household Size 1.4 2.3 2.7 2.8 2.5 Percent with any Wage Income 36% 49% 45% 44% 33% Median Household Income $6,876 $9,590 $9,896 $8,580 $6,654 Race/Ethnicity of Household Head 

White, non Hispanic 80% 77% 37% 20% 23% Black, non Hispanic 7% 6% 56% 4% 76% Hispanic 12% 4% 7% 68% 0% Other Races, non Hispanic 1% 13% 1% 8% 0% 

Number of Voucher Participants 

Currently Enrolled in FSS 

42 25 90 76 -- 

Source: HUD’s Multifamily Tenant Characteristics System, May 2001. 

2-9 
2.3 Voucher Homeownership Program Design 

This section discusses the basic elements of the voucher homeownership programs at the 12 study

sites. The program features at each site are described in detail in the case studies. In addition, 

Appendix B provides a chart highlighting the key differences between the rental voucher program and 

the homeownership voucher program. 

Five of the 12 study sites (Nashville, Vermont, Syracuse, San Bernardino, and Toledo) are offering 

the voucher homeownership option as part of NR’s voucher homeownership demonstration. As 

mentioned in Chapter 1, as of May 2002, NR has made funding available to 21 of its local 

NeighborWorks affiliates to provide technical assistance and capital funds for voucher 

homeownership programs across the country. In NR’s program, PHAs offer the voucher 

homeownership option in partnership with these local NeighborWorks affiliates. Exhibit 2-5 shows 

the capital and operating funds that the NeighborWorks organizations at the five NR-affiliated sites in 

our sample received from NR in fiscal year 2001 for voucher homeownership program activities. 

Exhibit 2-5 

Funds Awarded by NR to NeighborWorks Organizations at the Five NR-Affiliated Study Sites 

in Fiscal Year 2001

Site Expendable Grant Capital Grant Total 

Nashville $37,700 $196,250 $233,950

San Bernardino $80,000 $240,000 $320,000 

Syracuse $102,000 $213,000 $315,000

Toledo $15,400 $80,080 $95,480

Vermont $203,280 $411,720 $615,000

Source: Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation (confirmed by the sites).

Exhibit 2-6 provides an overview of the key elements of the voucher homeownership programs across 

the 12 study sites. Three of the five sites participating in the NR program (Nashville, Syracuse, and 

Vermont) were also authorized by HUD in 1999 and 2000 to develop pilot programs under HUD’s 

proposed rule for the voucher homeownership program. Three study sites not participating in the NR 

program (Colorado, Montgomery County, and Danville) were also authorized to develop pilot 

programs. The HUD pilot sites did not receive any additional resources, but had the option to offer 

the program under the proposed rule (Montgomery County and Vermont have since switched to the 

final rule) and generally started their programs earlier than the other sites, which had to wait for the 

publication of the final rule in 2000. Generally, the HUD pilot sites are the furthest along in program

implementation among the 12 study sites. Bernalillo County, with 15 closings, is an exception. 

2-10 
Exhibit 2-6 

Overview of Voucher Homeownership Program by Study Site, Ordered by Number of Loans Closed through May 2002 

Study Site Nashville Colorado Vermont Bernalillo Co. SyracuProgram Affiliation (HUD Pilot, NR) HUD Pilot and NR HUD Pilot HUD Pilot and NR None HUD PiRule (Proposed or Final) Proposed Proposed Final Final ProposeRequirements for Participationa $15,000 income 

3 yrs. work 

1 yr in HCVPb

Disability 

None None 1 yr in H

$15,000 FSS 

Counseling Provider Partner Partner Partner Partner Partner Financing Model Two-mortgage HAP as offset HAP as income HAP as income 

HAP as offset 

HAP noin lendecalculat

Number of Loans Closed 33 21 15 15 12 Number of Closings Expected 25 per year 10 per year 30-40 per year 20 per year Not spe

a Beyond the requirements established by the final rule. b Housing Choice Voucher Program (HCVP).

2-11 
Exhibit 2-6 (cont.) 

Overview of Voucher Homeownership Program by Study Site, Ordered by Number of Loans Closed through May 2002

Study Site Green Bay Danville Missoula Milwaukee San BernardiProgram Affiliation (HUD Pilot, NR) None HUD Pilot None None NR Rule Final Proposed Final Final Final Requirements for Participationa None None 1 yr in HCVP 1 yr in HCVP None 

Counseling Provider Partner PHA Partner Partner Partner Financing Model HAP as offset HAP as offset 

HAP as Income 

HAP as offset HAP as offset 

HAP as income 

Two-mortgage 

Number of Loans Closed 11 10 5 3 3 Number of Closings Expected 8-10 per year 20 per year 30 total Not specified 20 per year 

a Beyond the requirements established by the final rule.

2-12 
As will be discussed in more detail in the next chapter, seven of the 12 study sites have imposed 

requirements for participation in the voucher homeownership program in addition to the minimum

income and employment requirements established by the final rule. At five sites, the voucher 

homeownership option is only available to households who have been participating in the PHA’s 

rental voucher program for at least a year. In Colorado, the program is also restricted to persons with 

disabilities. Two sites operating under the proposed rule (Nashville and Syracuse) require program

participants to have incomes above the $10,300 minimum established by the final rule. Finally, two 

sites (Syracuse and Toledo) require FSS participation. 

As shown in Exhibit 2-6, all but two of the study sites have contracted with one or more outside 

agencies to provide the required homeownership counseling to program participants. Two sites, 

Montgomery County and Danville, are conducting the counseling in-house using PHA staff and guest 

speakers. Danville initially partnered with a local nonprofit agency to provide the counseling but 

later made the decision to bring the counseling in-house. The two state agencies in the study, 

Colorado and Vermont, work through multiple agencies to provide homeownership counseling 

statewide. 

There are three main “models” that have been used to finance purchases through the voucher 

homeownership program. These models refer to how lenders treat the voucher subsidy, known as the 

Housing Assistance Payment (HAP), during the mortgage underwriting process. Throughout this 

report, we refer to the models as (1) HAP as income, (2) HAP as offset, and (3) the two-mortgage 

model. The three models are briefly introduced below and summarized in Exhibit 2-7. In Chapter 4, 

we revisit the financing models in more detail and discuss their comparative advantages and 

drawbacks. 

In the HAP as income model, the amount of the HAP is considered by the lender to be part of the 

program participant’s monthly income. In this model, the lender qualifies the participant for a 

mortgage based on earned income plus the HAP (“grossed up” by 25 percent to account for the fact 

that it is not taxable), using the lender’s qualifying ratio. For example, if the lender has a qualifying 

ratio of 28 percent, the lender will be willing to make a loan to the participant based on a monthly

mortgage payment equal to or less than 28 percent of the participant’s total monthly income (the 

participant’s own income and the grossed up HAP). Under this model, therefore, only 35 percent of 

the grossed up HAP (125 percent of the HAP times 28 percent) is considered when qualifying the 

participant for a mortgage. The HAP as income model gives participants the least borrowing power 

of the three models, but it also carries the least risk because it results in the lowest participant 

contribution to the monthly mortgage payment. 

In the HAP as offset model, the lender first determines the monthly mortgage payment for which the 

participant qualifies on the basis of his or her own income alone (based on the lender’s qualifying 

ratios). The lender then adds the amount of the monthly HAP to that monthly mortgage payment 

amount, to generate a maximum monthly mortgage payment that the participant can afford (based on 

the participant’s own income and 100 percent of the HAP). The lender then calculates the total 

mortgage amount from this maximum monthly payment. Because 100 percent of the HAP is used to 

directly offset monthly mortgage payments, this model gives participants the most borrowing power 

of the three models. However, this model is also considered to have the most risk relative to the other 

models because of higher payment burdens over the total term of the mortgage, as discussed further in 

Chapter 4. 

2-13 
In the two-mortgage model, the participant qualifies for a first mortgage on the basis of his or her 

own income alone. The participant then obtains a second mortgage on the basis of the HAP. This 

second mortgage typically has a term that is shorter or the same as the term of the HAP assistance (10 

or 15 years for non-elderly, non-disabled borrowers, depending on the term of the first mortgage), so 

that by the time the assistance runs out, the second mortgage is paid off. This model yields less 

borrowing power than the HAP as offset model (because the HAP is amortized over a shorter period 

of time) but greater borrowing power than the HAP as income model. This model is considered to 

have a moderate amount of risk relative to the other models because it has payment burdens over the 

life of the mortgage that are higher than those in the HAP as income model, but lower than those in 

the HAP as offset model, as discussed further in Chapter 4. 

Exhibit 2-7 

Overview of Voucher Homeownership Financing Models

HAP as Income HAP as Offset Two-Mortgage

How the HAP is 

used to determine

the amount of the

mortgagea 

The HAP is grossed up by

25 percent and added to 

the participant’s monthly

income. The lender 

qualifies the participant 

based on 28 percent of 

his/her total monthly

income (including 35 

percent of the HAP, i.e. 

125 percent of the HAP 

times the 28 percent 

qualifying ratio). 

The HAP is counted as a 

direct offset to the monthly

mortgage payment. The 

lender qualifies the 

participant based on 28 

percent of his/her monthly

income (not including the 

HAP) and adds 100 

percent of the monthly

HAP to that amount. 

The lender qualifies the 

participant for a first 

mortgage based on 28 

percent of his/her own 

income (not including the 

HAP). The lender 

qualifies the participant for 

a second mortgage 

(typically with a 10- or 15-

year loan term) based on 

100 percent of the 

monthly HAP. 

Relative Borrowing 

Power and Risk 

Lower Higher Moderate

a Assumes that the lender’s qualifying ratio is 28 percent of gross monthly income.

Among the 12 study sites, two sites are using only the HAP as income model, three are using only the 

HAP as offset model, and three are using only the two-mortgage model. In addition, three sites are 

using both the HAP as offset and the HAP as income models to finance purchases through the 

program. Finally, in Syracuse the HAP is not considered in the mortgage calculation and is paid to 

families who qualify for the mortgage on the basis of income from other sources. 

The number of loans closed through the voucher homeownership program varies across the study

sites. Nashville has produced by far the most closings, with 33 closings as of May 2002. Three 

sites—Colorado, Vermont, and Bernalillo County—have produced between 15 and 20 closings. Four 

sites—Syracuse, Montgomery County, Green Bay, and Danville—have produced between 10 and 15 

closings. Four sites—Missoula and Missoula, Milwaukee, and San Bernardino, and Toledo—have 

produced fewer than 10 closings. 

The number of closings can be indicative of the presence or absence of implementation challenges. 

However, it is also important to remember that the HUD pilot sites (Nashville, Colorado, Vermont, 

2-14 
Syracuse, Montgomery County, and Danville) were authorized to offer the program in early 2000, 

some nine months before the publication of the final rule, and have therefore had more time to help 

families to purchase. Although the number of closings to date may be an indicator of a site’s success 

in implementing the program, the ultimate measure of the program’s success will be the extent to 

which participants are able to meet their mortgage payments, build equity, and become self-sufficient. 

It is too early in the program’s history to evaluate its success along these key dimensions. 

2.4 Site Descriptions 

The remainder of this chapter provides brief descriptions of the study sites and their voucher 

homeownership programs. Readers interested in a more detailed description of one or more programs 

should refer to the case studies in Volume 2 of this report. 

Nashville 

The Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency (MDHA) administers approximately 4,600 

housing choice vouchers in Davidson County, Tennessee, which includes the city of Nashville. 

MDHA is part of NR’s voucher homeownership demonstration and offers the voucher 

homeownership program in partnership with Affordable Housing Resources, a housing counseling 

agency and nonprofit lender. MDHA began operating the voucher homeownership program as a 

HUD-approved pilot site under the proposed rule. Through May 2002, 33 households had purchased 

houses through the program. At this time, the only other PHA in the country with as many closings 

was the Burlington Housing Authority (not included in this study). MDHA’s voucher 

homeownership participants have bought houses in the city of Nashville and its inner-ring suburbs. 

Most have purchased in revitalizing city neighborhoods. The incomes of the 10 voucher 

homeownership purchasers sampled at this site ranged from $15,392 to $33,803, with an average 

income of $23,180. 

Colorado 

Colorado’s Supportive Housing and Homeless Programs (SHHP), a division of the state Department 

of Human Services, administers approximately 2,600 housing choice vouchers statewide, mostly for 

persons with disabilities. SHHP began operating the voucher homeownership program as a HUDapproved pilot site under the proposed rule. SHHP’s program is limited to persons with disabilities. 

Through May 2002, 21 households had purchased houses through the program. Below-market 

interest rate loans and multiple sources of down payment assistance have allowed a particularly lowincome group of people to purchase. The incomes of the 10 voucher homeownership purchasers 

sampled at this site ranged from $5,796 to $14,280, with an average income of $8,310.4

 4 The family with an annual income of $5,796 purchased a house for approximately $94,900. The family

obtained a first mortgage of $75,900 at a three percent interest rate, $16,000 in deferred loans, and a 

forgivable loan for $3,500. The household’s monthly mortgage payment is $372, all of which (at the time 

of purchase) was covered by the HAP. Colorado is a HUD pilot site operating under the proposed rule. A 

family with an income of $5,796 at the time of purchase would not be eligible to participate in the program

under the final rule because of the minimum income requirement of $10,300. 

2-15 
Vermont 

The Vermont State Housing Authority (VSHA) administers approximately 3,500 housing choice 

vouchers across the state of Vermont. VSHA is part of NR’s voucher homeownership demonstration 

and offers the voucher homeownership program in partnership with five NR-funded Homeownership 

Centers across the state. VSHA began operating the voucher homeownership program as a HUDapproved pilot site under the proposed rule. Through May 2002, 15 households had purchased houses 

through the program. VSHA administers its own statewide program but also provides technical 

assistance to other PHAs in the state interested in offering the program. VSHA helps these PHAs 

design voucher homeownership programs and may administer homeownership vouchers on behalf of 

these agencies if necessary. The incomes of the 10 voucher homeownership purchasers sampled at 

this site ranged from $12,098 to $35,148, with an average income of $19,004. 

Bernalillo County

The Bernalillo County Housing Department (BCHD) administers approximately 1,700 housing 

choice vouchers in Bernalillo County, New Mexico, which includes the city of Albuquerque. BCHD 

began operating the program in 2001 under the final rule. Through May 2002, 15 households had 

purchased houses through the program. BCHD has partnered with the New Mexico Mortgage 

Finance Agency to provide below-market first mortgage loans and down payment assistance to 

program participants. BCHD has also partnered with two nonprofit organizations to provide 

homeownership counseling. One of these organizations provides counseling specifically for persons 

with disabilities and has been instrumental in helping program participants to use loan products 

designed for persons with disabilities. The incomes of the 10 voucher homeownership purchasers 

sampled at this site ranged from $13,338 to $25,092, with an average income of $15,662. 

Syracuse 

The Syracuse Housing Authority (SHA) administers approximately 2,900 housing choice vouchers in 

Onondaga County, New York. SHA is part of NR’s voucher homeownership demonstration and 

offers the voucher homeownership in partnership with Home Headquarters, a housing counseling 

agency and nonprofit lender. SHA is a HUD-approved pilot site and is operating the program under 

the proposed rule. Through May 2002, 12 households had purchased houses through the program. 

SHA’s program is targeted to FSS program participants earning at least $15,000 a year. The 

relatively high income of the households admitted to SHA’s voucher homeownership program, 

together with the local affordability of units for purchase, has allowed the 12 purchasers to qualify for 

mortgages on their own income alone (not including the voucher subsidy). The voucher subsidy is 

not used to determine the mortgage amount but is paid directly to the participant for the duration of 

the period of housing assistance to offset the monthly mortgage payment and other allowable 

homeownership expenses. SHA is unique among the 12 study sites in this respect. The incomes of 

the nine voucher homeownership purchasers sampled at this site ranged from $15,017 to $32,984, 

with an average income of $21,932. 

 

Montgomery County 

The Montgomery County Housing Authority (MCHA) administers approximately 2,900 housing 

choice vouchers in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. MCHA began operating the voucher 

homeownership program as a HUD-approved pilot site under the proposed rule. Through May 2002, 

12 households had purchased houses through the program. MCHA is one of two PHAs in the study

2-16 
providing homeownership counseling to program participants in-house. This requires a higher than 

average level of staff effort devoted to the program. MCHA also has an unusually large number of 

lenders participating in the program. The incomes of the 10 voucher homeownership purchasers 

sampled at this site ranged from $15,480 to $33,208, with an average income of $26,004. 

Green Bay

The Brown County Housing Authority (BCHA) administers approximately 2,800 housing choice 

vouchers in Brown County, Wisconsin, which includes the city of Green Bay. BCHA began 

operating the program in August 2001 under the final rule. Through May 2002, 11 households had 

purchased houses through the program. BCHA has partnered with Neighborhood Housing Services 

(NHS) of Green Bay to provide homeownership counseling for program participants. In the first nine 

months of the program, BCHA has faced relatively few challenges to program implementation and 

expects to exceed its goal for the number of closings in the first year. The incomes of the four 

voucher homeownership program participants who had purchased at the time of the site visit ranged 

from $10,377 to $24,283, with an average income of $19,818. 

Danville

The Danville Housing and Redevelopment Authority (DHRA) administers just over 700 housing 

choice vouchers in Pittsylvania County, Virginia, located near the North Carolina border. BCHA 

began operating the voucher homeownership program as a HUD-approved pilot site under the 

proposed rule. Through May 2002, 10 households had purchased houses through the program. The 

city of Danville, the largest in the county, has lost population and jobs in recent years and has a 

relatively affordable housing market. However, the poor credit of program applicants has limited the 

number of closings to date. The incomes of the 10 voucher homeownership purchasers sampled at 

this site ranged from $7,371 to $17,923, with an average income of $11,209.5

 

Missoula 

The Missoula Housing and Redevelopment Authority (MHA) administers approximately 700 housing 

choice vouchers in Missoula, Montana. MHA began operating the program in 2001 under the final 

rule. Through May 2002, five households had purchased houses through the program. MHA’s 

program has benefited from strong partnerships that the PHA has developed with lenders and 

counselors. The main challenge facing the program is the rising cost of housing in Missoula and the 

inability of participants to afford to purchase unless the full amount of the voucher subsidy can be 

used to qualify the participant for a mortgage (the HAP as offset model). The incomes of the five 

voucher homeownership purchasers at this site ranged from $10,774 to $24,160, with an average 

income of $18,087. 

 5 Danville is a HUD pilot site operating under the proposed rule. A family with an income of $7,371 at the 

time of purchase would not be eligible to participate in the program under the final rule because of the 

minimum income requirement of $10,300. 

2-17 
Milwaukee 

The Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee (HACM) administers approximately 4,900 housing 

choice vouchers in the City of Milwaukee. HACM began offering the voucher homeownership 

option in October 2000, shortly after the publication of the final rule. Through May 2002, three 

households had purchased houses through the program. Program staff attribute the small number of 

closings to a lack of lender support and the poor credit of program applicants. In addition, the two 

nonprofit organizations providing counseling to program participants have only limited capacity to 

serve households requiring extensive counseling and credit repair before being able to purchase. As 

of May 2002, HACM expected 8 to 10 more households to purchase over the next six months. The 

income of the program participant who had purchased at the time of the site visit was $13,773. 

 

San Bernardino 

The Housing Authority of the County of San Bernardino (HACSB) administers approximately 7,800 

housing choice vouchers in San Bernardino County, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. HACSB 

began offering the voucher homeownership option in October 2000 under HUD’s final rule. Through 

May 2002, three households had purchased houses through the program. HACSB has been 

concerned about lender participation and the availability of second mortgage financing for program

participants and has taken a conservative approach to program outreach and recruitment. At the time 

of the site visit, HACSB was still resolving issues related to program financing but expected the 

number of closings to increase over the next year. Program staff do not see San Bernardino’s 

relatively tight housing market as a major obstacle, although finding houses in good neighborhoods 

can be challenging. The incomes of the three voucher homeownership purchasers at this site ranged 

from $20,800 to $24,777, with an average income of $22,278. 

Toledo 

The Lucas Metropolitan Housing Authority (LMHA) administers approximately 3,400 housing 

choice vouchers in the Toledo metropolitan area. LMHA began operating the program in 2001 under 

the final rule. Through May 2002, two households had purchased houses through the program. 

Toledo has a large stock of housing that is affordable to voucher program participants. However, the 

number of closings has been limited by the poor credit of program participants and a lack of 

participation by private lenders, who thus far have been unwilling to tailor loan products to voucher 

program participants. LMHA anticipates that the rate of purchases will increase over the next six 

months as clients who have been working on their credit begin to qualify for mortgages. The incomes 

of the two voucher homeownership purchasers at this site were $11,300 and $13,065. 

2-18 
Chapter 3 

Program Design 

This chapter discusses the design of the voucher homeownership program across the 12 study sites. 

The chapter focuses on four main components of the program: targeting and outreach; 

homeownership counseling; home search and inspections; and post-purchase activities. A fifth 

component of the program—home purchase financing—is discussed separately in Chapter 4. Exhibit 

3-1 provides a schematic of how the program components fit together and some of the key choices 

that PHAs and their partners have to make in implementing these components. Common to all of the 

program components are decisions about staffing and management. The final section of this chapter 

discusses staffing and management decisions and the level of staff effort that PHAs and their partners 

have committed to program implementation. 

This chapter suggests that the decisions that PHAs and their partners make in designing and 

implementing their voucher homeownership programs are shaped by the opportunities and limitations 

presented by the local context in which they operate. Key contextual factors influencing local 

programs include: 

• The size and staff capacity of the PHA; 

• The availability of local partners to provide homeownership counseling; 

• Lender support for the program; 

• The availability and affordability of the local housing stock; and 

• The income and credit characteristics of the pool of program applicants. 

Each of these factors played a role in shaping program design at each of the study sites, but the 

relative importance of these factors—and the extent of their influence on program design—varied 

considerably across sites. Some of these differences are discussed in this chapter, but the case studies 

(Volume 2 of the report) are the richest source for understanding how the confluence of factors came 

into play at each site. The cross-site analysis presented here is designed to highlight the key patterns 

across the sites to suggest some of the common themes that have emerged from the sites’ experiences 

with program implementation. 

3-1 
Exhibit 3-1

Program Components and Key Decisions

Targeting and 

Outreach 

• Who should be served? 

• How should applicants be recruited? 

• Who is responsible for outreach, recruitment, and eligibility screening? 

• Who will provide the counseling and how will it be funded? 

• Which applicants can attend counseling and when? 

• How much counseling will be required and in what format? 

• How will long-term needs, such as credit repair, be addressed? 

Homeownership

Counseling 

• What assistance will be provided to homeownership candidates during the 

home search process? 

• How will the two inspections be managed? 

Home Search 

and Inspections 

• Which financing model(s) will work in the local market? 

• Which financing model(s) will lenders accept? 

• What subsidies will be available to finance the purchase in addition to the 

voucher housing assistance payment? 

• How will the loans be serviced? 

Home Purchase 

Financing 

Post-Purchase 

Activities 

• Will post-purchase counseling be required? 

• Will the PHA conduct post-purchase HQS inspections? 

• What kind of tracking should be done of participants after they purchase?

3-2 
3.1 Targeting and Outreach 

The study sites took varied approaches to identifying prospective homebuyers for the voucher 

homeownership program. Some programs elected to “cast a wide net,” conducting broad outreach to 

current voucher program participants (and in some cases waiting list applicants), many of whom were 

not expected to be ready to purchase in the near term. Other programs elected to focus recruitment 

efforts more narrowly, targeting households believed to be likely to capitalize quickly on the 

homeownership option. In addition, some programs elected to impose additional requirements for 

participation in the voucher homeownership program. Programs that chose to limit the number of 

families who may use the homeownership option—either by imposing additional requirements, by

marketing the program more narrowly, or some combination of the two—typically did so because of 

limited staff resources to handle a large number of program applicants. This section examines the 

approaches taken to targeting and outreach. Exhibit 3-2 summarizes some of the key features of the 

targeting and outreach approaches at each site. 

Defining the Target Population 

HUD requirements for participating in the homeownership option are few. For programs operating 

under the final rule, participants must have at least 12 months of employment with wages equivalent 

to 30 hours per week at the Federal minimum wage (currently an income of $10,300).1

 The final rule 

does not allow PHAs to establish other eligibility standards for minimum income and employment. 

However, PHAs may impose additional requirements for participation that are not related to income

and employment, such as requiring that households rent through the housing choice voucher program

for at least a year before pursuing voucher homeownership. PHAs authorized to begin pilot programs 

under the proposed rule are not subject to the minimum income and employment requirements, so 

long as they are operating under the proposed rule. 

Six of the 12 study sites (Colorado, Missoula, Milwaukee, Green Bay, Syracuse, Nashville) impose 

additional requirements for participation in the voucher homeownership program. Colorado’s 

program is unique among the 12 sites in that it is restricted to persons with disabilities. This is 

because the PHA (the state Department of Human Services, Supportive Housing and Homeless 

Programs) primarily serves persons with disabilities. At the other study sites, the homeownership 

option is available to persons with disabilities as well as non-disabled households. In Colorado, 

Missoula, and Milwaukee the homeownership option is only available to households who have been 

participating in the rental voucher program for at least one year. Program staff in these programs 

reported that this allows staff to use participants’ rental payment history as an indicator of their 

readiness and ability to make mortgage payments. 

In Green Bay, although there are no income or employment requirements beyond those in the final 

rule, applicants must pre-qualify for a mortgage before beginning homeownership counseling. Green 

Bay staff report that this was a strategic decision motivated by limited staff capacity. PHA and 

counseling agency staff have found that current targeting methods yield as many applicants as staff 

can support. 

 1 The employment requirement is waived for households headed by elderly persons or persons with

disabilities. In addition, for elderly and disabled families, the income used to determine whether the family 

meets the minimum income requirement may include welfare assistance. 

3-3 
Exhibit 3-2 

Targeting and Outreach Strategies 

Nashville Colorado Vermont Syr

Rule operating under Proposed Proposed Final ProStarted by targeting FSS participants? 

Yes No No Yes

Current target population Annual income of $15,000; 3 

yrs. employment; and FSS participation or paying at 

least $300 in rent a 

Persons with disabilities who have participated in voucher program for 1 year; no income or employment requirements 

Minimum income and employment per final rule 

Min$15and 

Reason for target population Perceived increased 

opportunity for success in obtaining a mortgage and purchasing 

PHA primarily serves persons with disabilities; site did not set income requirements because did not want to screen out households who might be able to obtain a mortgage 

Site did not want to limit applicant pool 

Site on hnea

Current outreach strategy Annual reexaminations and 

word of mouth 

Annual reexaminations and word of mouth 

Letters sent to voucher participants when local counseling agency has capacity to serve new clients 

Targneweve

Reason for outreach strategy Large backlog of eligible 

applicants; number of applications processed limited by partners' capacityfor orientation sessions 

Current outreach methods yield as many applicants as program staff can handle 

Capacity of counseling agencies shapes marketing strategy

Site appincrclos

a Exceptions apply to households headed by elderly persons and/or persons with a disability.

3-4 
Exhibit 3-2 (cont.) 

Targeting and Outreach Strategies

Montgomery Co. Bernalillo Co. Danville Gre

Rule operating under Final Final Final FinaStarted by targeting FSS participants? 

No No No Yes

Current target population Minimum income and 

employment per final rule 

Minimum income and employment per final rule; some screening for credit before applicants are referred to homeownership counseling 

Minimum income and employment per final rule 

Minempappfor a starcou

Reason for target population Site did not want to limit 

applicant pool because anticipates that only a fraction of applicants will be able to purchase 

Site did not want to limit applicant pool because anticipates that only a fraction of applicants will be able to purchase 

Site did not want to limit applicant pool because anticipates that only a fraction of applicants will be able to purchase 

Targby sand 

Current outreach strategy Targeted mailings Briefings and annual 

reexaminations 

Targeted mailing to newadmissions, annual reexaminations, and word of mouth 

Worand 

Reason for outreach strategy Current outreach methods 

yield as many applicants as program staff can handle 

Site has sufficient backlog of eligible applicants 

Initial newspaper ad generated large response; current outreach methods yield as many applicants as program staff can handle 

Initiageninteyieldprog

3-5 
Exhibit 3-2 (cont.) 

Targeting and Outreach Strategies

Missoula Milwaukee San Bernardino Tol

Rule operating under Final Final Final FinaStarted by Targeting FSS participants? 

No No Yes Yes

Current target population Minimum income and 

employment per final rule and 1 year participation in PHA's voucher or public housing program 

Minimum income and employment per final rule and 1 year participation in PHA's voucher program 

Minimum income and employment per final rule; priority given to families earning two times the voucher payment standard and with 2 years employment 

Minempand 

Reason for target population Site did not want to limit 

applicant pool and thought that lenders should have the ultimate decision as to who can purchase 

Site did not want to limit applicant pool because it anticipated that many would have poor credit 

Site thinks that higher income families will have a better chance to qualify for a mortgage and purchase in the local housing market, but does not restrict participation to higher income families. 

Site partprephas poteallowadmhom

Current outreach strategy Annual reexaminations and 

word of mouth 

Annual reexaminations, resident newsletter, and word of mouth 

Briefings, annual reexaminations, and word of mouth 

Maipart

Reason for outreach strategy Site thinks it is most efficient 

to recruit applicants through the annual reexamination process versus conducting broader outreach 

Site had huge response to initial outreach and is nowconstrained by capacity of counseling agencies 

Initial press event generated large response; current conservative strategy reflects concerns about availability of financing and tight housing market 

Site identhat attrato th

3-6 
Two of the HUD pilot sites operating under the proposed rule—Syracuse and Nashville—require 

incomes above the minimum amount subsequently established by the final rule. Syracuse requires 

one year of employment and an annual income of $15,000, because program staff believe the 

program’s resources should be targeted to households nearly ready to purchase. Noting similar 

concerns about targeting households likely to purchase, Nashville requires three years of 

employment, $15,000 in income, and either a monthly household rent payment of at least $300 or 

participation in the PHA’s FSS program. 

In San Bernardino, the PHA gives priority to households with annual incomes equal to twice the 

annualized voucher payment standard (currently $17,500 for a two-bedroom voucher) and with 24 

months of employment. Program staff think that these households have the best chance of qualifying 

for a mortgage and purchasing in San Bernardino’s increasingly tight housing market. However, 

households who meet the minimum income and employment criteria established by the final rule and 

are able to pre-qualify for a mortgage are given equal priority. 

Five of the study sites initially planned to target participants in the PHA’s FSS programs. Staff in 

these sites explained that the homeownership option was a logical extension of FSS activities. FSS 

participants were likely to be preparing for employment or already employed, and at least some

would have accumulated savings in FSS escrow accounts that could be used for a home purchase. 

Despite the apparent logic of this strategy, two sites (Nashville and Green Bay) dropped the FSS 

participation requirement and two sites (San Bernardino and Toledo) reduced the importance of FSS 

participation as a selection criterion. Syracuse remains committed to requiring FSS participation, 

although in both Syracuse and Toledo families may enroll in FSS at the time they express interest in 

homeownership (and therefore may not have participated in the FSS program for long before 

purchasing). 

Of the sites that have dropped the FSS requirement, the main factor contributing to the decision was 

that many FSS participants were not close to being ready to purchase, while there were other voucher 

program participants who were not in FSS but nevertheless had the income, employment history, and 

credit to purchase relatively quickly. For example, Nashville staff analyzed data on their rental 

voucher program and learned that more than one-third of voucher program households had relatively

high incomes and a history of stable employment. Approximately 1,800 Nashville households met 

the local homeownership program eligibility requirements, even though the local criteria are 

substantially more restrictive than the final rule requirements. San Bernardino staff similarly report 

that they found a substantial number of eligible applicants outside their FSS program. Staff at these 

sites argue that there are enough voucher households with stable employment and high enough 

incomes to make the homeownership program feasible without focusing on FSS participants. 

To test whether this argument applies across the study sites, we analyzed the income distribution of 

voucher program participants at each site, comparing FSS and non-FSS participants. We limited our 

analysis to non-elderly, non-disabled households earning at least 80 percent of their income from

wages.2

 We also assumed that a PHA would need at least 50 voucher program participants in its FSS 

program to make restricting the homeownership option to FSS participants a reasonable strategy. We 

 2 The MTCS does not contain information on the number of weekly hours worked by the head of household. 

We chose to proxy full-time employment (defined as at least 30 hours worked per week) by counting as 

eligible only those households with at least 80 percent of income coming from wages. 

3-7 
found that 8 of the 12 sites had fewer than 50 voucher households enrolled in FSS.3

 Moreover, the 

four sites with large enough FSS programs all had a substantial number of non-FSS households in the 

$15,000 to $25,000 income range. These findings confirm the view of site staff that focusing on FSS 

participants for voucher homeownership recruitment may not make sense for all PHAs offering the 

program. 

Conducting Outreach 

Many of the study sites began by “casting a wide net” in their efforts to educate current and 

prospective voucher program participants about the homeownership option. The outreach methods 

employed by these agencies included newspaper advertisements (Danville), press events (San 

Bernardino), mailings to all voucher program participants (Montgomery County, Bernalillo County,

Toledo, and Missoula), and notices in a housing agency newsletter (Milwaukee). These approaches 

tended to attract far more applicants than the programs could serve, including households who were 

not eligible for the program or who needed extensive credit repair and other preparation before they

would be ready for homeownership. For example, in Danville, where the housing agency only

administers about 700 vouchers, nearly 500 households expressed interest in the program after the 

initial announcement. In Bernalillo County and Nashville more than 200 voucher participants 

responded to early outreach. Obviously, the volume of applicants can strain the capacity of available 

staff to provide screening, referrals, homeownership counseling, and other support. 

Sites that have reached out to a broadly defined applicant pool—despite resource constraints—

generally did so because they wanted to get the word out about the homeownership option, even to 

households who might not be able to take advantage of the program. Staff in both the Missoula and 

Colorado programs indicated they preferred to reach out broadly to prospective homebuyers and then 

let lenders determine who would qualify to purchase. Further, staff in several sites including 

Montgomery County, Bernalillo County, Danville, and Toledo indicated they knew that only a few of 

those who received the general mailing sent out by the PHA would qualify and choose to pursue 

homeownership, but they did not want to risk missing interested, eligible applicants by limiting the 

outreach. 

As shown in Exhibit 3-2, a number of sites now limit their outreach to more passive approaches such 

as mentioning the homeownership option at annual reexamination meetings with voucher program

participants and in newsletters or flyers. As the number of closings increases, word of mouth also 

becomes an increasingly common source of new referrals to the program. 

Sites that either initially or over time adopted more passive outreach strategies commonly reported 

that limited local resources contributed to their decisions about outreach. Concerns about staff 

capacity to work with potential homebuyers led some programs to use targeting to keep the program’s 

size within the capacity of available staffing. Staff in Syracuse cited limited staff capacity as a factor 

in their decision to limit the program to families participating in FSS and meeting more stringent 

income and employment requirements than those established in the final rule. Staff in Missoula, a 

small community with a voucher program of about 700 households, found that one-on-one contacts 

with families at reexamination was more efficient than general mailings to identify promising 

candidates. 

 3

 The validity of this analysis depends upon the accuracy of the MTCS data on FSS enrollment. 

3-8 
In Milwaukee, disagreement over targeting has become a source of debate among the program

partners. A broad outreach strategy generated extensive interest in the program, but the partner 

counseling agencies did not have sufficient staff to enroll interested applicants in homebuyer 

education. The PHA has resisted adopting the stricter screening criteria recommended by the 

counseling agencies. The resulting mismatch between the PHA’s interest in marketing the program

broadly and the counseling agencies’ limited capacity to train the high volume of prospective 

purchasers has caused tension among the Milwaukee partners and has resulted in fewer closings than 

local staff expected they would achieve. 

Outcomes of Outreach 

Interest in the voucher homeownership option has been high at all sites. The challenge has been 

achieving a balance in getting the word out to all who may be eligible and interested while keeping 

enrollment at levels that available staff can support. In some cases, such as Nashville and Bernalillo 

County, a large backlog of applicants will keep available staff busy for some time to come, assuming 

applicants do not lose interest if they are not admitted to the program right away. Given that most 

sites do not exclude participants with problematic credit histories or other barriers to homeownership, 

staff expect that a significant proportion of eligible applicants will require several months to two 

years to prepare to purchase. 

3.2 Homeownership Counseling 

Homebuyer education and counseling efforts have experienced rapid growth in recent years as part of 

a concerted effort by Federal, state, and local governments, nonprofit community organizations, and 

others in the housing industry to expand homeownership opportunities for low- and moderate-income 

households. Homeownership counseling has long been thought to be an effective tool for enhancing 

the success of individual homebuyers and for preventing mortgage default. Recent empirical 

evidence supports this belief. A study prepared by Abdighani Hirad and Peter Zorn assessed 90-day

mortgage delinquency rates among nearly 40,000 mortgages originated under Freddie Mac’s 

Affordable Gold program, a loan program aimed at buyers with incomes at or below 100 percent of 

area median income.

4

 The study found that buyers who received pre-purchase counseling had a 19 

percent lower 90-day delinquency rate than buyers who did not receive such counseling. 

The final rule requires that a family receiving assistance under the voucher homeownership option 

must participate in a housing counseling program provided by the PHA. The rule requires that a 

family must attend and satisfactorily complete this training prior to the commencement of 

homeownership assistance, but PHAs have wide latitude in designing the components of the 

counseling programs and in designating counseling providers. In this section we describe the 

approaches in place in the study PHAs to provide homebuyer counseling. We focus on the providers 

of homebuyer counseling, the format and content of the counseling, the amount of counseling 

required, and the sources of funding for the counseling. These characteristics are summarized in 

Exhibit 3-3. 

 4 Abdighani Hirad and Peter M. Zorn, “A Little Knowledge is a Good Thing: Empirical Evidence of the 

Effectiveness of Pre-Purchase Homeownership Counseling,” Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard 

University, Low Income Homeownership Working Paper Series, August 2001. 

3-9 
Exhibit 3-3 

Overview of Pre-Purchase Counseling 

Nashville Colorado Vermont 

Criteria for referral to counseling Applicants meeting site’s 

eligibility criteria and determined (through an individual assessment) to be able to purchase within 6 months 

Applicants meeting site’s eligibility criteria 

Applicants meeting site’s eligibility criteria 

Required hours and sessions 9 hrs in 2 sessions 4 hrs in 1 session (although 

some providers may conduct longer sessions) 

8 hrs in 1 session 

Format of required sessions Group session with other 

first-time homebuyers 

Group session with other first-time homebuyersa AND 

one individual session for some participants 

Group session with other first-time homebuyers AND at least one individual session

Provider of counseling One outside agency Multiple outside agencies Multiple outside agencies 

Guest speakers Lenders and realtors Varies Varies Strategy for clients needing moretime to qualify for a mortgage 

Referred to other agency for credit counseling, maintain contact with lead counseling agency

Varies; some may be referred to other agency for credit counseling 

Varies by agency; some offer long-term “financial fitness” class 

Main source(s) of funding for counseling 

NR funds, and other counseling agency funds 

State Housing Finance Agency fees and other counseling agency funds 

NR funds, and other counseling agency funds 

a Some agencies in Colorado’s network offer specialized counseling for persons with disabilities. 

3-10 
Exhibit 3-3 (cont.) 

Overview of Pre-Purchase Counseling

Montgomery Co. Bernalillo Co. Danville 

Criteria for referral to counseling All applicants Applicants who self-certify

that they meet the site’s eligibility criteria 

Applicants meeting site’s eligibility criteria and have good credit 

Required hours and sessions 10 hrs in 5 sessions 7-8 hrs in 1-2 sessions 8 hrs in 5 sessions Format of required sessions Group session with voucher 

program participants only

Group session with other first-time homebuyers; persons with disabilities also have an individual session 

Group session with voucher program participants onlyAND at least one individual session 

Provider of counseling PHA staff Two outside agenciesa Housing authority staff 

Guest speakers Fannie Mae and Freddie 

Mac; credit bureau 

Lenders and realtors Lenders, realtors, and credit 

counselors 

Strategy for clients needing moretime to qualify for a mortgage 

Optional credit repair workshop at PHA and referrals to credit counseling agencies 

Agencies develop action plan with clients and follow up bymail 

Applicants with poor credit are referred to a credit counseling agency

Main source(s) of funding for counseling 

PHA resources Counseling agency funds PHA resources 

a One of the agencies focuses on persons with disabilities.

3-11 
Exhibit 3-3 (cont.) 

Overview of Pre-Purchase Counseling

Missoula Milwaukee San Bernardino 

Criteria for referral to counseling Applicants meeting site’s 

eligibility criteria 

Applicants meeting site’s eligibility criteria 

Applicants meeting site’s eligibility criteria 

Required hours and sessions 10 hrs in 4 sessions 6-8 hrs in 3-4 sessions 16 hours in 2 sessions Format of required sessions Group session with other 

first-time homebuyers AND at least one individual session 

Group session with other first-time homebuyers AND individual sessions as needed 

Group session with other first-time homebuyers 

Provider of counseling One outside agency Two outside agenciesa One outside agency 

Guest speakers Realtor None Lenders, realtors, and 

escrow officers 

Strategy for clients needing moretime to qualify for a mortgage 

Additional individual counseling as needed 

Additional individual counseling as needed for up to 2 years 

“Financial Fitness” program with group and individual counseling (happens before required homebuyer education) 

Main source(s) of funding for counseling 

Counseling activities are funded by state NR-affiliate 

Lender fees and other counseling agency funds 

NR funds 

a One of the agencies focuses on persons with disabilities.

3-12 
Providers of Homeownership Counseling 

Most of the PHAs in the study (10 of the 12 agencies) rely on outside agencies working in partnership 

with the PHA to provide counseling to participants. Among the 10 sites, all but two are using NRaffiliated NeighborWorks organizations to provide the counseling. The exceptions are Milwaukee 

and Colorado, which are using HUD- or state Housing Finance Agency-approved counseling agencies 

not affiliated with NR. Only two of the 12 study sites, Montgomery County and Danville, are 

providing the counseling exclusively in-house. 

Typically, the decision about whether to provide the counseling in-house or through a partner is based 

on an assessment of the expected level of resources and expertise required. Providing the counseling 

in-house requires a substantial commitment of time and resources, and there are no separate voucher 

funds or PHA administrative fees provided to PHAs to conduct the counseling.5

 Even though many

examples of curricula are available, the PHA would still need to adapt a curriculum for its program. 

In addition, the PHA would need to arrange for outside speakers, prepare a staff person to lead the 

sessions, and coordinate the invitation, registration, and attendance of participants. In addition to the 

planning and design time, the homebuyer education classes are usually provided on an ongoing basis, 

requiring a continuous commitment of staff resources to the counseling component. In contrast, 

HUD-approved counseling agencies and NR affiliates provide the type of counseling called for in the 

program and provide the counseling to the PHA at no cost. As a result, for many PHAs engaging an 

outside counseling agency may be the most attractive option. 

Despite the advantages of using an outside counseling provider, two of the study sites are using PHA 

staff to provide homebuyer counseling. In Danville, an outside agency provided the counseling 

during the first 18 months of the program, but the PHA began offering the counseling in-house in 

early 2001. PHA staff found that they could provide continued follow-up with participants and 

individual assistance more readily than the outside provider. In addition, despite having to devote 

PHA staff resources to counseling, providing the counseling in-house resulted in lower program costs 

because the partner agency would have begun charging the PHA for the counseling services. Finally, 

the PHA is more centrally located and accessible to participants than the partner organization. In 

Montgomery County, PA, PHA staff originally planned to provide the counseling through an outside 

partner but were unable to locate a HUD-approved counseling agency in the area that they thought 

would meet the needs of the program. In addition, PHA staff wanted to ensure that they developed a 

personal relationship with program participants and that pre-purchase counseling was tailored to the 

unique circumstances of each individual. Conducting the training in-house allowed them to achieve 

these goals. 

The agencies providing counseling in-house are able to tailor the counseling to the specific 

requirements and rules of the voucher program because the counseling sessions are offered 

exclusively to voucher participants. In sites where the counseling is provided by an outside agency, 

participants attend the sessions along with other homebuyers, often not receiving financing 

information specific to the voucher homeownership program. Syracuse and Toledo have avoided this 

issue by including a session with PHA staff as part of the counseling requirement. 

 

 5 However, HUD does provide funding for HUD-approved counseling agencies for counseling (which could 

include a PHA or a PHA partner who is counseling voucher homeownership families) and has made limited 

funding available for a homeownership coordinator through the FSS Notice of Funding Availability. 

3-13 
Regardless of whether the counseling is provided in-house or by an outside agency, the homebuyer 

education typically includes presentations by guest speakers. Lenders, realtors, home inspectors, and 

previous homebuyers are among the types of presenters included in the counseling sessions. Guest 

speakers offer in-depth information about their area of expertise and can respond to the specific 

questions and concerns of homebuyers. Having lenders, realtors, and inspectors participate in the 

homebuyer education also helps program participants to familiarize themselves with the various 

entities involved in the purchase process before they start looking for a house. 

Content of the Homeownership Counseling 

The final rule for the voucher homeownership program suggests a variety of topics to be included in 

the required pre-purchase homeownership counseling:6

 

• Home maintenance (including care of the grounds); 

• Budgeting and money management; 

• Credit counseling; 

• Methods to use in negotiating the purchase price of a home; 

• How to obtain homeownership financing and loan pre-approvals (including a discussion of the 

types of financing that might be available and the pros and cons of different types of financing); 

• How to locate a home for purchase (including information about homeownership opportunities, 

schools, and transportation in the PHA’s jurisdiction); 

• Advantages of purchasing a home in an area that does not have high concentrations of lowincome families and how to locate homes in such areas; 

• Information on fair housing, including fair housing lending, and potential support from local fair 

housing enforcement agencies; and 

• Information about the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, state and Federal truth in lending 

laws, and how to identify and avoid loans with oppressive terms and conditions. 

These topics are suggestions—the final rule allows PHAs to adapt the content of the homeownership 

counseling to local circumstances and the specific needs of participating families. For the most part, 

the study sites are covering the recommended topics and are implementing similar curricula for 

homebuyer education, with variation arising more often in the timing and format of the sessions. In 

most cases, reference materials and workbooks are provided at the sessions, and many participants 

report that these are quite useful. One example is the “Keys to Homeownership” publication 

developed by the National Foundation for Credit Counseling. 

Individual Versus Group Counseling 

Most of the PHAs in the study (10 of the 12) use a combination of group and individual counseling 

formats. The consensus is that group sessions are most effective for presenting an overview of the 

homebuying process, the basics of obtaining a mortgage, home maintenance, and the roles of realtors, 

inspectors, appraisers, and others involved in the purchase process. Individual sessions are best when 

it comes to discussing the purchasing power of individual buyers and credit problems and credit 

repair strategies. A combination of individual and group sessions allows for efficient handling of 

overview issues and the ability to delve into the individual circumstances of each participant. The 

 6

 Pages 55138-55139 of the final rule. 

3-14 
study by Hirad and Zorn found that the benefits of pre-purchase counseling are more pronounced for 

recipients of individual counseling than for group counseling.7

 Specifically, the study found that 

borrowers receiving counseling through individual programs experienced a 34 percent reduction in 

delinquency rates, while borrowers receiving classroom and home study counseling experienced 26 

percent and 21 percent reductions respectively. 

There is variation in the timing of the individual and group sessions across the study sites. Some sites 

conduct an individual session before the group sessions (but after confirming eligibility for the 

program). In these cases, the individual session is used to review credit reports, income, and 

purchasing power, to determine whether the participant is ready to purchase, and if not, how long it 

might take to resolve credit issues or other barriers to purchase. In Nashville, counseling staff use the 

individual session to decide whether a participant should go directly to the homebuyer education class 

(those ready to purchase) or to a more lengthy financial fitness course (for those expected to be ready

to purchase in six months or longer). In other sites, an individual session is conducted after the group 

sessions, either as a requirement for all participants, or as an option available to participants who 

request additional assistance. 

Problems associated with either a lack of credit history or poor credit are by far the most common 

reasons for requiring more intensive, longer-term counseling beyond that provided in the standard 

homebuyer education curriculum. Some counseling agencies refer participants who cannot obtain 

mortgage financing to specialized credit counseling agencies for assistance in developing payment 

plans to resolve credit problems. Others provide this longer-term assistance on their own. It is not 

uncommon for the resolution of credit problems to take as much as one or two years. Some of the 

PHAs in the study have found that the number of participating families who need this type of longterm credit repair has been larger than anticipated. In Toledo, for example, credit concerns among 

potential participants have been particularly difficult. 

In addition to previous credit problems, some families may not have an extensive credit history,

which can also make it difficult to qualify for a mortgage. In such cases, counselors often assist 

families to develop a record of non-traditional credit by working with landlords, childcare providers, 

utility companies, insurance companies, or other entities to document a history of on-time payments 

and good credit. 

Hours of Counseling Required 

The number of hours of homebuyer counseling required in the study sites varies, ranging from four 

hours in Colorado to 16 hours in San Bernardino. Most of the agencies (8 of the 12) require between 

8 and 10 hours of pre-purchase counseling. The sessions are generally scheduled during evening or 

weekend hours to accommodate the working schedules of program participants. Multiple sessions are 

held in every site except Colorado, where the counseling may be provided in one session. In 

Colorado, Bernalillo County, and Milwaukee, specialized counseling is offered for participants with 

disabilities, to explain the special features of the program for these participants.8

 In Green Bay, the

agency serves a large proportion of Hmong-speaking families and has developed a videotaped 

 7

 Hirad and Zorn, 2001. See footnote 4 for full citation. 

8 Other study sites also serve persons with disabilities but do not offer specialized counseling for these 

program participants. 

3-15 
presentation in Hmong for those families. Future plans include developing similar videotapes in 

Spanish. 

Sources of Funding for Homeownership Counseling 

We did not collect detailed information on the cost to PHAs or partner agencies of providing 

homeownership counseling. We did learn, however, that the costs of counseling are most often 

funded through NR funds, other grants to the counseling agencies, state Housing Finance Agency

funds, and fees paid by lenders to the counseling agency for households that purchase. At 9 of the 10 

sites where the counseling is provided through a partner agency, the counseling is provided at no cost 

to the PHA. The exception is Green Bay, where the PHA pays the counseling agency $250 per client 

for counseling, using funding from a PHA grant. The Montgomery County and Danville PHAs incur 

costs associated with the staff time and materials required to provide the counseling in-house. 

At two sites, participants were (at the time of the site visits) paying for all or part of the required 

homeownership counseling. At one site, for example, participants were paying up to $200 for 

counseling. Under the housing choice voucher program (including special housing types such as the 

homeownership option), PHAs may not require program participants to pay for any mandatory

program component, which includes the required pre-purchase counseling under the homeownership 

option. The preamble of the final rule clarified that such a practice is prohibited. All study sites were 

subsequently reminded by HUD that participants may not be required to pay for the mandatory

counseling requirement and were directed to immediately cease such practice and reimburse the 

program participants who had previously paid for the cost of the counseling themselves if the PHA 

was operating in error. 

At present, the cost of counseling does not appear to be a major barrier to the growth of the program, 

because local resources are available to serve qualified first-time homebuyers. However, the cost of 

counseling is a constraint that PHAs must address in operating the program, as counseling agencies 

do not have unlimited resources to devote to voucher homeownership participants. At sites where 

local counseling capacity is particularly limited, PHAs may have to modify their targeting and 

outreach strategies to ensure that they can meet their program goals of helping a certain number of 

households to purchase without exhausting available counseling resources. For example, some PHAs 

have opted to limit the households referred to homeownership counseling to households with 

sufficient income and credit to qualify for a mortgage, so as not to overwhelm the counseling 

agencies (some of whom rely on lender fees) with clients who are unlikely to be able to purchase. 

The case studies (Volume 2 of this report) explore in detail the different strategies that the study

PHAs have adopted to achieve program goals in the face of local resource constraints. 

3-16 
3.3 Home Search and Inspections 

Home Search 

Program staff in all of the study sites report they cover the home search process as part of the 

homebuyer education curriculum. The issues covered vary somewhat, but typically include how to 

identify and work with a realtor, how to assess the condition of a home, and how to balance the 

household’s “wants” and “needs” when choosing a home and neighborhood. 

Most sites provide only limited home search assistance beyond what is provided in the counseling 

component. Some sites (Syracuse, Toledo, and Nashville) provide information about nonprofit 

housing developers that may have homes available for purchase by first-time homebuyers. Nashville, 

Colorado, Green Bay, and Danville provide lists of realtors that program participants may (but are not 

required to) contact. Staff in Montgomery County and Missoula recommend that participants find a 

realtor (and offer tips as to what to look for in a realtor) but do not provide any specific referrals. 

Staff in a few sites have made extra efforts to reach out to realtors. In Bernalillo County, the 

Executive Director of the PHA and the Executive Director of one of the partner agencies, both former 

real estate brokers, have used their professional backgrounds and industry connections to educate 

local realtors about the voucher homeownership option. Realtors were recruited to attend a training 

workshop run by PHA and counseling organization staff. Staff at a second counseling organization in 

Bernalillo County have assisted Vietnamese participants to make contact with a local Vietnamese 

realtor. Although staff are careful not to “steer” participants to a particular broker, the organization’s 

Executive Director noted that it is often beneficial for program participants to have the option to work 

with a broker who is fluent in their native language. Similarly, in Green Bay, a local Hmongspeaking realtor has worked with several of the program’s Hmong-speaking participants. 

Inspections 

The voucher homeownership program requires that all units purchased through the program undergo 

two separate inspections: an HQS inspection conducted by the PHA and an independent home 

inspection conducted by a professional home inspector (not PHA staff) at the participant’s expense. 

Both inspections must have taken place and the unit must have passed the HQS inspection (including 

re-inspections as necessary) before homeownership assistance can begin. All repairs required for the 

unit to pass HQS must be done at the seller’s expense and prior to closing. PHAs may also require or 

recommend additional repairs identified by the independent inspector, over and above what is needed 

for the unit to pass HQS. HUD regulations, however, only require that the unit pass the HQS 

inspection. 

Both the initial HQS inspection and the independent inspection are statutory requirements of the 

voucher homeownership program. It may appear redundant for the voucher homeownership program

to require two separate inspections, especially given that only the independent inspection is standard 

practice in the private market. However, the inspections serve different purposes in the program. The 

goal of the initial HQS inspection is to ensure that at the time of purchase, the unit is safe and 

otherwise habitable. In the homeownership program, where annual HQS inspections are not required, 

3-17 
the initial HQS inspection may also be the only time that PHA staff are able to see the unit to assess 

its quality.

9

 

The independent inspection may be more important than the HQS inspection in helping to ensure that 

program participants do not purchase units that will require outlays by the participant beyond the 

expected costs for maintenance and replacement. The HQS inspection does not include an 

assessment of the adequacy and life span of the major building components, building systems, 

appliances, and other structural components. These long-term repair and structural issues are 

supposed to be covered by the independent home inspection. However, relying solely on the 

independent inspection (as is done in the private market) may not be advisable. A poor quality

independent inspection may have more serious consequences for voucher-eligible buyers than for 

buyers at a higher income level, because the voucher-eligible buyers may have very little financial 

capacity to address major unanticipated repairs. The HQS inspection process is regulated to ensure 

that units that pass the inspection meet HUD’s national standards for housing quality. By contrast, 

the regulation of independent inspections (and inspectors) varies widely by state. Some states require 

that home inspectors be licensed or certified by the state, while other states set no requirements for 

home inspectors at all.10

Although all units purchased through the voucher homeownership program must undergo both HQS 

and independent inspections, PHAs may opt to conduct the HQS inspection before or after the 

independent inspection is conducted. In 8 of the 12 study sites, the HQS inspection is conducted first. 

Staff in these sites reported that they prefer to do the HQS inspection first because the PHA inspectors 

have a chance to check for any major problems with the home before the participant incurs the cost of 

hiring an independent inspector. In two sites (Colorado and Green Bay), staff encourage scheduling 

the two inspections nearly concurrently so that repairs recommended by both inspectors can be 

presented to the owner at the same time. The remaining sites (Vermont and Bernalillo County)

recommend conducting the independent inspection first because it is more likely to identify

significant problems that might lead the buyer to reconsider the purchase.11

At most sites, program staff reported that a majority of units purchased through the voucher 

homeownership program fail HQS on the first inspection, but that the repairs required are typically

minor and easily made by the seller. None of the study sites reported that sales had fallen through 

because the seller refused to make HQS repairs. However, program staff reported that it was more 

common for participants to decide not to purchase a particular unit as a result of problems identified 

during the independent inspection. The requirement for an inspection satisfactory to the buyer is a 

typical contingency clause in private market contracts of sale. 

 9 The PHA must review the home inspector’s report to determine whether repairs are necessary prior to 

purchase and to assess whether the purchase transaction makes sense in light of the overall condition of the 

home and the likely cost of future repairs. The PHA may disapprove the sale based on this assessment.

10 An alternative solution to the dual inspection requirement, although one that would take time to develop, 

would be for HUD to create a new set of Housing Quality Standards more suitable for homeownership. 

11 Program staff in Vermont are currently rethinking their policy of conducting the HQS inspection after the 

independent inspection and may recommend in some cases that the HQS inspection take place first. 

3-18 
3.4 Post-Purchase Activities 

PHAs offering the voucher homeownership option have considerable discretion in determining what 

will be required of program participants after they purchase. As in the rental voucher program, PHAs 

are required to reexamine annually participants’ income and household composition to confirm their 

eligibility for the program and, if necessary, adjust the amount of the PHA’s monthly housing 

assistance payment. Post-purchase homeownership counseling and HQS inspections are not required; 

however, PHAs may include requirements in these areas in the statement of homeowner obligations 

that participants sign before receiving homeownership assistance. In addition, the study sites have 

developed different procedures for tracking participants’ loan payments and intervening as necessary

to prevent loan default and/or foreclosure. 

Post-Purchase Counseling 

Post-purchase counseling typically focuses on two topic areas thought to be critical to people’s ability

to be successful homeowners over the long-term: budgeting and home maintenance. These topics are 

always covered to some extent in the pre-purchase counseling, but the PHAs requiring post-purchase 

counseling argue that it is important to revisit these issues once the participant has been in the house 

for a few months and has a better idea of the challenges associated with paying the mortgage and 

maintaining the house. Post-purchase counseling sessions also give the PHA or partner agency an 

opportunity to reconnect with program participants and offer additional individualized assistance to 

participants who appear to be struggling. Several of the lenders interviewed argued that proactive 

post-purchase counseling reduces the likelihood of loan default, although this has not been tested 

empirically. 

The drawback to post-purchase counseling for PHAs is that it is another program activity to be 

funded. In addition, several of the PHAs in the study argue that it is difficult to get program

participants to attend additional counseling after they purchase. Participants see themselves as 

independent and do not necessarily want further involvement with the PHA or counseling agency. 

However, several of the program participants interviewed at sites where no post-purchase counseling 

was offered suggested that they would welcome an opportunity to gain further training on budgeting 

and on home maintenance. 

Nine of the 12 study sites currently require or plan to require post-purchase counseling for some or all 

program participants (see Exhibit 3-4). At three sites—Nashville, Toledo, and San Bernardino—postpurchase counseling is required of all program participants. In Toledo, for example, participants are 

required to complete eight hours of group counseling in one or two sessions. The counseling includes 

a “hands-on” home maintenance component that takes place at a model house set up by the 

counseling agency for this purpose. The three PHAs currently requiring post-purchase counseling for 

all program participants are offering the program in partnership with local NeighborWorks 

organizations, which receive funding from NR for both pre- and post-purchase counseling. At this 

point in the program, only a small number of purchasers have actually completed post-purchase 

counseling. In addition to the three sites where post-purchase counseling is required, two sites—

Green Bay and Syracuse—are in the process of developing such a requirement. 

The remaining four sites where some form of post-purchase counseling is required are Danville, 

Bernalillo County, Colorado, and Missoula. In Danville and Bernalillo County, individual counseling 

is required for participants who encounter difficulty maintaining their house or making their mortgage 

3-19 
payments. In Colorado and Missoula, post-purchase counseling is required for participants receiving 

certain forms of down payment assistance. 

As an alternative to requiring post-purchase counseling, several sites have developed other means of 

offering assistance to program participants after they have purchased. For example, the Housing 

Authority of the City of Milwaukee (HACM) was awarded a $20,000 Local Housing Organization 

Grant through the State to provide post-purchase advice to program participants. HACM plans to use 

the funds to offer an optional post-purchase inspection session, in which a home inspector will go to 

the house shortly after the purchase to advise the homeowner on home repair and maintenance issues. 

The inspector will also show the homeowner how the major systems in the home operate and how to 

make simple repairs.

Colorado’s Supportive Housing and Homeless Programs (SHHP) decided not to require postpurchase counseling based on feedback from its network of counseling agencies that mandatory postpurchase counseling is generally not effective because people are not motivated to attend. Instead, 

SHHP plans to reinforce the key messages conveyed in the pre-purchase counseling through regular 

mailings to program participants of postcards, calendars, and refrigerator magnets with tips on 

budgeting and maintenance and information on who to call if they run into difficulty. SHHP and its 

partners also hold an annual reunion for households who have purchased through the voucher 

homeownership program and through SHHP’s HOPE 3 program. During the reunion, there is an 

informal counseling session that revisits issues of budgeting, maintenance, and predatory lending. 

The reunion also gives SHHP staff an opportunity to check in with program participants. 

3-20 
Exhibit 3-4 

Post-Purchase Counseling

Post-purchase counseling required for all purchasers:

Nashville Eight hours of post-purchase counseling is provided in group sessions by the partner 

agency (also the second mortgage lender). Four purchasers had completed this 

counseling as of May 2002. 

Toledo Eight hours of post-purchase counseling is provided in group sessions by the partner 

agency (also the second mortgage lender). Counseling includes a “hands on” 

session to demonstrate repair and maintenance techniques. No purchasers had 

completed this counseling as of May 2002. 

San Bernardino Eight hours of post-purchase counseling is provided in group sessions by the partner 

agency (also the second mortgage lender). No purchasers had completed this 

counseling as of May 2002. 

Post-purchase counseling required for some purchasers:

Colorado Purchasers who receive down payment assistance from certain sources must have a 

home visit from a counselor within two years of purchasing. In addition, purchasers 

are encouraged to attend an annual reunion where informal counseling takes place. 

Danville PHA will provide individual post-purchase counseling on an as-needed basis. In 

addition to homeownership counseling, the PHA plans to offer job search assistance 

to participants who are laid off. 

Bernalillo Co. PHA will require post-purchase counseling for purchasers who miss a mortgage 

payment. These purchasers will work with the partner agency to develop a plan of 

action and obtain additional individual counseling as needed. 

Missoula Purchasers who receive down payment assistance from certain sources receive 

telephone follow-up from counselors every three months for one year after purchase. 

Post-purchase counseling under development or not currently required:

Green Bay PHA intends to require eight hours of post-purchase counseling, provided by the 

partner agency. This requirement will be included in the statement of homeowner 

obligations signed by all purchasers. 

Syracuse PHA intends to require two, two-hour sessions per month for one year after the 

participant purchases. The partner agency will provide the counseling. The 

curriculum is expected to include budgeting and credit, predatory lending, and 

working with contractors. 

Milwaukee Post-purchase counseling is not currently offered. PHA intends to offer an optional 

HQS inspection as a way to provide additional training on maintenance issues. 

Montgomery Co. Post-purchase counseling is not currently offered. 

Vermont PHA does not currently require post-purchase counseling but counseling is offered or 

required by some second mortgage lenders from whom participants are obtaining 

loans. 

3-21 
Post-Purchase HQS Inspections 

In addition to requiring post-purchase counseling, a PHA may require or offer periodic inspections of 

homeownership units while participants are receiving voucher assistance. Seven of the 12 study sites 

do not require program participants to undergo any kind of unit inspection after they purchase or offer 

such inspections on an optional basis (see Exhibit 3-5). Several of these sites noted that they did not 

think that they could do anything to enforce the HQS or other standards if the program participant 

refused to make the repairs. Other sites said that they thought that ongoing inspections would be an 

invasion of participants’ privacy and could be stigmatizing if the inspections distinguished voucher 

homeowners from unassisted homeowners. Finally, some sites noted that not having to conduct 

annual HQS inspections was a cost-saving component of the voucher homeownership option and a 

way that PHAs can recoup some of the up-front costs of assisting households to purchase. By not 

requiring post-purchase HQS inspections, however, PHAs (and HUD) run the risk of subsidizing 

purchasers to live in units that may fall into disrepair and become substandard over the term of 

assistance. 

Of the five sites requiring some form of post-purchase HQS inspection, only one site suggested that a 

program participant could lose the voucher assistance as a result of persistent HQS deficiencies. For 

most sites, post-purchase HQS inspections are primarily an opportunity for the PHA or the counseling 

agency to keep in touch with participants and to provide additional training and intervention as 

necessary. For example, the Toledo program requires HQS inspections every six months for the first 

two years of the program. Program staff believe that the first two years of homeownership are crucial 

for long-term success, and the biannual inspections give staff an opportunity to confirm that program

participants understand the maintenance needs of their houses and are taking steps to ensure that the 

houses do not fall into disrepair. If a unit fails the post-purchase HQS, the partner agency that 

provides counseling and second mortgage loans to program participants can use its position as the 

second mortgage lender to encourage the family to receive additional counseling. The counseling 

agency can also work with the family to access whatever sources of funding may be available for 

maintenance. 

In Nashville, program participants agree to have HQS inspections every two years for as long as they

receive housing assistance payments. Any deficiencies found during these inspections are 

communicated to the homeowner and to the agency that provides counseling and second mortgage 

loans to program participants, but there is no threat of the loss of voucher assistance based on the 

condition of the home. 

The Vermont State Housing Authority (VSHA) has taken a unique approach to determining whether 

post-purchase HQS inspections are warranted. At the time of the annual reexamination, participants 

in VSHA’s homeownership program complete a questionnaire about their homeownership experience 

over the previous year. The questionnaire includes questions on participants’ post-purchase 

experience such as: 

• At any time over the past year, have you had difficulty making your monthly mortgage, tax, 

or utility payments? If so, how many delinquencies have you had? 

• How do you feel about the condition of your home? Are there any repairs that need to be 

made?

3-22 
Program staff discuss the participant’s responses with the participant during the annual reexamination 

meeting and use the discussion to determine whether the PHA should conduct an inspection or take 

other steps to assist the participant with home maintenance or budgeting. 

Exhibit 3-5 

Post-Purchase HQS Inspections

Post-purchase HQS inspections required for all participants: 

Green Bay Annual HQS inspections are required for the full term of the voucher assistance, 

with the possibility of losing the assistance for persistent violations. 

Nashville HQS inspections are required every two years for the full term of the voucher 

assistance, with no risk of losing the assistance for HQS deficiencies. 

San Bernardino PHA plans to require post-purchase HQS inspections on an annual basis for all 

homes purchased through the program (requirement is still under development). 

Toledo HQS inspections are required biannually for two years after purchase, with no risk 

of losing voucher assistance for HQS deficiencies. 

Post-purchase HQS inspections required for some participants: 

Vermont HQS inspections are required on a case-by-case basis based on findings from 

annual questionnaire completed by purchasers at the time of annual 

reexamination. 

Post-purchase HQS inspections not required or offered:

Bernalillo County; Colorado; Danville; Milwaukee; Missoula; Montgomery County; Syracuse 

Loan Tracking 

In addition to deciding whether to require post-purchase counseling and HQS inspections, PHAs 

offering the voucher homeownership program must decide how much emphasis to place on tracking 

participants’ loan payments and intervening in the case of a late payment or delinquency. Program

staff at all of the study sites are sensitive to the potential for program participants to get behind on 

their mortgage payments and want to do everything in their power to help participants avoid 

foreclosure. The threat of foreclosure is a major concern for many program staff, who describe a 

“nightmare scenario” of foreclosures publicized in the local press as examples of program failure. At 

the same time, there are significant challenges associated with tracking program participants’

mortgage payments over the long-term. In order to be able to monitor participants’ loan payments 

effectively, program staff must have access to timely information on late payments and other payment 

problems from lenders and from program participants themselves. How to respond once they have 

this information raises a different set of issues related to staff capacity and expertise. 

The ability of program staff to track participants’ mortgage payments depends to a large extent on the 

relationships that they have with the lenders making first and second mortgage loans to program

participants. PHAs that are working with a single lender or with one or two lenders who service their 

own loans may have an easier time gaining access to information on late payments than PHAs 

3-23 
working with multiple lenders or lenders who transfer the servicing function to another entity. 

Access to information on participants’ loan payments also depends on the processes in place to 

service the loans. Most loan servicers do not have a way of flagging a loan as belonging to a voucher 

program participant and requiring a different intervention (such as notifying the PHA) in the case of a 

late payment. 

All of the PHAs in this study want and expect lenders to notify them in the event of a late payment. 

To this end, all of the sites have developed consent forms that participants sign allowing the lender 

and PHA to share information on the participant’s mortgage payments. In addition, some sites have 

made particular arrangements with lenders to receive notification of late payments in a timely

manner. This is more often the case for sites working with a small number of lenders. For example, 

the five purchasers in Missoula’s voucher homeownership program have all worked with one lender 

in the community, who has agreed to hold the loans in portfolio and service them in-house. This 

lender has agreed to notify the PHA if a participant is more than five days late on a payment. 

In the Colorado site, the Colorado Housing and Finance Authority (CHFA) buys all loans made to 

program participants and services the loans in-house. At the time of purchase, program participants 

authorize CHFA to withdraw their share of the monthly mortgage electronically, from their bank 

accounts, on the fifth day of each month. One of CHFA’s servicing staff then manually matches 

these payments against the HAP amounts, which are wired from the PHA to CHFA on the first of the 

month, to ensure that each borrower has made the full payment. In the event of a late payment, 

CHFA immediately notifies the PHA. This system is effective for gaining timely information about 

participants’ mortgage payments, but it is time consuming for CHFA staff, particularly as the number 

of purchasers grows. 

Montgomery County’s program has been successful in gaining the participation of multiple private 

market lenders. As of May 2002, seven lenders had made first mortgage loans to Montgomery

County’s 12 purchasers. Program staff in Montgomery County continue to recruit new lenders to the 

program because they would like program participants to have the same choice of loan products and 

lenders as other first-time homebuyers. With so many lenders involved, however, it is not possible 

for program staff to develop a loan tracking process for each lender. As a result, the PHA has created 

a form, included in the closing documents, that gives lenders permission to inform the PHA if a 

program participant is delinquent on their payments. Most of the lenders participating in the program

thus far have been mortgage companies who sell their loans on the secondary market and also do not 

retain the servicing contract. As the loans get sold and serviced by different entities, there is some

concern among program staff that a given servicer may not know to get in touch with the PHA prior 

to the participant going into default. 

The study sites operating programs in partnership with local NeighborWorks organizations as part of 

NR’s voucher homeownership demonstration typically rely on these organizations to take the lead in 

loan tracking. For most of the sites, the NeighborWorks organization provides second mortgage 

loans to program participants as well as homeownership counseling. As the second mortgage lender, 

the NeighborWorks organization often has more access to program participants—particularly in cases 

where the NeighborWorks organization receives a monthly payment from the participant and from the 

PHA—as well as a stake in the successful repayment of the first and second mortgage loans. 

NeighborWorks organizations also typically have relationships with local lenders that may facilitate 

communication with the first mortgage lender. However, unless these relationships are well 

3-24 
established, the second mortgage lender may not be informed if the borrower is delinquent on the first 

mortgage. 

In Nashville, the one site in the study that has experience with a loan delinquency, this system

worked. The first mortgage lender notified the NeighborWorks organization of the delinquency,

which happened when the purchaser lost her job and was unable to make the payment on her 

mortgage for a month, and the NeighborWorks organization was able to provide the purchaser with 

short-term assistance while the purchaser drew unemployment. After receiving her tax refund, the 

purchaser made her mortgage payment and covered the delinquency fee. At the time of the site visit, 

the purchaser had a new job and was back on track with her payments. 

In conclusion, the three main post-purchase components of the voucher homeownership program—

post-purchase counseling, post-purchase HQS inspections, and loan tracking—are not generally as 

well developed as their pre-purchase counterparts—counseling, inspections, and purchase financing. 

At this early stage in the program, most sites have focused on the activities needed to assist program

participants to purchase and have not yet focused on post-purchase issues. It is also too early in the 

program to determine which post-purchase activities will be most important for the long-term success 

of the program. However, post-purchase components will undoubtedly play a more prominent role as 

the program matures and the number of purchases reaches a point where some of the informal 

processes currently in place—such as requiring post-purchase counseling on an as-needed basis or 

working out loan tracking processes with individual lenders—are no longer efficient. The experience 

of Nashville, which has the highest number of closings and has one of the longest running programs, 

suggests that attention to post-purchase components is warranted, even if the PHA does not have the 

staff resources to fulfill these functions itself. In Nashville, in addition to the one delinquency

mentioned above, program staff were surprised to find that several purchasers claimed that they were 

no longer part of the voucher program when they received notification of their annual reexamination. 

That such a misunderstanding could occur despite the pre-purchase counseling was a reminder of the 

need for ongoing communication of critical information. 

3.5 Management and Staffing 

Across all of the study sites, there is consensus that the voucher homeownership program is labor 

intensive. The program requires a substantial commitment of staff resources, both in the design and 

planning stages and in the ongoing operations. The activities that must be done during the design 

phase—developing program strategies, drafting policies, procedures, and forms, vetting the 

homeownership program through the Agency Plan process, developing partnerships, lining up 

resources, and recruiting lenders—generally have taken more time than most PHAs expected. As the 

program is implemented, the ongoing operations also require a significant staff investment. Although 

PHAs generally have found recruitment for the program relatively easy, all report that helping 

families to resolve credit issues has been a major and time-consuming obstacle to interested families 

participating fully in the program. The amount of individual assistance required during the home 

purchase process has also exceeded PHAs’ expectations; as one PHA staff person put it, “each 

transaction is a custom transaction.” However, the likelihood that homeowners are much less likely

to move over time, coupled with the fact that the PHAs do not evaluate and approve rent increases 

and are not required to conduct annual HQS inspections for homeowners should, as the PHA’s 

homeownership program matures, offset the “up-front” costs of implementation and initially

transitioning households into homeownership. Since sales at all sites studied were relatively recent 

3-25 
(mainly within the previous 13 months of the site visit), the level of effort required to perform the 

ongoing administrative functions for homeowners over time as compared to rental participants has not 

yet been determined. 

In the course of our study, we attempted to identify and quantify the workloads associated with the 

administration of the voucher homeownership program and how this workload changes over the 

different phases of program administration—program planning, home purchase, and ongoing program

administration.12 For the most part we only attempted to quantify the level of staff effort for PHA 

staff working on the program. However, for five sites where a local NeighborWorks organization 

plays a key role in program administration, we were also able to obtain estimates of the level of effort 

by NeighborWorks staff. 

Phase 1: Program Planning 

During the planning phase, PHAs are for the most part working to get all their program essentials in 

order so that the first wave of program hopefuls does not catch them unprepared. The tasks that 

PHAs emphasized as important during this period include: 

• Incorporating homeownership into the Agency Plan process; 

• Amending the tenant-based Administrative Plan to address policies related specifically to 

homeownership; 

• Developing procedures, forms, and informational materials; 

• Identifying resources in the community that can provide expertise, program services, and 

funding for program enhancements; 

• Recruiting program partners—housing counseling agencies, agencies serving special needs 

families, experienced low-income homeownership agencies; 

• Recruiting lending partners—banks and other private lenders, community development 

agencies, state Housing Finance Agencies, Rural Housing Service, and secondary lenders; 

and 

• Identifying additional resources—nonprofit housing developers, Land Trust administrators, 

and local sources of grant funds 

Two additional tasks were not specifically addressed by site staff, but generally are considered 

necessary to the planning process. The first is assessing the local housing market to determine 

whether there is an adequate supply of desirable homes that will be affordable to families with a 

voucher. If the answer appears to be “no,” the PHA will have to work especially hard to identify

additional subsidy resources and/or reconsider its timing for converting rental vouchers to 

homeownership assistance. The second is staff training: when the program planners “pass the torch” 

 12 We began by asking each PHA staff person involved in the voucher homeownership program to estimate the amount of 

time that they currently devote to homeownership program activities on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis. Although 

we were most interested in estimates of the current level of effort devoted to the program, we also asked the staff to 

differentiate between the different phases of program administration by asking them the amount of time they spent on 

the program in the past at key stages of the program’s development. Once we had a secure estimate of the number of 

hours that each staff person devoted to the program (accounting for different work weeks and full- and part-time 

schedules), we summed these hours and divided them by 40 (assuming a 40-hour work week) to get an estimate of the 

total level of staff effort in full-time equivalent (FTE). 

3-26 
to staff who will actually be responsible for the day-to-day operation of the program, all of the 

intimate knowledge of the homeownership process that they have acquired must be passed as well. 

Although all of the sites reported having made a substantial commitment of time to program

development, only a few were able to provide estimates of the actual staff time required to make the 

program fully operational. Those who did respond indicated that at least one full-time equivalent 

employee (FTE) or more was required during the planning period, which lasted from four to 12 

months. Further, the staff involved at this stage tended to be more senior-level staff: Executive 

Directors, Deputy Executive Directors, and Housing Choice Voucher Program Directors. 

The recruitment of suitable partners for the operation of the program is widely regarded as a critical if 

time-consuming task during the planning phase. In addition, sites that partnered early on in the 

planning process had better information available to them and were able to benefit from the partners’

prior experience with homeownership—experience that the PHAs generally lacked. Several PHAs 

acknowledged that their program partners had also invested large amounts of high-level staff time 

during the development stage, in some instances actually taking the lead in identifying families to 

whom the program should be targeted, recruiting lenders, and identifying additional program

resources or desirable partnerships. 

Phase 2: Home Purchase 

PHAs were able to provide the most detailed information about the home purchase phase of program

operations, perhaps because it is the phase in which all of the sites are currently involved. The 

activities in this phase are: 

• Selecting eligible families for participation in the homeownership program; 

• Providing mandatory housing counseling, directly or indirectly; 

• Working with families during the housing search period; 

• Conducting HQS inspections and coordinating with the independent inspector; 

• Matching up program participants with lenders and other financial resources; 

• Reviewing and approving financing documents; and 

• Initiating HAP payments. 

The study PHAs generally reported that the staffing demands in the home purchase phase were not as 

high as they were during the planning phase. In particular, the number of staff hours declined once 

the planning process was complete and the program was up and running. Furthermore, staffing costs 

were reduced as the amount of time devoted to the program by senior level staff decreased and line 

staff assumed a greater role in program administration. 

Although less than during the planning phase, the level of PHA staff effort required for the home 

purchase phase was still significant. Most of the study sites (8 of 12) had committed 0.5 to 1 FTE to 

the operation of the program: estimates ranged from a low of 0.2 to a high of 1.5 in-house FTEs, with 

an average of 0.78 in-house FTEs (see Exhibit 3-6). In many instances, the direct staffing burden 

may have been reduced from the planning phase, but staff members at the partner agencies, whose 

time was not reported, were picking up the slack.13 Four of the five sites that did report on the 

 13 Based on which program tasks were performed by program partners, we estimated the partner workload at 

each site as “high,” “medium,” or “low.” 

3-27 
estimated staff time contributed by partner agencies reported participation by the partner agencies in 

the range of 0.4 to 2.0 FTEs, with an average of 1.0 FTE per partner. (The fifth agency reporting on 

partner time gave an estimate of 0.66 FTE contributed by just one of the five homeownership centers 

with which the PHA was working.) In summary, it appears that most sites use just under two fulltime staff—in-house or partner FTEs—to run the program. 

Exhibit 3-6 

Level of Staff Effort During Home Purchase Phasea

Voucher

Program Size 

Purchases 

through May

2002 

Expected

annual 

purchases 

Estimate of 

Partner 

workload

Level of staff 

effort by PHA

in FTE

Bernalillo Co. 1,693 15 20 High 0.3

Colorado 2,600 21 10 High 1.0

Danville 722 10 20 Low 0.8

Green Bay 2,790 11 8-10 Medium 0.5

Milwaukee 4,400 3 Not specified Medium 0.9 

Missoula 713 5 10 High 0.55

Montgomery Co. 2,600 12 10-15 Low 1.5

Nashville 4,600 33 25 High 0.75

San Bernardino 7,800 3 20 Medium 1.1

Syracuse 2,900 12 Not specified High 0.6 

Toledo 3,400 2 10-15 High 0.2

Vermont 3,100 15 30-40 High 1.1

a Level of staff effort mainly reflects activities required during the home purchase phase, because most sites have not yet 

focused staff effort on post-purchase activities. 

In comparison with the amount of staffing generally required to run the tenant-based voucher 

program, this represents a large investment of PHA resources. In a recent study of housing voucher 

program utilization and costs conducted for HUD, Abt Associates found that—based on a sample of 

48 PHAs nationwide—the average participant to staff ratio was 124 participants per staff person 

(FTE).14 In other words, for every 124 vouchers administered by a typical PHA, there was 1 staff 

person (or FTE). In providing funding for the operation of the presumably more labor-intensive 

Family Self-Sufficiency (FSS) program, HUD has allowed 1 FSS coordinator for every 50 FSS 

participants. Based on the levels of home purchase activity projected by the PHAs in this study, it 

appears that they are generally staffing the program at ratios of 10 to 1, or 10 families who will 

purchase their own homes annually for every 1 staff person or FTE (in-house and/or partner). 

Furthermore, although there is a drop in the level of staff effort required once the planning phase is 

complete and the program is up and running, there do not appear to be significant economies of scale 

to the ongoing operations of the program, at least with respect to initially assisting families through 

the purchase process. That is to say, the study sites with the highest number of purchasers through 

the program did not report that the level of staff effort per program purchaser has decreased as the 

number of program purchasers has grown. 

 14 Meryl Finkel et al., “Costs and Utilization in the Housing Choice Voucher Program,” draft report prepared

by Abt Associates for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development under Contract No. COPC-21702, Task Order DEN-T0003, June 2002. 

3-28 
This finding highlights the importance to PHAs of finding local partners who will share the 

administrative responsibilities of the voucher homeownership program. One area in which the 

majority of PHAs studied (10 of 12) had enlisted outside assistance was pre-purchase homeownership 

counseling. In some instances, established fees for homeownership counseling were paid by the PHA 

or by grants obtained by the PHA. In other instances, housing counseling services were provided by

partner agencies free of charge to the PHA. Once a PHA has recruited a partner, it is very important 

to keep communications open about issues of mutual concern. Some of the agencies providing free 

counseling, for example, raised concerns about the adequacy of the PHA’s screening of families 

referred for homeownership counseling. The agencies found that they were being overwhelmed by

large numbers of homeownership candidates referred prematurely by the PHA, families who had little 

chance for success. Without the PHA taking a more selective approach to which families are referred 

to counseling, resource limitations at the counseling agency might delay the receipt of counseling by

families who are ready to purchase. 

Another area where we found a high degree of collaboration between PHAs and partner agencies was 

locating (or providing) mortgage loans and additional forms of subsidy. PHAs working with NRaffiliated NeighborWorks organizations benefited both from these organizations’ experience in 

dealing with local loan originators and secondary lenders and from second mortgage and/or down 

payment assistance available directly from the organizations. At other sites, PHAs found it useful to 

recruit partner agencies with real estate and financing experience that could help them navigate these 

unfamiliar waters and locate and recruit lenders willing to work with voucher program participants. 

Only two PHAs made the decision to obtain this real estate and expertise in-house, although both 

report that they have been happy with their decision. One PHA enlisted the assistance of board 

members who work for local lending institutions to get advice on which financial model would work 

best for the program and on how to encourage local lenders to participate. 

Perhaps because cooperative mortgage lenders and gap financing have been so much harder to find 

than initially assumed, more staff power than expected has gone into identifying and setting up 

financing opportunities for participating families, and less appears to have gone into the review of 

financing documents. However, once the program becomes more established nationally, reviewing 

financial documents to protect program families from predatory lenders may well be an area that will 

require a greater level of effort than currently expended by the PHA and its partners. 

Finally, 9 of the 12 study sites had made the decision not to provide direct housing search assistance, 

although most offered some level of informal support and encouragement. The exceptions were three 

programs that provided some level of search assistance through established relationships with 

agencies serving families with special needs. One program had enlisted the aid of a disability

services provider in helping program families with disabilities search for homeownership units. Two 

programs had established informal relationships with agencies that provided some level of search 

assistance to non-English speaking households. 

 

Phase 3: Ongoing Program Operations 

As noted above, sales at all sites studied were relatively recent (mainly within the previous 13 

months), and levels of effort required to perform the ongoing functions associated with the operation 

of the voucher homeownership program had yet to be determined. After families purchase a home, 

the PHA is required to conduct annual eligibility reexaminations and adjust the HAP amount 

accordingly. In contrast to the rental voucher program, the PHA is not required to evaluate and 

3-29 
approve rent increases. The PHA also is not required to conduct annual HQS inspections, although 

some PHAs have decided to do so. 

Given the current average size of the rental voucher programs at the study sites, the staff burden for 

performing a limited schedule of standard tenant-based annual functions can be rolled into the PHA’s 

workload with relative ease. Other tasks identified by the PHAs are unique to the homeownership 

program, however, and must be considered in assessing staffing needs. 

Most of the PHAs studied, for example, envision some effort to monitor the timeliness of the 

families’ mortgage payments, although few have developed formal mechanisms for doing this. Some

PHAs are working with lenders to arrange for notification in the case of late or missed payments. 

Others plan to require participating families to provide evidence that they are current with mortgage 

and other homeownership expenses at the time of the families’ annual reexamination. In most 

instances, the PHAs are looking for passive, non-labor intensive strategies for knowing when program

families are in trouble and keeping them from default. 

As the program matures, it is inevitable that there will be defaults, and dealing with them—by

counseling families in foreclosure prevention, helping them to transition out of homeownership, and 

making the decision to provide them with rental assistance (or not) in accordance with their 

Administrative Plans—may again require the PHA to free up staff resources, acquire new areas of 

expertise, or identify partners who can provide the required services. 

Interestingly, only one site—Colorado—specifically identified monitoring ongoing program

performance as a task in the post-purchase phase. The Colorado PHA is a State program that 

contracts out the ongoing management of the voucher rental and homeownership programs. The 

PHA anticipated committing one FTE on an ongoing basis to program monitoring. Presumably other 

sites that administer their own vouchers plan to do their program monitoring on a more informal 

basis, but none had quantified the staffing needs associated with that task. 

Voucher Homeownership Organization and Staff Qualifications 

We also gathered information about how the PHAs have chosen to staff and organize the voucher 

homeownership programs and how to pay for that staff. In most cases, PHAs have relied on existing 

Housing Choice Voucher Program (HCVP) staff and/or FSS program staff. Staff costs are usually

funded through PHA administrative fees, but some agencies are using other funding from HUD, such 

as the Section 5(h) homeownership program.

15 

An exception to the use of existing staff is San Bernardino, California, in which a new staff member 

was hired specifically to operate the program. This agency looked for someone with extensive real 

estate experience, arguing that it would be easier to teach the nuances of the voucher program to a 

homeownership expert than to retrain existing HCVP staff on the many details of real estate 

acquisition and mortgage financing. The local lender involved in the program participated in the 

recruitment and hiring of the homeownership coordinator. The individual hired to operate the 

 15 The Section 5(h) program gives PHAs authority to sell selected public housing units to qualified 

households, while HUD continues to service the debt on the original acquisition, construction, or 

modernization costs. PHAs may retain and reuse the proceeds of sale of public housing units to meet other 

low-income housing needs. 

3-30 
program spends 100 percent of her time on the homeownership program, and her position is located 

within the administrative department of the PHA rather than the HCVP department. She brings more 

than 30 years experience in real estate, with knowledge of home inspection, mortgage financing, and 

homebuyer counseling. 

In most cases, the PHAs rely on partner organizations to supply much of the technical expertise on 

homeownership, including counseling, information on locating realtors and home inspectors, and 

information on financing options. As a result, the training that has been necessary for PHA staff has 

focused more on the administration of the program than on the details of the home purchase 

transaction. For example, staff have been trained on the eligibility criteria for participants, 

understanding the steps in the process and the point at which participants are to be referred to 

counseling, how to calculate the monthly homeownership expenses, and how to monitor the 

participants’ progress. 

In the two agencies that provide homeownership counseling in-house, more extensive staff experience 

and training have been needed to ensure that staff are prepared to offer the counseling classes. In 

Montgomery County, the staff person designated as the lead counselor had previous experience in 

real estate and mortgage finance and did not receive special certification. In Danville, HCVP staff 

received training and were certified by the state Housing Finance Agency to provide homeownership 

counseling. 

It would seem reasonable to expect PHAs with larger HCVP programs and departments to be able to 

devote a more substantial level of effort to the voucher homeownership program. In fact, the site that 

hired a new staff person to coordinate the program (San Bernardino) also has the largest voucher 

program among all the study sites (a total of 7,800 vouchers) and one of the highest FTE 

commitments to ongoing program operations (1.1). 

The voucher programs ranged from 713 to 7,800 across the 12 study sites. When we group the study

sites according to program size and compare this to the distribution of FTEs devoted by the PHA, we 

find that among the six largest programs, three also had the highest FTE commitments to the 

program. Likewise, among the six smallest programs, three also had the lowest level of staff 

commitments. On the other hand, there are three large programs that have among the lowest FTE 

commitments (Syracuse, Toledo, and Nashville). These programs, however, are working in 

partnership with NR, and the partners contribute substantial staffing resources to the program. There 

are also three PHAs with small voucher programs (Danville, Colorado, and Montgomery County) that 

are among the agencies with the highest FTEs devoted to the program. Danville and Montgomery

County are providing counseling in-house, which accounts for their higher FTE commitments. 

Given the high level of staff effort required to operate the program, the study PHAs did not anticipate 

that homeownership vouchers would ever make up a large share of their housing choice voucher 

programs. None of the study sites expected to have more than 40 closings per year, and 8 of 12 sites 

expected to have 20 or fewer closings per year. 

If the sites achieve the number of closings that they expect, assuming that the PHAs’ allocation of 

vouchers remains constant, in five years’ time homeowners will represent approximately three 

percent of all voucher program participants across the 12 study sites. As a result, program staff 

interviewed for the study (including Executive Directors of the PHAs) did not express concern about 

serving higher-income voucher-eligible families and potentially crowding out service to the most 

3-31 
needy families. Program staff did not believe the homeownership program would grow enough to 

threaten the availability of rental assistance. Moreover, several sites noted that having a 

homeownership option helps to promote self-sufficiency among voucher participants. Program staff 

at these sites view the homeownership option as rewarding families who have achieved steady

employment and earnings and providing an incentive for others to do so. 

Given the modest expectations for the growth of the program across the 12 study sites, it seems likely

that the most significant driver of the growth of the program on a national scale—particularly the 

growth in the number of homeownership vouchers relative to rental vouchers—will be the extent to 

which additional PHAs choose to offer the program. These decisions in turn will be shaped by: 

PHAs’ desire and ability to commit staff resources to program start-up and ongoing administration; 

the availability of funding to offset these administrative costs; the willingness of lenders in the PHA’s 

jurisdiction to participate in the program; and, particularly in expensive housing markets, the 

availability of subsidies in addition to the voucher, such as below-market interest rate loans and 

grants for down payment and closing cost assistance. 

3-32 
Chapter 4 

Voucher Homeownership Purchase Financing 

This chapter discusses how voucher homeownership purchases have been financed across the 12 

study sites. The chapter describes the different financing models in use and analyzes payment 

burdens differ under the models and how the burdens may change over time. The chapter then 

examines the loan servicing issues that sites have had to address. The chapter also discusses the 

procedures that sites have established to help ensure that the financing is affordable to program

participants. We conclude by examining how the study sites have combined up-front and ongoing 

subsidies to increase the buying power of voucher homeownership purchasers. 

This chapter assumes a basic understanding of how the voucher subsidy is calculated. In the voucher 

homeownership program, the amount of the voucher subsidy (the HAP) is equal to the lower of the 

voucher payment standard or the total monthly homeownership expenses, minus the total tenant 

payment.1

 

• The voucher payment standard in the homeownership program is the same payment standard 

(based on the local Fair Market Rent) that applies in the rental voucher program. 

• Total monthly homeownership expenses include the principal, interest, taxes, and insurance 

(PITI) on the mortgage(s), any refinancing of such debt, and any mortgage insurance premium; a 

utility allowance based on the utility allowance schedule that applies to the rental voucher 

program; and allowances for maintenance and replacement that are set by the PHA at the amount 

the PHA thinks appropriate for repair and replacement needs. If the purchaser or a member of the 

purchaser’s household is a person with disabilities, the monthly homeownership expenses may

also include debt incurred by the family to finance costs needed to make the home accessible as a 

reasonable accommodation. 

• The total tenant payment (TTP) typically equals 30 percent of the participant’s adjusted monthly

income, as in the rental voucher program. 

The calculation of the HAP ensures that all voucher homeownership program participants pay at least 

30 percent of their adjusted monthly income each month toward homeownership expenses. The 

discussion of the financing models in this chapter focuses on the mortgage PITI, which is one 

component of the monthly homeownership expenses. However, the HAP is supposed to help the 

participant pay the total monthly homeownership expenses, not just the PITI. The greater the share of 

the HAP that is used to pay the mortgage PITI, the less that is available to pay the remaining 

homeownership expenses. 

 1 In order to determine the amount of the HAP, the PHA compares the voucher payment standard to the total

monthly homeownership expenses, chooses the lower of the two amounts, and subtracts from it the total

tenant payment. For example, if the voucher payment standard is $800, the total monthly homeownership

expenses are $950, and the total tenant payment is $500, the HAP will be $300 ($800 - $500 = $300). By 

contrast, if the voucher payment standard were $800 and the total monthly homeownership expenses were 

$750, the HAP would be $250 ($750 - $500 = $250). 

4-1 
4.1 Financing Models 

There are three main financing models being used in the voucher homeownership program at this 

time. These models differ in how the voucher subsidy (HAP) is treated during the mortgage 

underwriting process. Each model has advantages and drawbacks, and each is in use in at least three 

of the 12 study sites. 

Consistent with most discussions of the voucher homeownership program by HUD staff, lenders, and 

representatives of the secondary mortgage market, we refer to the three financing models as: 

• HAP as income; 

• HAP as offset; and 

• the two-mortgage model. 

All three financing models can be used with multiple mortgages. The “two-mortgage model” refers 

specifically to the financing model (described below) in which the HAP is used exclusively to pay

down a second mortgage. 

HAP as Income Model 

In the HAP as income model, underwriters consider the HAP as an additional source of income when 

determining how much a voucher homeownership program participant can borrow. Since the HAP, 

unlike other income sources, is not taxable, many underwriters inflate (or “gross up”) the HAP by 25 

percent and add it to other income sources to derive total gross income. Underwriters then use 

qualifying ratios, usually in the range of 28 to 30 percent of gross monthly income, to determine the 

monthly principal, interest, taxes, and insurance (PITI) payments that the participant can afford, and 

thus the total loan amount that the participant can borrow given the interest rate and other terms of the 

lending products being used. Because the HAP is considered as a source of income (and thus subject 

to the lender’s qualifying ratios), the lender typically only counts 35 percent of the HAP (including 

the 25 percent “gross up”) when qualifying the participant for a loan.2

 

Exhibit 4-1 shows the relative buying power and payment burdens of the HAP as income model (and 

the other two models) for a sample voucher participant with a gross annual income of $22,000 and 

annual deductions of $1,360. This sample voucher participant is assumed to qualify for a voucher 

payment standard of $800.3 The exhibit assumes that only one mortgage is used in the HAP as 

income transaction. 

 2 For example, if the HAP is $100, the lender grosses it up by 25 percent ($100 x 1.25 = $125) and then 

counts it as income. The lender then qualifies the participant based on 28 percent of his/her monthly

income, the HAP portion of which is $35 ($125 x 0.28), or 35 percent of the original HAP. 

3 Exhibit 4-1 assumes that monthly homeownership expenses are higher than the voucher payment standard, 

thus the voucher payment standard minus the TTP is less than homeownership expenses minus TTP. As a 

result, the HAP is assumed to equal the voucher payment standard minus the TTP. 

4-2 
Exhibit 4-1 

Comparative Buying Power and Payment Burden of the Three Financing Models 

HAP as

Income

HAP as 

Offset 

TwoMortgage

Assumptions 

Voucher payment standard $800 $800 $800 

Gross annual income $22,000 $22,000 $22,000

Gross monthly income $1,833 $1,833 $1,833

Annual deductions from income a $1,360 $1,360 $1,360

Monthly deductions from income $113 $113 $113

Monthly adjusted income $1,720 $1,720 $1,720

Total tenant payment (TTP = 0.3 x $1,720) $516 $516 $516 

Maximum HAP ($800-$516) $284 $284 $284 

Lender Calculations 

HAP with 25 percent gross-up $355 N/A N/A

Gross monthly income (non-HAP) $1,833 $1,833 $1,833

Total gross monthly income $2,188 $1,833 $1,833

Assumed qualifying ratio 28% 28% 28%

Monthly PITI based on qualifying ratio b $613 $513 $513

PITI offset N/A $284 N/A

Total Resources for 1st Mortgage PITI $613 $797 $513

Family share of 1st mortgage PITI (assuming 

HAP is paid directly to lender)

$329 

(= $613 - 

$284) 

$513 

(= $797 - 

$284)

$513

TTP remaining to apply to other expenses $197 $3 $3

PITI Payment Burden (family share of 1st

mortgage PITI as a percentage of gross monthly 

income)

18%

(= $329 / 

$1,833)

28%

(= $513 / 

$1,833) 

28%

(= $513 / 

$1,833) 

Taxes and insurance (assumed) $125 $125 $125 

Principal and interest (7.5%, 30 yrs) $488 $672 $388 

Amount of 1st mortgage (7.5%, 30 yrs) $69,793 $96,108 $55,490 

HAP remaining for 2nd mortgage $0 $0 $284 

Principal and interest (7.0%, 15 yrs) N/A N/A $284 

Amount of 2nd mortgage (7.0%, 15 yrs) N/A N/A $31,597 

Total loan(s) / Borrowing Power $69,793 $96,108 $87,087 

a Deductions in income are determined by the PHA under voucher program rules. b The monthly PITI on the first mortgage is based on the lender’s qualifying ratio of 28 percent of gross monthly 

income. As a voucher program requirement, families must pay at least 30 percent of adjusted monthly income toward 

total estimated monthly homeownership expenses, regardless of the financing model used. In this example, all 

families will pay at least $516 toward monthly homeownership expenses, even if the family portion of the PITI is less 

than $516.

4-3 
The HAP as income model is the most conservative of the three financing models, resulting in the 

lowest monthly mortgage payment for the participant and thereby minimizing the participant’s total 

monthly homeownership expenses. Under the HAP as income model, the total payment that the 

participant can make toward the mortgage PITI is capped at 28 to 30 percent (depending on the 

lender’s qualifying ratio) of the sum of the participant’s gross monthly income and the grossed up 

HAP.4

 The participant’s contribution of his/her own income (not counting the voucher) toward the 

PITI payment will therefore be less than the 28 to 30 percent cap and represents a smaller proportion 

of his/her monthly income (18 percent of gross monthly income) than under the other models. 

Moreover, because the lender counts only 35 percent of the HAP toward the determination of the 

mortgage amount, the majority of the HAP is available to be used for other allowable homeownership 

expenses. This contrasts with the HAP as offset model (described below), in which the lender takes 

100 percent of the HAP into account in determining the maximum mortgage amount. 

Among the three financing models, lenders may be most comfortable with the HAP as income model 

because it is the most conservative of the three and the most similar to traditional underwriting. 

Lenders may view this approach as less risky than the other two models because there is less reliance 

on the HAP for paying the mortgage. In addition, lenders are used to working with various income

sources, so it may be relatively easy for them to consider the grossed up HAP as another income

source. 

The major drawback to the HAP as income model is that it has the least buying power of the three 

models. As Exhibit 4-1 shows, the HAP as income model results in the lowest borrowing power, 

with a total loan of $69,793. Note that the PITI payment burden (defined as the participant’s share of 

the PITI as a percentage of gross monthly income, assuming that the entire voucher subsidy is used 

for PITI) is the same for both the HAP as offset and the two-mortgage models and is equal to the 

underwriting ratio used (28 percent). The HAP as income model results initially in a lower PITI 

payment burden: only 18 percent of gross monthly income is spent on monthly PITI payments. As 

this example shows, the HAP as income model trades off lower costs for the borrower (and therefore 

lower risk of default) against less purchasing power. 

The five sites that have used the HAP as income financing model have done so at the preference of 

the lenders in their communities. Some of the sites that have been most successful in gaining the 

support of a large number of lenders—such as Montgomery County, where seven different lenders 

have made loans to program participants thus far—have used the HAP as income model. In addition, 

most lenders using FHA loan products are now using the HAP as income model, following the 

mortgagee letter that FHA published in September 2001 stating that the HAP must be treated as 

income in determining the homebuyer’s qualifying ratios for FHA-insured mortgages.5

Syracuse has taken a different approach to treating the HAP as income. In Syracuse, lenders qualify

borrowers for a mortgage solely on the basis of their own income and disregard the HAP. This 

approach is not considered a financing model because the HAP is not used to enable participants to 

qualify for a mortgage. However, the subsidy is still needed for participants to meet their total 

 4 It is a lender requirement that a borrower typically pay no more than 28 to 30 percent of gross monthly 

income toward the PITI. The voucher homeownership program requires that the participant pay at least 30 

percent of adjusted monthly income toward total monthly homeownership expenses. 

5

 FHA Mortgagee Letter 2001-20, September 7, 2001. 

4-4 
monthly homeownership expenses, including, but not limited to, the monthly mortgage payment. In 

Syracuse, the HAP is paid directly to the participant for the duration of the period of voucher 

assistance to offset the monthly mortgage payment and the homeownership expenses that are taken 

into account when determining the amount of the voucher subsidy. 

In Syracuse, the decision not to treat the HAP as either an income source or a source of mortgage 

payment when determining participants’ qualifying ratios was driven partly by lenders, who did not 

view the HAP as a guaranteed source of income and were reluctant to develop new loan products 

(that they might not be able to resell on the secondary market) to serve program participants. In 

addition, staff at the PHA and partner organization did not want to encourage dependency on the HAP 

by making it part of the monthly mortgage payment. As a result, lenders in Syracuse do not take the 

HAP into consideration when determining the amount of the mortgage for which voucher 

homeownership participants qualify. 

 

Exhibit 4-2 compares the purchasing power of the Syracuse approach to the other three models, using 

the same methodology and assumptions about income and HAP as in Exhibit 4-1. Under the 

Syracuse approach, participants qualify for a mortgage based on 28 to 30 percent of their own 

income, not including the HAP. Each of the other models treats the HAP in some way as a source of 

mortgage payments in determining the maximum amount of the mortgage. The Syracuse approach 

does not count the HAP, and therefore results in the lowest loan amount and borrower power. 

However, because the full amount of the HAP (in this case $284) is given to the participant for the 

mortgage PITI and other allowable homeownership expenses, Syracuse participants face a lower PITI 

payment burden than participants under the other three models. 

One of the reasons that Syracuse participants are able to qualify for mortgages without the assistance 

of the HAP is that the cost of owned housing in the Syracuse area is low, and there is ample stock 

available in the $40,000 to $60,000 price range. Moreover, the voucher program participants targeted 

for Syracuse’s program are typically receiving only limited assistance from the voucher program by

the time they purchase.6

 

An argument could be made that if purchasers in Syracuse can buy homes without the voucher 

assistance, they should not be eligible to receive the assistance. However, the voucher assistance is 

important for making homeownership affordable to participants in Syracuse when all of the 

homeownership expenses (not just the PITI) are taken into account. In addition, program staff 

strongly believe in using homeownership vouchers to promote self-sufficiency, “rewarding” 

participants who have been able to achieve the income stability and good credit needed to qualify for 

a mortgage on their own. 

 6 The average monthly HAP among Syracuse purchasers is $204, compared with an average monthly HAP 

of $341 across all of the purchasers in the sample. 

4-5 
Exhibit 4-2 

Syracuse Model as Compared to HAP as Income, HAP as Offset, and Two-Mortgage Models 

HAP as

Income

HAP as 

Offset

TwoMortgage Syracuse 

Assumptions 

Voucher payment standard $800 $800 $800 $800 

Gross annual income $22,000 $22,000 $22,000 $22,000

Gross monthly income $1,833 $1,833 $1,833 $1,833

Annual deductions from income $1,360 $1,360 $1,360 $1,360

Monthly deductions from income $113 $113 $113 $113

Monthly adjusted income $1,720 $1,720 $1,720 $1,720

Total tenant payment (TTP = 0.3 x 

$1,720) 

$516 $516 $516 $516 

Maximum HAP ($800-$516) $284 $284 $284 $284 

Lender Calculations 

HAP with 25 percent gross-up $355 N/A N/A N/A

Gross monthly income (non-HAP) $1,833 $1,833 $1,833 $1,833

Total gross monthly income $2,188 $1,833 $1,833 $1,833

Assumed qualifying ratio 28% 28% 28% 28%

Monthly PITI based on qualifying ratio $613 $513 $513 $513

PITI offset N/A $284 N/A N/A

Total Resources for 1st Mortgage PITI $613 $797 $513 $513

Family share of 1st mortgage PITI 

(assuming HAP is paid directly to lender)

$329 

(= $613 - 

$284) 

$513

(= $797 - 

$284)

$513 $229

(= $513 - 

$284)

TTP remaining to apply to other expenses $197 $3 $3 $287

PITI Payment Burden (family share of 1st

mortgage PITI as a percentage of gross 

monthly income)

18%

(= $329 / 

$1,833)

28%

(= $513 / 

$1,833) 

28%

(= $513 / 

$1,833) 

12%

(= $229 / 

$1,833) 

Taxes and insurance (assumed) $125 $125 $125 $125 

Principal and interest (7.5%, 30 yrs) $488 $672 $388 $388 

Amount of 1st mortgage (7.5%, 30 yrs) $69,793 $96,108 $55,490 $55,490 

HAP remaining for 2nd mortgage $0 $0 $284 N/A 

Principal and interest (7.0%, 15 yrs) N/A N/A $284 N/A 

Amount of 2nd mortgage (7.0%, 15 yrs) N/A N/A $31,597 N/A 

Total loan(s) / Borrowing Power $69,793 $96,108 $87,087 $55,490 

4-6 
HAP as Offset Model 

In the HAP as offset model, underwriters use the full HAP to offset PITI payments. In this model, 

underwriters first qualify borrowers for a monthly PITI payment using qualifying ratios, usually in the 

range of 28 to 30 percent of gross monthly income, to determine the borrower’s portion of monthly

payments. Then underwriters add the full amount of the monthly HAP to the borrower’s monthly

cash portion to get the total monthly resources available to pay the PITI. This total is then used to 

determine the loan amount, given the interest rate and other terms of the lending products being used. 

The main benefit of the HAP as offset model is that it maximizes buying power. As shown in Exhibit 

4-1 above, the HAP as offset model results in the largest loan of the three models. The increase in 

buying power that the HAP as offset model offers over the HAP as income model is that 100 percent 

of the HAP is used to offset the monthly mortgage payments. The HAP as offset model yields more 

buying power than the two-mortgage model because the term of the mortgage in the HAP as offset 

model is typically 30 years, compared to 10 or 15 years in the two-mortgage model (see discussion 

below). 

The relative advantage of the HAP as offset model in terms of buying power is greatest for purchasers 

at the lowest income levels, where the ratio of the HAP to the purchaser’s monthly income is the 

highest. Purchasers at higher income levels (and with lower corresponding HAPs) derive the least 

benefit from the HAP as offset model relative to the other models, although the HAP as offset model 

always yields the greatest borrowing power of the three models.7

The main drawback of the HAP as offset model is that the PITI payment burden is higher than in the 

HAP as income model. Compared to the HAP as income model, participants purchasing using the 

HAP as offset model have fewer resources after paying the monthly PITI to devote to other 

homeownership expenses. In addition, because so much of the mortgage is underwritten on the basis 

of the HAP, participants potentially face a much higher PITI payment burden at the end of the term of 

assistance (at the end of Year 15 for non-elderly, non-disabled participants) than under the HAP as 

income model or the two-mortgage model. (The relative PITI payment burdens at the end of Year 15 

are discussed below under Payment Burdens over Time.) A related drawback of the HAP as offset 

model is that lenders may be less willing to use the model, either because they are less familiar with 

financing mortgages in this fashion or because they consider the model to be too aggressive. 

Six of the 12 study sites have had participants purchase houses using the HAP as offset model. In all 

cases, the use of this model was driven by the preference of local lending institutions. In three sites—

Bernalillo County, Milwaukee, and Danville—some lenders are using the HAP as income model and 

others are using the HAP as offset model. In at least two sites, however, the choice of model was 

driven explicitly by housing market conditions. In Colorado and Missoula, the cost of owned 

housing—relative to the voucher payment standard and to the incomes of voucher program

participants—is such that many participants would not have been able to purchase without using the 

 7 For example, a participant with a gross annual income of $28,000 and annual deductions of $1,680 would 

qualify for a monthly HAP of $142. Under the HAP as income model, using the same assumptions as in

Exhibit 4-1, this participant would qualify for a mortgage of $100,500. Under the HAP as offset model, the 

participant would qualify for a mortgage of $114,000. The difference in borrowing power between the two 

models for this participant is $13,500, while the difference in borrowing power between the two models for 

a participant earning $22,000 per year (as in Exhibit 4-1) is $26,315. 

4-7 
full HAP as a direct offset to the monthly mortgage payment. As a result, program staff in Colorado 

and Missoula reported that FHA’s policy on treating the HAP as income for FHA-insured mortgages 

presented an obstacle to the growth of their programs. 

Two-Mortgage Model 

The two-mortgage model is a variant of the HAP as offset model in that the two-mortgage model also 

applies 100 percent of the HAP towards paying down the mortgage. However, in the two-mortgage 

model, the entire HAP is typically devoted to paying a second mortgage while the borrower’s income

is devoted to paying the first mortgage.8

 In programs using the two-mortgage model, underwriters 

first qualify the borrower for a first mortgage based on the borrower’s income alone, using typical 

qualifying ratios, usually in the range of 28 to 30 percent of gross monthly income. The lender then 

underwrites the second mortgage by treating the HAP as the sole source of monthly PITI payments. 

In the two-mortgage model, the term of the second mortgage is no longer than the term of the HAP.9

 

Because the HAP is being used to pay off a loan amortized over a shorter time period than the 30-year 

terms of typical first mortgages, the two-mortgage model has somewhat less buying power than the 

HAP as offset model (see Exhibit 4-1 above).10 

In the two-mortgage model, if the HAP decreases over the term of assistance, the participant must pay

the portion of the second mortgage payment that is not covered by the HAP, in addition to making the 

full payment on the first mortgage. If the HAP increases over the term of assistance and exceeds the 

monthly mortgage payment on the second mortgage, the PHA must send the portion of the HAP that 

is left over after making the payment on the second mortgage to the participant to help offset the PITI 

payment on the first mortgage and other homeownership expenses. 

The main benefit of the two-mortgage model is that it lowers the risk associated with the possibility

that the HAP may expire before the participant’s income has increased enough to eliminate the need 

for the HAP. Because the term of the second mortgage is never longer than the term of the HAP, 

when the HAP is terminated after 15 years, the second mortgage has already been paid off. It also 

reduces the risk for the first mortgage lender, who is making a loan based solely on the participant’s 

own income, and thus should encourage private market lenders to participate in the program. Finally, 

if the second mortgage is serviced by one of the organizations partnering with the PHA to provide 

homeownership counseling—as is the case with the study sites using this model—holding the second 

 8 Some lenders may choose to qualify borrowers for a second mortgage based on a portion of the HAP rather 

than the entire HAP. This results in a monthly PITI on the second mortgage that is less than the full

amount of the HAP, and the PHA provides the remaining HAP to the participant to offset the first mortgage 

PITI and other homeownership expenses. 

9 For program participants who finance their purchase with a mortgage with a 20-year term or longer, the 

maximum term of homeownership assistance is 15 years. For participants with shorter mortgage terms, the 

maximum term of homeownership assistance is 10 years. The provision of term limits is waived for 

households headed by an elderly person or a person with a disability. 

10 In addition, as noted above, the second mortgage lender may qualify the borrower for a second mortgage 

based on a portion of the HAP rather than the entire HAP. In such a case, the two-mortgage model would 

create less borrowing power than is shown in Exhibit 4-1, which assumes that the second mortgage is based 

on 100 percent of the HAP. 

4-8 
mortgage loan can give program staff a way to stay involved with purchasers over the long-term and 

offer additional services as necessary. 

The main drawback of the two-mortgage model is that it may be difficult to find a lender willing to 

make a second mortgage loan based entirely on the HAP. The sites in our study using the twomortgage model—Nashville, San Bernardino, and Toledo—are all participating in NR’s voucher 

homeownership demonstration, in which the PHA offers the program in partnership with a local 

NeighborWorks organization.11 The NeighborWorks organizations have received funding from NR 

for second mortgage loans and have the possibility of reselling the loans to their parent organization, 

Neighborhood Housing Services of America (NHSA).12 PHAs not partnering with NeighborWorks 

organizations have not found lenders willing to make second mortgage loans based on the HAP. 

Another drawback of the two-mortgage model is that, by limiting the application of the HAP payment 

to a mortgage with a 10- or 15-year term, it does not maximize the amount of financing that the 

borrower can obtain. However, the two-mortgage model does support a higher total mortgage 

amount than the HAP as income model. 

4.2 Payment Burdens over Time 

Some program staff and partners have expressed concern about what will happen to participants’

payment burdens when the HAP is terminated after 15 years for non-elderly, non-disabled program

participants. This is a particular concern for the HAP as offset model, because borrowers using this 

model face the highest monthly mortgage payments at the end of the term of assistance. Exhibit 4-3 

presents the PITI burden (monthly PITI payment as a percentage of gross monthly income) that 

participants will face at the end of Year 15, the end of the term of voucher assistance, under the three 

financing models and under different assumptions about participant income growth. 

As shown, under the baseline assumption of zero percent average annual income growth (in nominal 

terms), the two-mortgage model has the lowest PITI burden at the end of Year 15 (28 percent). 

Under the two-mortgage model, the participant’s PITI burden does not change between Year 1 and 

Year 15 (assuming no income growth). This is because the HAP is not used to determine the amount 

of the first mortgage, and the second mortgage (based on the HAP) is paid off by the end of Year 

15.13 

The assumption of zero income growth in nominal terms is very conservative, because it means that 

income is actually declining in real terms (when adjusted for inflation) over the 15-year term of 

assistance. The voucher homeownership program does not include a mandatory self-sufficiency

component focusing on helping participants maintain or increase their income over the term of 

 11 The other two sites in the study participating in the NR demonstration—Vermont and Syracuse—opted not

to use the two-mortgage model. In addition, program staff in Nashville and San Bernardino plan to work

with private market lenders to offer one of the other two financing models to their participants as well as 

the two-mortgage model.

12 At the time of the site visits, none of the study sites using the two-mortgage model had sold second 

mortgage loans to NHSA. 

13 The Syracuse approach yields the same PITI burden at the end of Year 15 as the two-mortgage model,

because in Syracuse the first mortgage is based only on the participant’s income and does count the HAP. 

4-9 
assistance. However, given the program’s eligibility requirement of one year of full-time 

employment, one would expect that most participants have achieved a degree of employment stability

by the time they purchase and will experience some growth in income in nominal terms over the term

of assistance. 

Exhibit 4-3 

Estimated PITI Burden at the End of Year 15 if Participant Does Not Refinance, Under 

Alternative Assumptions About Income Growth

At end of Year 15, with average 

HAP as Income Model Year 1 annual income growth of: 

-2% -1% 0% 1% 2%

Gross Monthly Income $1,833 $1,354 $1,577 $1,833 $2,128 $2,467

PITI (from Ex. 4-1) $613 $613 $613 $613 $613 $613

HAP to Family (from Ex. 4-1) $284 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 

Family Share of PITI $329 $613 $613 $613 $613 $613

PITI Payment Burden 18% 45% 39% 33% 29% 25%

At end of Year 15, with average 

HAP as Offset Model Year 1 annual income growth of: 

-2% -1% 0% 1% 2%

Gross Monthly Income $1,833 $1,354 $1,577 $1,833 $2,128 $2,467

PITI (from Ex. 4-1) $797 $797 $797 $797 $797 $797

HAP to Family (from Ex. 4-1) $284 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 

Family Share of PITI $513 $797 $797 $797 $797 $797

PITI Payment Burden 28% 59% 51% 43% 37% 32%

Two-Mortgage Model Year 1 At end of Year 15, with average 

annual income growth of:

-2% -1% 0% 1% 2%

Gross Monthly Income $1,833 $1,354 $1,577 $1,833 $2,128 $2,467

PITI (from Ex. 4-1) $513 $513 $513 $513 $513 $513

HAP to Family (from Ex. 4-1) $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 

Family Share of PITI $513 $513 $513 $513 $513 $513

PITI Payment Burden 28% 38% 33% 28% 24% 21%

Note: Assumes, as in Exhibit 4-1, that the participant’s initial gross monthly income is $1,833 and the first mortgage is a 

30-year fixed rate mortgage at 7.5 percent interest. As in Exhibit 4-1, the HAP as income first mortgage amount 

is $69,793, the HAP as offset first mortgage amount is $96,108, and the two-mortgage model first mortgage 

amount is $55,490. 

With zero percent nominal income growth, the HAP as offset model has the highest PITI burden at 

the end of Year 15 (43 percent of gross monthly income). This is because the full amount of the HAP 

is considered in determining the amount of the first mortgage, creating a higher PITI payment ($797) 

for which the participant is wholly responsible at the end of the term of assistance. Under this same 

model, however, if the participant’s income grows by just two percent in nominal terms over the term

of assistance (less than the typical rate of inflation), the PITI burden at the end of Year 15 drops to 32 

percent of gross monthly income. 

4-10 
Under the HAP as income model, the PITI burden at the end of Year 15 is higher than for the twomortgage model but lower than for the HAP as offset model. Under the HAP as income model, 

participants face a PITI burden at the end of Year 15 of 33 percent of gross monthly income, if the 

participant’s income does not change over the term of assistance, compared to a PITI burden of 43 

percent under the HAP as offset model and 28 percent under the two-mortgage model. 

Despite the potentially high PITI burdens that program participants face at the end of Year 15 under 

the HAP as offset model, the lenders using this financing model did not express concern about 

payment shock at the end of the term of assistance. One reason that lenders may not fear payment 

shock is that, after 15 years of mortgage payments, the unpaid balance on the mortgage will have 

been reduced to the point where the participant could refinance to a new 30-year mortgage and reduce 

the monthly payments to an affordable level—assuming interest rates have not risen a great deal 

above current rates. 

Exhibit 4-4 shows the remaining principal on the mortgage and the loan-to-value ratio (LTV) after 15 

years under different assumptions about appreciation rates in housing prices. The LTV is the sum of 

all forgivable, deferred, and amortized loans divided by the value of the property. The higher the 

LTV, the less equity the buyer has in the property. The exhibit assumes that the initial loan is a 30-

year fixed rate mortgage at 7.5 percent interest for $96,108. As shown earlier in Exhibit 4-1, $96,108 

is the mortgage amount that a program participant earning $22,000 would qualify for under the HAP 

as offset model. Exhibit 4-4 also assumes that the participant has a 100 percent LTV at the time of 

purchase, so that the value of the property at purchase is equal to the amount of the mortgage. As the 

exhibit shows, even if housing prices do not change at all, the LTV at the end of Year 15 will be 

approximately 76 percent because of principal payments over the first 15 years. With modest price 

appreciation, the LTV would be lower. So even if there is a payment shock, borrowers should have 

sufficient equity to refinance for another 30-year mortgage or to sell the house and avoid foreclosure. 

Exhibit 4-4 

Projected LTV at the End of Year 15 Under Alternative Assumptions About Annual Property

Appreciation Rates

Average Annual 

Property Appreciation 

Property Value at 

End of Year 15 

Remaining Principal 

at End of Year 15 

Projected LTV at 

End of Year 15 

0% $96,108 $72,491 76%

1% $111,578 $72,491 65%

2% $129,349 $72,491 56%

3% $149,733 $72,491 49%

Note: Assumes the starting property value is $96,108 and the mortgage is a 30-year, level payment, fixed-rate mortgage at 

7.5 percent interest for $96,108. 

Exhibit 4-5 presents the PITI burden that the same participant would face at the end of Year 15 if 

he/she were to refinance the remaining principal on the mortgage ($72,491) into a new 30-year fixedrate mortgage at prevailing interest rates. The PITI burden (monthly PITI payment as a percentage of 

gross monthly income) is shown in the shaded area under different assumptions about the 

participant’s average annual income growth since the time of purchase and about the prevailing 

mortgage interest rate at the end of Year 15. Because the exhibit shows payment burden after 

refinancing to a new mortgage and without the assistance of the HAP, the financing model used for 

the initial mortgage is not relevant. 

4-11 
Under the conservative assumption of zero percent nominal growth in income, there is only a modest 

payment shock at the end of the term of assistance if the participant is able to refinance the mortgage 

at interest rates that are no more than two percentage points above the interest rate on the first 

mortgage (7.5 percent). If there is even a modest nominal growth in income (two percent per year, 

less than the typical inflation rate), there is little chance of a payment shock—even if interest rates are 

substantially above current rates. 

Exhibit 4-5 

Estimated PITI Burden at the End of Year 15 if the Participant Refinances, Under Alternative 

Assumptions about Income Growth and Prevailing Mortgage Rates

Prevailing Mortgage Interest 

Rate in Year 15: 

Average 

Annual Income 

Growth 

Gross 

Monthly

Income 

Remaining 

Mortgage 

Principal 7.5% 8.5% 9.5% 10.5% 11.5%

0% $1,833 $72,491 28% 30% 33% 36% 39% 

1% $2,128 $72,491 24% 26% 29% 31% 34% 

2% $2,467 $72,491 21% 23% 25% 27% 29% 

Note: Assumes the initial gross monthly income is $1,833 and the initial mortgage is a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage for 

$96,108 at 7.5% interest. 

This scenario only works if the participant is willing and able to refinance to a 30-year mortgage at 

the end of the term of voucher assistance. Refinancing to a 15-year mortgage may be more desirable 

from the participant’s point of view, but would result in higher PITI payment burdens—for example, 

a PITI payment burden of 37 percent assuming zero percent income growth and a 7.5 percent interest 

rate. PHAs may want to place restrictions on refinancing that takes equity out of the property during 

the term of assistance so that participants have sufficient equity to be able to refinance at the end of 

the term of assistance. Not refinancing at the end of the term of assistance would result in the 

payment burdens presented earlier in Exhibit 4-3. 

4.3 Loan Servicing 

Servicing challenges arise with each of the three financing models. In both the HAP as income and 

HAP as offset models, funds from both borrower income and the HAP need to be applied to pay

down the mortgage(s). All the study PHAs using the HAP as offset model have decided, at the 

lenders’ preference, to send the HAP directly to the servicer of the first mortgage. In this situation, 

the participant also has to send a check to the servicer(s) to cover the remainder of the monthly

payment(s). The benefit of this arrangement is that the servicers generally prefer the “guaranteed” 

arrival of the HAP check from the PHA. Lenders reported that it does not make sense to divert the 

HAP to the borrower with this model, because all of the HAP is intended to be used to pay down the 

mortgage. Some PHAs using the HAP as income model have also decided to have the HAP sent 

directly from the PHA to the first mortgage servicer, generally for the same reasons of providing the 

lender a guaranteed portion of the payment each month. 

Although sending the HAP directly to the loan servicer avoids the risk that program participant will 

spend the HAP on other things, it creates a “two check” problem. That is, the servicer needs to deal 

with the receipt of two checks and needs to track them both, match them, and make sure they are 

4-12 
applied to the same account each month. Across the study sites, lenders have found different ways to 

handle the two-check problem. In one HUD pilot site, the HAP check is made out to both the 

participant and the bank and is first sent to the participant. The participant then endorses the HAP 

check and sends it to the bank for endorsement and deposit, including in the same envelope a personal 

check for the participant’s monthly payment portion. However, this practice is only permitted 

because the site is a pilot site operating under the proposed rule. Two-party checks to the family and 

lender are not authorized under the final rule. 

At another site, the PHA sends the HAP to the bank and the participant sends a check to the bank. 

Both of these checks are deposited into a single account, from which the bank cuts a single check 

each month that is then sent to the mortgage servicing division. Other banks have created limited 

access accounts to which the PHA and participants can make deposits either by check or by direct 

deposit—the bank then withdraws the mortgage payment electronically from this account each 

month. Each of these methods is labor-intensive and may require adjustment as the number of 

purchases through the program increases. 

Another way around the two-check problem is to avoid it altogether by sending the HAP directly to 

the program participant. Some sites using the HAP as income model are using this servicing strategy. 

Each month the PHA sends HAP checks to participants, and the participants send mortgage payments 

to their servicers. Thus far, sites using this strategy have reported no problems with participants 

keeping the HAP and not paying the mortgage. However, participants at one site reported that the 

timing of their receipt of the HAP check by forced them to mail their mortgage payment closer to the 

due date than they would have liked, leading to some anxiety about whether the payment would get to 

the servicer on time. 

The two-mortgage model works slightly differently. Initially, making payments on and servicing the 

first mortgage is just like any other simple servicing situation. The program participant, who never 

sees the HAP, makes monthly payments to the servicer. The PHA sends the monthly HAP checks 

directly to the second mortgage servicer. This arrangement becomes more complicated when the 

participant’s income increases or decreases. If the participant’s income increases, the HAP decreases, 

and the participant is responsible for covering the portion of the second mortgage payment not 

covered by the HAP. This means that the second mortgage servicer now has to deal with two checks 

coming in each month, one from the PHA and one from the participant. If the participant’s income

decreases, the HAP increases. The participant, who was qualified based on income alone for monthly

PITI payments on the first mortgage, will need the assistance of part of the HAP to help cover these 

payments and other homeownership expenses. In any case where the HAP exceeds the monthly

mortgage payment, the program regulations require the PHA to send the remaining HAP to the 

participant. It is not clear if the sites using the two-mortgage model are prepared to deal with such 

situations. In any case, it would require changes to the current processes in place for issuing the 

HAPs only to the second mortgage servicers. 

4-13 
4.4 Ensuring the Affordability of Financing 

All of the study PHAs have established policies designed to prevent program participants from

obtaining financing that will not be affordable for them over the long-term. For example, all of the 

sites prohibit balloon mortgages, and some also disallow seller financing or adjustable rate mortgages. 

In addition, some sites have set ceilings on the share of monthly income that participants can pay for 

the monthly PITI or for monthly homeownership expenses. For example, the Montgomery County

Housing Authority does not allow the total monthly homeownership expenses minus the HAP to 

exceed 50 percent of the participant’s monthly-adjusted income. Finally, several PHAs in the study

(in conjunction with their lender partners) have established minimum down payment and homeowner 

equity requirements. 

Program staff at all of the study sites reported that they carefully review the financing terms of each 

purchase transaction prior to approving the sale. In some cases, program staff do their own 

calculations to ensure that the lender’s terms are affordable. In other cases, staff rely more heavily on 

the lender (and the type of loan product) to determine whether the loan will be affordable. In some

sites, program participants work with one of a small number of lenders with whom program staff have 

developed a close relationship and who have been educated about the voucher homeownership 

program. In these cases, program staff may place less emphasis on the financing review because they

trust the lending partners and the loan products available to program participants. In sites where the 

program works with multiple lenders or where more risky loan products (such as adjustable rate 

mortgages) are allowed, PHA staff may devote more resources toward reviewing the terms of each 

purchase transaction. In some cases, program staff may assist participants in negotiating with lenders 

to obtain better loan terms. 

The different approaches that the study sites have taken to ensuring the affordability of financing for 

program participants are discussed in the case studies in Volume 2 of this report. In addition, Chapter 

5 includes an analysis of purchase transaction data submitted by the 12 study sites that includes 

several measures of affordability. 

4.5 Additional Sources of Purchase Financing 

In addition to the HAP, each of the study sites has identified additional resources to help make the 

purchases more affordable to program participants. These additional resources are generally available 

to other low-income first-time homebuyers, not just voucher homeownership participants. They

include loan products with below-market interest rates, deferred loans that are repaid only on the 

resale or refinancing of the property, forgivable loans (which do not have to be repaid but often 

include recapture provisions requiring some degree of repayment if the property is sold within a given 

period of time), and grants. 

Exhibit 4-6 shows which of these financing options are available in each of the study sites. A variety

of Federal, state, and local government programs provide subsidized loan products or grants to lowincome first-time homebuyers, in addition to private, nonprofit organizations. For example, loan 

products financed through Federal agencies or through state housing financing agencies are often 

available at below-market interest rates. The study sites have tapped into many programs offering 

deferred or forgivable loans to low-income first-time homebuyers, including programs of the Federal 

Home Loan Bank, and loan products developed by city or state agencies and funded through HUD’s 

4-14 
HOME and CDBG programs. In San Bernardino, the PHA received a Federal Home Loan Bank 

grant through a program called Individual Development Empowerment Accounts (IDEA). This 

program provides matching funds for FSS escrow account balances that program participants may use 

for down payments or closing costs. Other grants used by program participants include funds from

private organizations such as Catholic Charities, advocacy groups serving persons with disabilities 

(some provide funds for rehabilitation needed to make properties accessible), and nonprofit housing 

development organizations. Local property tax rebate programs for low-income families are another 

source of closing cost or down payment grants. The extent to which these additional resources are 

being used varies from site to site, as does the level of subsidy. In some sites, up to $20,000 may be 

available for down payment or closing cost assistance, typically in the form of deferred or forgivable 

loans. 

Exhibit 4-6 

Additional Sources of Purchase Financing by Site

Below-market 

Interest Rate 

Loans

Deferred Loans Forgivable Loans

Closing Cost or 

Down Payment 

Grants

Bernalillo Co. ∙ ∙

Colorado ∙ ∙ ∙ ∙

Danville ∙ ∙

Green Bay ∙ ∙ ∙

Milwaukee ∙

Missoula ∙

Montgomery Co. ∙

Nashville ∙ ∙ ∙

San Bernardino ∙

Syracuse ∙ ∙

Toledo ∙

Vermont ∙ ∙ ∙

Sources: Interviews with program staff conducted March to May 2002.

Some loan products with below-market interest rates limit equity accumulation. For example, the 

loans offered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Housing Service’s Section 502 Direct 

Loan Program, commonly known as Section 502 loans, have recapture provisions payable when the 

property is sold. Section 502 loans are 33-year mortgages with a subsidized interest rate based on the 

borrower’s income. The lower the borrower’s income, the greater the subsidy and the lower the 

interest rate. The subsidized interest rates range from one percent to 6.25 percent (as of April 2002), 

depending on the borrower’s income. The loan recapture provisions are based on the amount of 

interest subsidy received over the lifetime of the loan. At one site where Section 502 loans are 

common, program staff explained that they believe the advantages outweigh the disadvantages, 

because as income increases over time, the level of subsidy will decrease, improving equity

accumulation. They also contend that the stability gained from homeownership is a tradeoff for the 

limitations on equity accumulation. In all cases, however, it is important that the participant 

understand the impact of the loan provisions on their potential equity. 

Across the 12 study sites, based on a sample of up to 10 purchase transactions at each site (fewer if 

the site had fewer than 10 closings at the time of the site visit), the average additional resources that 

4-15 
participants received at the time of purchase (in the form of grants, forgivable loans, and seller 

assistance, but not including below market interest rate loans) was $4,784 (see Exhibit 4-7).14 In

Syracuse, Toledo, and Milwaukee, the average subsidy at closing received by program participants 

was more than $10,000 (keeping in mind that the “average” is based on one purchase transaction in 

Milwaukee and two purchase transactions in Toledo). In 7 of the 12 sites, the average subsidy at 

purchase was less than $5,000. 

Exhibit 4-7 

Average Subsidy at Purchase by Site (Based on a Sample of 84 Purchase Transactions)

N Grants Forgivable Loans Total

Bernalillo Co. 10 $234a $0 $234

Colorado 10 $0 $2,450 $2,450

Danville 10 $129 $7,842 $7,972

Green Bay 4 $0 $2,250 $2,250 

Milwaukee 1 $10,000 $0 $10,000

Missoula 5 $1,498 $0 $1,498

Montgomery Co. 10 $3,728b $0 $3,728

Nashville 10 $969 $1,770 $2,739

San Bernardino 3 $9,490 $0 $9,490 

Syracuse 9 $0 $11,563 $11,563

Toledo 2 $13,500 $0 $13,500

Vermont 10 $4,458 $0 $4,458

Total /Weighted Averagec 84 $2,002 $2,782 $4,784 a This average is based on one participant receiving a grant of $2,340 and the other nine participants sampled at the site 

receiving no grants. 

b At this site, eight of the 10 purchasers sampled received some amount of assistance at closing from the seller, which is 

included in the grant figure shown here. The amount of the seller assistance ranged from $500 to $5,000, with an 

average of $2,943 across the eight purchasers that received seller assistance. 

c A weighted average is an average that takes into account the proportional relevance of each component, rather than 

treating each component equally. In this table, the data on grants and forgivable loans for each site are weighted by

the share of the total purchase transactions represented by that site. 

It is difficult to estimate the average ongoing monthly subsidy (the HAP plus the monthly interest 

subsidy on below-market loans) across the 12 study sites. The sample purchase transactions took 

place at different times between 1999 and 2002 (thus at different prevailing market interest rates), 

making quantifying the value of the interest subsidy problematic. Fifty-five of the 84 purchasers in 

our sample (65 percent) obtained first or second mortgage loans with interest rates below 7 percent. 

Many of these loans came from state Housing Finance Agencies (HFAs), Rural Housing Service 

(RHS), or NR, but some came from private market lenders. 

Exhibit 4-8 uses four sample purchase transactions to illustrate how below-market interest rate loans 

and subsidies at purchase can work together to enable voucher program participants to purchase 

homes. The exhibit shows the monthly subsidy—the HAP plus the monthly interest subsidy as 

 14 Forgivable loans are typically not forgiven until the participant has owned the home for some period of

time, usually five years. For the purposes of this analysis, however, we have considered the forgivable 

loans as an up-front subsidy received at purchase (i.e., assuming that participants will remain in their 

houses for the term required by the forgivable loan). 

4-16 
applicable, assuming, for simplicity, a 7 percent market interest rate—and the total amount of this 

subsidy over the 15-year term of voucher assistance (assuming that the HAP remains constant over 

this period). 

The exhibit also presents the present value of the monthly subsidy over 15 years based on a market 

interest rate of 7 percent. The present value calculation estimates the value of the monthly subsidy

from the lender’s perspective. For the lender, the opportunity cost of the subsidy is 7 percent, 

assuming that the lender could have used the same funds to make a market-rate loan at 7 percent 

interest rather than a below-market loan at a lesser interest rate. The present value takes into account 

the fact that funds received in the future are less valuable to investors than funds received today. For 

this reason, the present value of the monthly subsidy is a more appropriate measure than the simple 

sum of the monthly payments when evaluating the total value of the monthly subsidy over 15 years. 15 

The four sample transactions presented in Exhibit 4-8 are not meant to be representative of the sample 

of purchase transactions as a whole. Rather, they provide examples of different combinations of 

subsidy at purchase and monthly subsidy. The Colorado transaction is an example of a relatively high 

subsidy at purchase with a relatively high monthly subsidy; Vermont is an example of no subsidy at 

purchase with a relatively high monthly subsidy; San Bernardino is an example of a relatively high 

subsidy at purchase with a relatively low monthly subsidy; and Montgomery County is an example of 

no subsidy at purchase with a relatively low monthly subsidy.

The exhibit provides some sense of the variation in the level of subsidy used to enable program

participants of different income levels to purchase homes under different financing models and in 

different housing markets. Further, the exhibit suggests that the value of the subsidy at purchase is 

generally small compared to the value of the ongoing monthly subsidy. Finally, the majority of the 

value of the monthly subsidy comes from the HAP, which can vary significantly based on the income

of the purchaser, the purchaser’s household size, and total housing costs. The monthly voucher 

assistance among the purchasers sampled from the study sites ranged from $87 to $762, with an 

average of $341. 

 15 Mortgage payments provide a good example of the difference between the sum of monthly payments over 

time and the present value of the payments. A 30-year mortgage for $100,000 at a 7 percent interest rate

would have a monthly payment of $665.30. The sum of the monthly payments over the 30-year life of the 

mortgage would total $239,508—an amount much larger than the original mortgage amount. However, the 

present value of the monthly payments over 30 years, assuming a 7 percent interest rate, is $100,000, the 

original mortgage amount. 

4-17 
Exhibit 4-8 

Subsidy at Purchase and Monthly Subsidy for Sample Purchase Transactions

Colorado Vermont San

Bernardino 

Montgomery

County

Purchase Price $94,900 $61,750 $101,000 $78,500 

Subsidy at Purchase $3,500 $0 $15,470 $0 

Monthly (Ongoing) Subsidy

Subsidized Loans 

Amortizing Loans $75,920 (3% 30-

yr, HFA)

$63,300 (1% 

33-yr., RHS) 

$40,666 (3.25% 

10-yr, NR) 

$0 

Deferred Loansa $16,000 (1.5%, 

HFA) 

$0 $0 $0

Monthly Interest Subsidy on 

Subsidized Loans 

$278 $250 $75 $0

Monthly HAP Subsidy $372 $257 $286 $372

Total Monthly Subsidy 

(= Monthly Interest Subsidy on 

Subsidized Loans + Monthly HAP 

Subsidy)

$650 $507 $361 $372

HAP Share of Monthly Subsidy 

(= HAP Subsidy/Total Monthly

Subsidy)

57% 51% 79% 100%

Total Monthly Subsidy over 15 

Years 

$117,063 $91,284 $64,941 $66,960

Present Value of Total 

Monthly Subsidy over 15 

Yearsb

 

$72,355 $56,422 $40,139 $41,387

a Loan is deferred for 30 years and does not accrue interest over this period. 

b The monthly interest subsidy is calculated assuming a market interest rate of 7 percent. The present value of the monthly

subsidy assumes a 15-year term of assistance and a market interest rate of 7 percent. The present value calculation estimates

the value of the subsidy from the lender’s perspective. For the lender, the opportunity cost of the subsidy is 7 percent, 

assuming that the lender could have used the same funds to make a market-rate loan at 7 percent interest rather than a belowmarket loan at a lesser interest rate. 

 

4-18 
Chapter 5 

Program Outcomes 

In previous chapters, we described the characteristics of the study sites and the details of the 

homeownership program designs. This chapter turns to an analysis of the early outcomes of the 

program, based on information gathered during site visits and supplemented by MTCS and Census 

data. Given that the voucher homeownership program is still at an early stage of implementation, a 

comprehensive evaluation of program outcomes would be premature. Instead, the data presented in 

this chapter provide a preliminary picture of the characteristics of program participants, the units they

have purchased, and how the purchases have been financed. 

The chapter begins with a description of the characteristics of program participants, comparing the 

characteristics of program purchasers both to “in-process” households and to households in the rental 

voucher programs at the study PHAs. Next, we assess the characteristics of properties that have been 

purchased and the neighborhoods in which they are located. This is followed by analysis of the 

financial burden and risk associated with the purchases completed to date. The chapter concludes 

with a discussion of the views of program participants. 

5.1 Characteristics of Program Participants 

Exhibit 5-1 presents the characteristics of the households that have purchased homes through the 

voucher homeownership program (purchasers), as compared both to program participants who have 

not yet purchased (in-process households) and to participants in the rental voucher program (rental 

voucher households) at the 12 study sites. The characteristics presented here offer a picture of 

voucher homeownership program participants at a point in time, early in the implementation of the 

program.

1

 Continued monitoring of participant characteristics as the number of purchasers increases 

will be important to develop a full understanding of who is served through the program. 

The exhibit presents data on the demographic and income characteristics of the three groups of 

households. For the first two groups, purchasers and in-process households, the data were collected 

from PHA administrative records. For the purchasers, we collected demographic and income data on 

up to 10 voucher homeownership purchasers from each site, or all purchasers if the site had 10 or 

fewer purchasers at the time of the site visit. We obtained complete data on 84 program purchasers. 

This is not a representative sample of program purchasers across the country, nor does it represent the 

full set of purchasers at the 12 study sites. The in-process households are voucher homeownership 

candidates who are in the process of completing homeownership counseling or have completed 

counseling but have not yet purchased a home. Many of these households will likely end up 

purchasing, but others may complete the program and not purchase, either because they decide not to 

or because they are unable to qualify for a mortgage. We collected demographic and income data on 

a sample of up to 20 in-process households at each site, or all in-process households if the site had 20 

or fewer households pursuing homeownership at the time of the site visit. 

 1 This information is based on a sample of up to 10 purchasers at each site, a total of 84 purchasers. This is 

not a representative sample of program purchasers across the country, nor does it represent the full set of 

purchasers at the 12 study sites. 

5-1 
Exhibit 5-1 also presents the characteristics of rental voucher households at the 12 study sites, based 

on data reported by the study PHAs in May 2001 to HUD’s Multifamily Tenant Characteristic 

System (MTCS). The characteristics of rental voucher households at each site have been weighted by

the share of purchasers represented by that site in order to provide a more meaningful comparison of 

the similarities and differences between the characteristics of purchasers and rental voucher 

households. If we had not weighted the data in this way, differences between purchasers and rental 

voucher households could be driven by the size of the rental voucher programs at each site (i.e., the 

characteristics of the largest rental voucher programs would dominate the group), rather than by

differences in the characteristics of purchasers and renter households. 

Several key findings emerge from the comparison of household characteristics in these three groups. 

First, program purchasers are mostly female heads of household with children. Overall, 78 percent of 

purchasing households and 79 percent of in-process households are headed by females, compared to 

75 percent of the comparison group of all voucher participant households. In addition, 72 percent of 

purchaser households have children, compared with 67 percent of in-process households and 55 

percent of all voucher participant households. An exception to the pattern is Colorado, where only 50 

percent of purchaser households are headed by females and only 10 percent of the households have 

children. 

In addition, the homeownership program is serving the same share of persons with disabilities (35 

percent of all purchasers) as the rental program. These results are influenced by Green Bay (where 75 

percent of the purchasers are persons with disabilities) and Bernalillo County (where 75 percent of the 

purchasers are persons with disabilities). In both of these sites, the PHA has partnered with nonprofit 

organizations exclusively serving persons with disabilities. In Colorado, all of the purchasers are 

persons with disabilities (as the homeownership program is restricted to persons with disabilities), but 

persons with disabilities also make up the majority (88 percent) of the PHA’s overall voucher 

program. 

Many program directors think that the voucher homeownership program is well suited to persons with 

disabilities because they are entitled to receive the voucher assistance for the full term of the 

mortgage and because there are a number of below-market loan products and sources of down 

payment assistance targeted to help persons with disabilities purchase homes. These sources of 

funding—and the number of local organizations dedicated to helping persons with disabilities to 

pursue homeownership—can be expected to grow as communities allocate increasing resources 

toward helping persons with disabilities live in permanent housing. 

The median household size is larger among purchasers and in-process households than among rental 

voucher households, reflecting the higher proportion of households with children in the 

homeownership program. As for the racial characteristics of household heads, homeownership 

purchasers are more likely to be non-minority than either in-process households or rental voucher 

households overall. There is a slightly higher percentage of white household heads (52 percent) 

among purchasers than among either in-process households (42 percent) or rental voucher households 

(46 percent). On the other hand, the percentage of in-process households headed by African 

Americans (44 percent) is higher than for rental voucher households (38 percent). In addition, the 

proportion of Hispanic in-process households is similar to the proportion of Hispanic rental voucher 

households. This may indicate that over time, as in-process households purchase homes, the 

percentage of purchasers headed by minorities will become similar to the percentages of rental 

voucher households headed by minorities. 

5-2 
Exhibit 5-1 

Characteristics of Purchasers, In-Process Households, and Rental Voucher Households

Purchasersa In-Process 

Householdsb

Rental 

Voucher 

Householdsc

Number of Households 84 200 32,958 

Household Characteristics: 

Percent Female-Headed 78% 79% 75% 

Median Household Size 3.0 3.0 2.41 

Percent of Households with Children 72% 67% 55% 

Percent of Households with an Elderly Head 1% 3% 20% 

Percent of Households with Disabilities 35% 37% 35% 

Race/Ethnicity of Household Head: 

Percent White, non Hispanic 52% 42% 46% 

Percent Black, non Hispanic 34% 44% 38% 

Percent Hispanic 6% 12% 13% 

Percent Asian, Non Hispanic 7% 2% 1% 

Percent Native American, Non Hispanic 1% 0% 2% 

Total 100% 100% 100%

Percent of Households Currently Enrolled in FSS 25% 17% 5% 

Gross Household Income: 

Under $10,000 19% 21% 61% 

$10,000 to $14,999 19% 22% 21% 

$15,000 to $19,999 22% 28% 12% 

$20,000 to $24,999 22% 21% 5% 

$25,000 and over 18% 8% 2% 

Total 100% 100% 100%

Median Household Income $17,377 $15,934 $8,410 

Percent of Households with Wages as Primary 65% 64% 33% 

Source of Income 

a

 This information is based on a sample of up to 10 purchasers at each site. For sites with more than 10 purchasers, the 

sample was drawn randomly. For sites with fewer than 10 purchasers, we collected data on all of the purchasers. We 

obtained complete data on 84 purchasers across the 12 sites. This is not a representative sample of program purchasers

across the country, nor does it represent the full set of purchasers at the 12 study sites. 

b

 The individuals in this group either have completed homeownership counseling through the voucher homeownership 

program or are in the process of completing counseling but have not yet purchased. We collected data on a random 

sample of up to 20 “in-process” households at each site. However, some of the smaller programs did not have 20 

households fitting these criteria and other sites did not provide complete data. We obtained complete data on 200 inprocess households across the 12 sites. 

c

 We collected data on rental voucher program participants at each site from a May 2001 extract from HUD’s MTCS. 

We obtained complete data on 32,958 voucher program participants across the 12 sites. The data presented in the 

exhibit are all voucher program participants at each site, weighted by the share of purchasers represented by that site.

Sources: MTCS data and information collected during site visits

5-3 
As discussed in Chapter 3, only two sites require FSS participation as a condition for program

eligibility. Several other sites that originally planned to focus recruitment on FSS participants have 

subsequently dropped the FSS requirement. Nevertheless, a substantially higher proportion of 

purchasers are in the FSS program (25 percent) compared to in-process households (17 percent) and 

rental voucher households (5 percent). 

As would be expected, voucher homeownership purchasers are generally in the higher income ranges 

of the voucher program. As the exhibit shows, the median income of purchasers ($17,377) is more 

than twice that of rental voucher households ($8,410), and is also higher than the median income of 

in-process households ($15,934). Moreover, the median income of purchasers is well above the 

$10,300 minimum income requirement in the final rule. It appears that the program has been 

successful in serving higher income participants who are more likely to be able to afford 

homeownership. Eighteen percent of purchasers have annual incomes of $25,000 or more, compared 

with only two percent of rental voucher households. 

5.2 Property and Neighborhood Characteristics 

As part of this study, we collected three types of information on the characteristics of the properties 

that voucher homeownership participants have purchased and of the neighborhoods in which they

have purchased. First, for our sample of 84 purchasers (up to 10 purchasers from each site), we 

collected basic information on the characteristics of the properties purchased—type of unit, number 

of bedrooms, and age of unit. We also collected information on the type of seller, whether the unit 

had been rehabilitated prior to purchase, and whether the unit passed HUD’s HQS on the first 

inspection. These results are presented in the first part of this section. 

We also used available data from the 1990 and 2000 Census to analyze quantitatively the 

characteristics of the neighborhoods where program participants have purchased and compare them to 

the neighborhoods where they had been previously renting. Like the analysis of property

characteristics, we based this analysis of neighborhood characteristics on our sample of 84 

purchasers. 

Finally, during the site visits we conducted a windshield assessment of a sample of properties 

purchased and their immediate neighborhoods. The windshield assessment does not constitute a 

rigorous evaluation of neighborhood quality at the study sites but conveys the site visitor’s qualitative 

perceptions. 

The discussion of neighborhood characteristics must be considered preliminary, given the small 

sample size, the fact that it is a purposive sample and not one that is representative of the program as 

a whole, and the absence of 2000 Census data on social and economic characteristics at the 

neighborhood level. However, as the voucher homeownership program grows in size, understanding 

the types of neighborhoods in which participants are purchasing and how they compare to the 

neighborhoods inhabited by rental voucher participants will be critical to understanding the program’s 

success in helping participants to gain self-sufficiency and build assets through the program. 

5-4 
Types of Units Purchased 

Exhibit 5-2 provides an overview of the types of properties that voucher homeownership program

participants have purchased, based on the sample of purchasers across the 12 sites. We obtained 

fairly complete data on 81 of the 84 purchasers, with some missing data for the age of the unit and 

whether the unit passed HQS on the first inspection. 

As shown in the exhibit, the majority of voucher homeownership program participants purchased 

single-family, detached houses. More than 80 percent of the units purchased are either two- or threebedrooms units, which is typical of the owned housing market. In Colorado, four of the 10 

purchasers sampled bought condominiums. These participants purchased in Denver, where singlefamily homes are generally unaffordable to program participants. In addition to Colorado, 

participants bought condominiums in Bernalillo County, Montgomery County, and Vermont, which 

all have relatively tight housing markets. 

Within the category of single-family, detached houses, five program participants bought 

manufactured houses. Although concerns are sometimes raised about the quality of manufactured 

houses and the possibility that they may not appreciate in value at the same rate as non-manufactured 

houses,2 these concerns were not shared by the program staff or lenders interviewed at these sites. 

However, one program participant who had bought a manufactured home expressed dissatisfaction 

with its quality and reported that she regretted purchasing that particular unit. 

Slightly more than half of the properties purchased (52 percent) are less than 23 years old, with a 

surprisingly large share of units (22 percent) built since 2000. Some of these newly built units were 

purchased from nonprofit housing developers with up-front subsidies reducing the purchase price, but 

others were purchased from for-profit builders (in the case of some of the manufactured houses), the 

PHA (in one case), and individual sellers. Participants purchased newly built homes in 5 of the 12 

study sites—Danville, Bernalillo County, Colorado, Nashville, and Toledo. In Colorado, program

staff suggested that the ability to purchase newly built homes was particularly important for persons 

with physical disabilities, because the cost of making existing units accessible to persons with 

disabilities can be prohibitive. In addition to the newly built units, approximately 14 percent of the 

units sampled (9 of 63) had been rehabilitated prior to purchase, usually within one or two years of 

the purchase. 

More than half of the properties sampled failed HQS on the first inspection. This is not surprising 

given that more than one third of the properties are more than 40 years old. For the most part, 

however, the repairs required were relatively minor and were readily made by the seller prior to 

closing. Common actions required to meet HQS include: adding smoke detectors and fire 

extinguishers, converting outlets to ground fault circuit interrupters (GFCIs), inspecting or cleaning 

the furnace, and repairing railings. None of the program staff interviewed could recall an instance in 

which a purchase transaction fell through because the unit failed HQS and the seller refused to make 

the repairs in time. However, there were several cases in which the participant opted not to pursue 

the sale following the HQS inspection. In addition, some participants cancelled their purchase 

agreements as a result of problems found in the independent inspection. One Montgomery County

 2 Kevin Jewell, “Appreciation in Manufactured Housing: A Fresh Look at the Debate and the Data,” paper 

delivered at the American Real Estate and Urban Economics Association Annual Mid-Year Meeting, May

28-29, 2002. 

5-5 
purchaser, for example, had independent inspections done on three different units before she 

purchased her house. In the first case, the unit had recently been rehabilitated but had structural flaws 

that were not part of the HQS inspection. In the second case, a termite inspection revealed prior 

termite damage. This purchaser noted with some relief that she was glad the independent inspection 

had been required. If the inspection had not been mandatory, she said she might not have chosen to 

incur the cost and would have missed the opportunity to learn about the problems before buying the 

house. 

Exhibit 5-2 

Characteristics of Units Purchased

Type of Unit 

Single-family detached 86% 

Single-family attached (two units) 4% 

Townhouse 1%

Condominium 9%

Total (n=81) 100% 

Size of Unit 

One bedroom 1% 

Two bedrooms 26% 

Three bedrooms 58% 

Four bedrooms 10% 

Five bedrooms 5% 

Total (n=81) 100% 

Year Built 

2000 to 2002 22% 

1990 to 1999 13% 

1980 to 1989 17% 

1960 to 1979 10% 

1940 to 1959 16% 

Pre-1940 22%

Total (n=63) 100% 

Type of Seller 

Individual 64%

Nonprofit organization 14% 

Realtor 8%

Builder 6%

PHA 6%

HUD foreclosure 1%

Management company 1% 

Total (n=80) 100% 

Percent of Units that Failed 1st HQS Inspection 56% 

Total (n=71) 

Source: Information collected during the site visits on the sample of up to 10 purchased units per site.

5-6 
Pre- and Post-Purchase Neighborhood Characteristics 

An important aspect of the decision to buy a house is the neighborhood in which the house is located. 

The quality of the neighborhood influences the economic opportunities and quality of life of residents 

that live there. The purchase of a home is also a financial investment, and neighborhood 

characteristics (as well as larger economic trends) affect whether the investment appreciates, remains 

stable, or even depreciates. 

In this section, we examine basic characteristics of the neighborhoods where voucher homeownership 

program participants have purchased. We compare the current neighborhood to the pre-purchase 

neighborhood to explore whether the homeownership program is enabling participants to purchase a 

house in similar, worse, or better neighborhoods than the pre-purchase neighborhood where they

rented a unit with voucher assistance. We begin by looking at how far participants moved when they

purchased, and then describe the characteristics of the neighborhood housing and the socioeconomic 

characteristics of the neighborhood. 

This analysis is based on the most recent Census data available at the neighborhood level at the time 

of the writing of this report (July 2002). In all cases, we used census tract as a proxy for 

neighborhood. As of July 2002, only certain data were available from the 2000 Census at the census 

tract level. These include: homeownership rate, race/ethnicity, and household type. Key data not

available at the census tract level include: poverty rate, type of housing, and year housing built.3

 For 

these data, we had to use data available at the census tract level from the 1990 Census, recognizing 

that some of the neighborhoods under study may have undergone significant demographic and/or 

socioeconomic change between 1990 and 2000. 

How far did home purchasers move? 

The majority of participants purchased a housing unit in a different neighborhood than where they

were renting. As can be seen in Exhibit 5-3, 61 percent of participants moved to a home that was at 

least one mile away, including 21 percent who moved to a home more than five miles away. The 

further a participant moved, the more likely the characteristics of their neighborhood changed when 

they purchased a home. Fifteen percent of participants did not change location at all: they bought the 

unit they had been renting.4

 3 The U.S. Census Bureau is scheduled to make these data available on a state-by-state basis by September 

2002. 

4 None of the participants who purchased in place (and none of the purchasers in our sample overall) 

purchased through lease-purchase arrangements. 

5-7 
Exhibit 5-3 

Distance Between Pre-Purchase and Homeownership Unita 

Distance Moved Percent of Home Purchasers 

0 miles (purchased in place) 15% 

0.5 miles or less 11% 

0.5 to 1 mile 14% 

1 to 5 miles 40% 

More than 5 miles 21% 

Average distance moved 4.7 miles 

Average distance moved, excluding purchasers 5.5 miles 

who purchased in place 

a

 Sample size: 81 (missing pre-purchase address for three households). 

Source: Address data provided by participating agencies on the sample of up to 10 purchases per site.

What is the housing market like in the neighborhood? 

The housing markets in the pre-purchase and post-purchase neighborhoods appear to be quite similar. 

Participants tended to move to neighborhoods with slightly higher homeownership rates and slightly

more single-family detached housing than existed in the pre-purchase neighborhoods (see Exhibit 5-

4). 

The homeownership rate in a neighborhood is an indicator of the stability of the neighborhood 

population (as homeowners move less than renters). A high homeownership rate also indicates that 

more of the residents are financially vested in the neighborhood. Overall, the program participants in 

our sample were living in neighborhoods with an average homeownership rate in 2000 of 57.4 

percent before they purchased. When they purchased through the program, they moved to 

neighborhoods with an average homeownership rate in 2000 of 59.8 percent, slightly higher than the 

pre-purchase neighborhoods.5

 

Program participants typically purchased in neighborhoods where the homeownership rate is lower 

than the national average of 67.8 percent.6

 Many program participants also purchased in 

neighborhoods where the homeownership rate is low relative to the PHA’s jurisdiction as a whole.7

 

 5 Overall, 35 percent of program participants purchased a home in neighborhoods with a substantially higher 

homeownership rate (more than five percentage points higher) than their pre-purchase neighborhood. Forty

percent of program participants purchased homes in neighborhoods with the same or similar 

homeownership rate as their pre-purchase neighborhood. Finally, 25 percent of program participants

purchased homes with a substantially lower homeownership rate (more than five percentage points lower) 

than their pre-purchase neighborhood. In both the pre- and post-purchase neighborhoods, the proportion of 

the homeowners who were minorities was about the same. In the pre-purchase neighborhoods, 24 percent 

of the homeowners were non-white, compared to 25 percent in the post-purchase neighborhoods. 

6

 The national homeownership rate is according to an April 25, 2002 Census press release. 

7 The PHA’s jurisdiction as a whole refers to the city, county, or state in which the voucher homeownership

is being offered. The jurisdictions of each of the study PHAs are presented in Exhibit 2-2 in Chapter 2. 

5-8 
Half of the program participants in our sample (50 percent) purchased in neighborhoods where the 

homeownership rate was more than five percentage points lower than the homeownership rate in the 

broader jurisdiction. About one fifth of participants (18 percent) purchased in neighborhoods where 

the homeownership rate was about the same as in the PHA’s jurisdiction as a whole. Finally, about 

one third of program participants (32 percent) purchased in neighborhoods where the homeownership 

rate was more than five percentage points higher than in the PHA’s jurisdiction as a whole. 

 

The type of housing stock is similar, on average, in the pre- and post-purchase neighborhoods, 

although the post-purchase neighborhoods have a slightly higher share of detached single-family

homes (54 versus 51 percent, based on 1990 data). The age of the housing stock is also similar across 

the pre- and post-purchase neighborhoods. 

Exhibit 5-4 

Characteristics of Neighborhood Housing in Pre- and Post-Purchase Neighborhoodsa 

Pre-Purchase 

Neighborhood 

Post-Purchase 

Neighborhood 

Housing Vacancy Rate (2000) 7.9% 8.0% 

Homeownership Rate (2000) 57.4% 59.8% 

Homeownership Rate in Neighborhood Compared to PHA’s 

Entire Jurisdiction (2000) 

Neighb. homeownership rate five or more points higher 22% 32% 

Neighb. homeownership rate about the same 20% 18% 

Neighb. homeownership rate five or more points lower 57% 50% 

Type of Housing in Neighborhood (1990) 

Single-family, detached 51% 54% 

Single-family, detached 8% 8% 

Multi-family 34% 32%

Trailer, mobile home, or other housingb 8% 6%

Year Housing Built (1990) 

1939 or earlier 25% 27% 

1940 to 1959 25% 23% 

1960 to 1979 34% 32% 

1980 to 1990 15% 18%

a

 Sample size is 84 for post-purchase neighborhood, 81 for pre-purchase neighborhood. Neighborhood is

defined as the census tract where property is located. 

b Other housing includes any living quarters that do not fit the previous categories (e.g., houseboats, railcars, 

campers, vans). 

Source: 1990 and 2000 Census data (as marked).

5-9 
What are the socioeconomic and racial characteristics of the neighborhood residents? 

Concentrated poverty in a neighborhood is associated with a host of social problems, including 

criminal activity, poor educational institutions, and a lack of political and economic capital to draw 

needed resources to the neighborhood. As shown in Exhibit 5-5, the average poverty rate in the postpurchase neighborhoods is slightly lower than the pre-purchase neighborhoods (16 versus 18 percent). 

(All data on poverty rates are from the 1990 Census.) The share of participants living in high poverty 

neighborhoods (i.e., poverty rate above 30 percent) remained at 16 percent in both the pre-and postpurchase neighborhoods. However, the share of participants living in low poverty neighborhoods

(i.e., poverty rate less than 20 percent) increased as a result of purchasing. Before purchasing, 

approximately 64 percent of the participants in our sample lived in low poverty neighborhoods. After 

purchasing, the share of participants living in low poverty neighborhoods increased to 70 percent. 

Overall, about one third of the program participants in our sample bought houses in substantially

lower poverty neighborhoods (i.e., neighborhoods where the poverty rate was at least five percentage 

points lower) than the neighborhoods where they had been renting. About one fifth of program

participants (19 percent) bought homes in substantially higher poverty neighborhoods (i.e., 

neighborhoods where the poverty rate was at least five percentage points higher) than the 

neighborhoods where they had been renting. 

As renters, program participants were evenly distributed between low, high, and average poverty

neighborhoods as compared to the PHA’s jurisdiction as a whole. After purchasing, participants were 

most likely (41 percent) to live in neighborhoods with a substantially lower poverty rate (i.e., at least 

five percentage points lower) than the average for the PHA’s jurisdiction as a whole. 

 

Participants lived in neighborhoods with a higher share of non-whites compared to the PHA’s entire 

jurisdiction both before and after they purchased a home. However, slightly fewer of the postpurchase neighborhoods than pre-purchase neighborhoods have a majority of non-white residents 

(based on 2000 data). The average share of non-whites in the neighborhood decreased from 40 to 36 

percent from the pre- to post-purchase neighborhood. 

5-10 
Exhibit 5-5 

Socioeconomic Characteristics of Neighborhood Residents in Pre- and Post-Purchase 

Neighborhoodsa 

Pre-Purchase 

Neighborhood 

Post-Purchase 

Neighborhood 

Poverty Rate (1990) 

Low poverty (less than 20 percent) 64% 70% 

Moderate poverty (20 to 30 percent) 20% 14% 

High poverty (more than 30 percent) 16% 16% 

Average Poverty Rate (1990) 18% 16% 

Poverty Rate in Neighborhood Compared to PHA’s Entire 

Jurisdiction (1990) 

Neighb. poverty rate five or more points higher 32% 27% 

Neighb. poverty rate about the same 36% 32% 

Neighb. poverty rate five or more points lower 32% 41% 

Single-Female Headed Household with Child(ren) (2000) 11% 10% 

Share of Whites/Non-Whites in Neighborhood (2000) 

Predominately white (>80 percent) 38% 39% 

Majority white (50 to 80 percent) 21% 26% 

Predominately non-white (> 80 percent) 15% 11% 

Majority non-white (50 to 80 percent) 26% 24%

Average Percent Non-White (2000) 40% 36% 

Percent of Non-Whites in Neighborhood Compared to PHA’s 

Entire Jurisdiction (2000) 

Neighb. non-white share five or more points higher 49% 44% 

Neighb. non-white share about the same 31% 32% 

Neighb. non-white share five or more points lower 20% 24% 

a

 Sample size is 84 for post-purchase neighborhood, 81 for pre-purchase neighborhood. Neighborhood is

defined as the census tract where property is located. 

Source: 1990 and 2000 Census data (as marked).

5-11 
Results of the Windshield Assessment of Properties and Neighborhoods 

At each study site we conducted a windshield assessment of a sample of properties purchased and 

their immediate neighborhoods.8

 We conducted assessments for up to three properties purchased 

through the program, or fewer properties if the site had had fewer than three closings. In total, we 

assessed 32 properties and neighborhoods across the 12 study sites. The site visitors conducted the 

assessments using a standardized data collection tool designed to help the visitors make consistent 

judgments across the sites. 

Exhibit 5-6 summarizes the results of the windshield assessments, presenting the assessments of the 

individual properties purchased alongside the assessments of the immediate neighborhoods in which 

these properties are located. The table masks some differences among the sites of the types of units 

purchased and the types of neighborhoods in which they are located. However, a basic finding across 

all of the sites is that the properties purchased are typically in better physical condition and show 

better housekeeping than those in the surrounding neighborhood. All of the properties assessed were 

determined to be in sound condition (based on a visual assessment of the exterior of the unit), while 

the surrounding neighborhoods had some properties with minor deterioration and evidence of fair to 

poor owner housekeeping. In addition, trash and graffiti were more likely to be a problem—albeit 

mostly minor—in the surrounding neighborhood than on the property purchased. 

These findings are consistent with the comments of some site visitors that the units purchased were 

“the best on the block.” This comment was most common for units that had been rehabilitated or 

newly built houses by the City or a local nonprofit as part of a neighborhood revitalization plan. Such 

properties were found in Danville, Toledo, Nashville, and Milwaukee. 

As part of the assessment of property and neighborhood conditions, the site visitors also noted the 

presence of particularly positive or negative features in the neighborhoods. Positive features could 

include things like well-kept green spaces, stores and restaurants in the general vicinity, and good 

access to the central business district. Negative features could include things like major industrial 

activity in the neighborhood, a waste disposal facility nearby, or proximity to a more distressed 

neighborhood. Among the 32 properties assessed: 

• 12 properties were located in neighborhoods where the site visitors noted positive features only; 

• 4 properties were located in neighborhoods where the site visitors noted negative features only; 

• 10 properties were located in neighborhoods where the site visitors noted both positive and 

negative features; and 

• 6 properties were located in neighborhoods where the site visitors noted neither positive nor 

negative features. 

 8 We defined the “immediate neighborhood” as roughly a two-block area around the property purchased. 

The neighborhood assessment was more difficult to conduct in the rural sites, such as Vermont and 

Missoula, because there was not always a neighborhood as found in urban and suburban areas. Also, for 

the two statewide programs—Vermont and Colorado—we had to limit our assessment to properties 

purchased within easy driving distance of the PHA’s central office. 

5-12 
Exhibit 5-6 

Results of Property and Neighborhood Assessment by Site Visitors, Based on 32 Units and 

Neighborhoods Surveyed

Characteristic Homeownership Unit Immediate Neighborhood

Exterior Condition of Unit(s) 

Sound 100% 83%

Minor deterioration 0% 5% 

Major deterioration 0% 1% 

Owner Housekeeping 

Excellent 69% 56%

Good 31% 34%

Fair 0% 6% 

Poor 0% 3%

Presence of Litter, Refuse 

Major problem 0% 3% 

Minor problem 6% 22% 

Not a problem 94% 75% 

Presence of Graffiti 

Major problem 0% 3% 

Minor problem 0% 19% 

Not a problem 100% 78% 

Presence of Positive 

 Neighborhood Features 

Some positive features 69% 

No positive features 31% 

Presence of Negative 

 Neighborhood Features 

Some negative features 44% 

No negative features 56% 

Overall Assessment of 

 Neighborhood Quality

Excellent 38%

Good 47%

Fair 16% 

Poor 0%

Note: The neighborhood is defined as a two-block area around the unit.

Source: Windshield assessments conducted by site visitors on up to three properties purchased per site. 

5-13 
The kinds of positive features that the site visitors identified include: proximity to schools and shops; 

natural beauty (mountains, green spaces); and location in a neighborhood “in pristine condition.” The 

two main negative features reported by the site visitors were proximity to a high-crime or dilapidated 

area and isolation from grocery stores and other amenities. Some properties reported to be in 

neighborhoods with both positive and negative features were located in the more rural sites (Danville, 

Missoula, Vermont, and Bernalillo County). A small number of urban neighborhoods also received 

mixed reviews because they appeared to be experiencing revitalization but still had features of high 

poverty neighborhoods. For example, one of the site visitors described a neighborhood where: 

The property is located near the site of a HOPE VI revitalization and in a part of town that has 

been designated by the PHA and the City as a revitalization area. According to program staff, 

the area was in dire straights a few years ago, with crime and deteriorated housing. However, 

the house purchased is on a street that has several new homes and is somewhat removed from 

the rest of the neighborhood. Potential negative features include the HOPE VI demolition site 

and a former garbage dump, both located about two blocks away. But the HOPE VI 

redevelopment is expected to be an asset to the neighborhood when complete. 

In addition to noting positive and negative features, the site visitors gave each neighborhood an 

overall assessment of quality. Twenty-seven of the 32 neighborhoods (84 percent) were rated either 

“excellent” or “good,” while five neighborhoods received a rating of “fair” and none received a rating 

of “poor.” In “good” neighborhoods, a small share of the housing showed signs of deterioration, and 

owner housekeeping might be a minor problem for one or two units. For example, one site visitor 

described one of the “good” neighborhoods as follows: “Post World War II neighborhood with cape 

cods and small ranch houses. A couple of places had some junk in the yard, minor maintenance 

problems, but overall a tidy neighborhood.” Neighborhoods rated “fair” tended to exhibit more 

serious problems with dilapidated housing or have potentially negative features. 

Most of the participants interviewed for the study reported that they had chosen their houses and 

neighborhoods deliberately, although few received any kind of search assistance. Most often, once 

participants had identified the neighborhoods that were affordable, the final choice of neighborhood 

and unit was driven by family priorities, such as proximity to schools and relatives. 

Three participants interviewed had purchased homes in neighborhoods that the site visitors 

characterized as “fair.” In all three cases, the participants had grown up in the area and wanted to stay

close to existing friends and family. In one case, the participant had previously lived in public 

housing in another part of the city and emphasized that the area where she purchased is “much

better,” even though she conceded that other people consider it a high crime area. 

Several purchasers commented that it had been difficult for them to find “the right house” within their 

price range. These participants were located in San Bernardino, Colorado, Bernalillo County, and 

Vermont, all areas with relatively tight housing markets. The participants reported that they spent 

many months looking for a unit before they settled on one that met their needs. The main challenge 

was finding a property in their price range that was also in reasonable condition and in a good 

neighborhood. One San Bernardino purchaser described how she drove around for four months on 

her own looking for a house that met her needs. Following a tip from a co-worker, she finally found a 

house in good condition in the neighborhood where she wanted to live. She could not have bought 

the house if one of the lenders had not agreed to reduce the interest rate on the second mortgage from

five percent to three percent. 

5-14 
Twelve purchasers in our sample purchased the units that they had been renting through the voucher 

program. The “in-place” purchasers that we interviewed during the site visit reported that their 

decision to stay in the same unit in part reflected the difficulty finding affordable units in the local 

housing market. In addition, two purchasers mentioned that their former landlords had been willing 

to offer them some flexibility during the purchase process and to make needed repairs because the 

landlords were supportive of their move to homeownership. Although several of these participants 

mentioned that they bought these units after deciding that they were “the best they were going to get,” 

none was disappointed with the purchase. 

5.3 Analysis of Purchase Transactions 

In this section, we examine the voucher homeownership purchases using measures typical in home 

purchase analyses. The analysis is based on financial information collected on the sample of 84 

purchase transactions across the 12 study sites. For each purchase transaction, we collected 

information on: 

• Purchase costs: purchase price, rehabilitation costs, and closing costs; 

• Purchase resources: participant savings, grants, forgivable loans, deferred loans, and 

amortizing loans; and 

• Housing costs: PITI payment(s), utilities, replacement and maintenance allowances, the 

principal and interest on debt for repairs or accessibility modifications, and other allowable 

housing costs as applicable. 

In the first part of this section, we provide aggregate information about the sample of purchase 

transactions used in the analysis. The second part of this section focuses on measures of risk and 

affordability calculated at the household level. 

Overview of Sample of Purchase Transactions 

Exhibit 5-7 summarizes, by site, the information collected on the 84 purchase transactions in the 

analysis sample. For each site, the exhibit shows the financing model(s) being used as well as the 

ranges and averages of participant income, purchase price, and closing costs. 

Among the 84 purchasers, the average income at the time of purchase was $17,926, but incomes 

varied substantially across and within sites. The average purchaser income by site ranged from a low 

of $8,310 in Colorado to a high of $26,004 in Montgomery County.

9

 The three sites with the highest 

average incomes after Montgomery County are the sites that target higher-income households for the 

program: Nashville ($23,180), San Bernardino ($22,278), and Syracuse ($21,932). 

 9 Sites with purchaser incomes below $10,300 at the time of purchase are or were HUD pilot programs 

authorized to operate under the proposed rule. The proposed rule gave PHAs discretion to admit

households to the program with incomes below the $10,300 minimum established by the final rule. 

5-15 
Exhibit 5-7 

Purchase Transaction Summary: Participant Income, Purchase Price, Closing Costs 

Participant Income Purchase Price Closing Costs 

Site Name Financing 

Model(s) N 

Range Average Range Average Range Average

Bernalillo Co. Income & 

Offset 10 $13,338 - 

$25,092 $15,662 $56,000 - $167,300 $98,022 $1,323 - $6,836 $3,857 

Colorado Offset 10 $5,796 - 

$14,280 $8,310 $65,000 - $127,000 $90,680 $773 - $4,858 $2,713 

Danville Income & 

Offset 10 $7,371 - 

$17,923 $11,209 $32,500 - $62,000 $50,206 $1,691 - $2,843 $2,054 

Green Bay Offset 4 $10,377 - 

$24,283 $19,818 $42,000 - $105,000 $84,000 $500 - $1,800 $1,098 

Milwaukee Income & 

Offset 1 $13,773 $13,773 $42,000 $42,000 $6,713 $6,713 

Missoula Offset 5 $10,744 - 

$24,160 $18,087 $94,000 - $128,000 $105,780 $1,803 - $4,066 $2,599 

Montgomery Co. Income 10 $15,480 - 

$33,208 $26,004 $65,000 - $130,000 $89,990 $3,322 - $6,300 $4,912 

Nashville Two-Mortgage 10 $15,392 - 

$33,803 $23,180 $54,000 - $111,000 $84,590 $3,609 - $6,680 $4,482 

San Bernardino Two-Mortgage 3 $20,800 - 

$24,777 $22,278 $101,000 - $114,000 $108,333 $3,246 - $4,748 $3,997 

Syracuse Income 9 $15,017 - 

$32,984 $21,932 $33,000 - $71,979 $54,870 $701 - $5,500 $3,537 

Toledo Two-Mortgage 2 $11,300 - 

$13,065 $12,183 $43,000 - $70,000 $56,500 $2,300 - $3,700 $3,000 

Vermont Income 10 $12,098 - 

$35,148 $19,004 $60,500 - $128,000 $89,555 $1,951 - $3,979 $2,887 

Total / Weighted

Average 84 $17,926 $81,338 $3,369 

 

5-16 
The average purchase price among the 84 observations was $81,338. Not surprisingly, purchase 

prices varied considerably across and within sites. Milwaukee and Danville had the lowest average 

purchase prices at $42,000 and $50,206 respectively. Syracuse and Toledo both had average 

purchase prices close to $55,000. Five sites had an average purchase price between $84,000 and 

$91,000. Bernalillo County, which had an especially wide range of purchase prices, averaged 

$98,022. The highest average purchase prices were in Missoula and San Bernardino, with both sites 

averaging over $100,000. 

Across all observations, closing costs averaged $3,369, or four percent of the purchase price. Closing 

costs include fees that vary with the purchase price (origination fees, recording costs, title insurance) 

and fees that do not vary with the purchase price but may nevertheless vary across individuals and 

sites (fees for application processing, appraisal, credit report, document preparation, and attorneys). 

Closing costs vary fairly widely across sites, even when variations in purchase price are taken into 

account. Closing costs were relatively low in Green Bay ($1,098) and Danville ($2,054). These 

figures represent 1.5 percent of the average purchase price in Green Bay and 4.1 percent in Danville. 

Other areas where closing costs were low include Missoula ($2,599) and Colorado ($2,713). In these 

areas, closing costs were 2.5 and 3.1 percent of the average purchase prices, respectively. Closing 

costs were highest in Montgomery County ($4,912) and Nashville ($4,482). In both areas, closing 

costs were about 5.5 percent of the average purchase price. 

Measures of Risk and Affordability

The risk that lenders incur in making mortgage loans is that the purchaser will default on his/her loan 

payments, triggering a foreclosure. One method lenders use to monitor this risk is to calculate the 

loan-to-value ratio (LTV) and the amount of cash that the purchaser has invested in the purchase. 

Generally, the lower the LTV and the higher the cash investment, the more equity the purchaser has 

in the home and the less likely he/she is to default on the mortgage payment. At the same time, 

voucher homeownership purchasers generally have very low incomes and not much savings available 

for a down payment. Although some purchasers may be able to make down payments with the 

assistance of Family Self-Sufficiency (FSS) program escrows, matched savings programs, or grant 

programs, other purchasers may not have significant assistance available. As a result, many lowincome purchasers cannot invest much cash in the property and will by necessity have high LTVs. 

The measures related to the LTV used in this analysis are: 

• Purchase LTV: This figure is the LTV at the time of purchase. The numerator equals the 

sum of all forgivable, deferred, and amortized loans. The denominator equals the purchase 

price as a proxy of the value of the property.

10

• Potential LTV: This figure is used to illustrate the added benefit of loans that are forgivable, 

assuming that the property is not resold within a specified period of time, usually five years.11 

The numerator equals the sum of only deferred and amortized loans. The denominator equals 

the purchase price as a proxy of the value of the property.

 10 Of the 84 purchase transactions sampled, five purchase transactions included rehabilitation costs ranging in

value from $300 to $1,500. In these five cases, we added the rehabilitation costs to the purchase price 

when estimating the value of the property.

11 Forgivable loans with terms of more than five years were not included in the Potential LTV measure. 

5-17 
• Purchaser Cash Investment: This figure equals the total cash invested in the transaction by

the purchaser for down payment and closing costs out of his/her own savings. This figure 

does not include grants that the purchaser may have received for down payment or closing 

costs, but may include gifts from family members.12

In addition to the risk associated with high LTVs, it is advantageous to both lenders and borrowers to 

ensure that the financing deals are reasonably affordable. It is assumed that affordable monthly

payments reduce the likelihood of borrower default and foreclosure. We examine affordability in the 

voucher homeownership program by calculating participants’ monthly housing costs as a proportion 

of gross monthly income. These measures of burden look both at the burden of principal, interest, 

taxes, and insurance (PITI) alone and at the burden of total housing costs, which include utilities, 

repair and replacement costs, and other relevant costs. 

The measures of affordability used in this analysis are: 

• PITI Burden: This figure represents the PITI payment burden as percentage of gross 

monthly household income. The numerator equals the household cash outlay for monthly

PITI payments, and the denominator equals gross monthly income.

13

• Total Housing Cost Burden: This figure represents the burden of all housing costs as a 

percentage of gross monthly household income. The numerator equals the sum of all housing 

costs: the household cash outlay for PITI payments, the utility, replacement, and maintenance 

allowances, the principal and interest on debt for repairs or accessibility modifications (as 

applicable), and other allowed homeownership expenses.14 The denominator equals gross 

monthly income. 

Both measures of affordability focus on the burden of the actual cash outlay made by the program

participant as a proportion of the participant’s gross monthly household income. 

 12 The amount of down payment and closing cost assistance varies by site and by purchaser. Sources of down 

payment and closing cost assistance at each site are discussed in the case studies. 

13 For sites using the HAP as income and HAP as offset models, the PITI burden is the difference between the 

PITI and the HAP, divided by gross monthly income. The Total Housing Cost Burden is the difference 

between total housing costs and the HAP, divided by gross monthly income. For sites using the twomortgage model, the PITI Burden is the first mortgage PITI divided by gross monthly income. The Total

Housing Cost Burden is the participant’s total housing costs divided by gross monthly income. 

14 The study sites submitted incomplete data for utility, replacement, and maintenance allowances. For each 

purchase transaction missing a utility allowance, we assigned an allowance based on the average allowance 

among other program participants purchasing units of the same bedroom size at that site. We also assigned 

an average replacement and maintenance allowance of $75 per month to all purchase transactions at all

sites. This was the median maintenance and replacement allowance amount among the sites that supplied 

us with complete information on allowances. 

5-18 
LTV and Purchaser Cash Investment 

Exhibit 5-8 summarizes measures related to LTV across the 12 sites and 84 program purchasers. 

Lower LTV loans are generally considered less risky because the greater borrower equity provides a 

financial cushion against financial shocks. With a low LTV, in the event that a borrower is forced to 

sell the home, he/she should be able to pay off the mortgage—even if house prices have declined. In 

addition, borrowers with more equity have more to lose if they default on their mortgage, and so they

are considered more likely to meet their mortgage obligations. 

The average Purchase LTV was 98.8 percent across all transactions. This figure varied somewhat by

site. Four sites—Colorado, Danville, Nashville and Syracuse—had average Purchase LTVs of more 

than 100 percent. (Because the deferred loans can include funds for closing costs, the total loan 

amount can be higher than the value of the house.) Five other sites had average Purchase LTVs of 

more than 95 percent. Of the sites with more than three observations, Vermont had the lowest 

Purchase LTV at 94.1 percent.15 In general, LTVs across the study sites are high. Although it is now 

not uncommon for low-income purchasers to obtain loans for up to 97 percent of the house’s value, 

the average across the 84 purchase transactions is higher than this level. Only a few of the 84 

purchasers included in this analysis were able to make significant down payments with the assistance 

of personal savings, matched savings from individual development accounts (IDAs), grants, and gifts 

from family members. Of the 84 purchasers, more than half (49) had LTVs of 100 percent or higher, 

meaning they had no equity at the time of purchase. 

In spite of these high LTVs, there is a strong perception among program participants that they are 

building assets for the future that they will be able to pass on to their children. (Participants’ views of 

the program are discussed in more detail at the end of this chapter.) Program participants with a LTV 

of 100 percent at the time of purchase will have built some equity by the end of the term of the 

voucher assistance, especially with a low-interest mortgage and if the property appreciates in value. 

However, the modest pace of equity accumulation—assuming that participants do not pay the 

mortgage ahead of schedule—may not be in line with participants’ expectations. 

The Potential LTV figure is used to indicate the extent to which purchasers benefit from forgivable 

loans. The word “potential” is used to note that this benefit would only be realized if purchasers do 

not leave their property within a certain period of time, usually five years. Potential LTV averaged 

95.6 percent across all transactions, compared to 98.8 percent for Purchase LTV. However, seven 

sites do not have forgivable loans available to purchasers, so Purchase and Potential LTV are equal in 

these cases. In four of the five sites with forgivable loans, the average forgivable loan amount is 

about two to three percent of the purchase price. In fact, even with forgivable loans included, 

Nashville and Syracuse have Potential LTVs averaging greater than 100 percent. However, in 

Danville purchasers have the potential to benefit greatly from forgivable loans. In this site, forgivable 

loans average 18 percent of the purchase price, potentially lowering the average LTV from 101.3 

percent to 83.3 percent. 

A third measure of risk is Purchaser Cash Investment, the amount of participants’ own savings used 

to purchase the house, including personal funds used for down payment and closing costs. One 

reason to examine Purchaser Cash Investment is that purchasers may be more motivated to make their 

 15 San Bernardino and Toledo had Purchase LTVs of 91 percent and 84 percent, respectively, but these sites 

had three or fewer observations. 

5-19 
mortgage payments and protect their investment in the home if they have put a substantial amount of 

their own earned savings into the purchase. Purchaser cash investment also provides an indication of 

the amount of savings needed to purchase through the voucher homeownership program. Across our 

sample of 84 purchase transactions, the average amount of their own cash that purchasers contributed 

to the purchase is $2,775. Not surprisingly, this figure varies significantly both between and within 

sites. Bernalillo County and Vermont have high purchaser cash investment averages of $5,545 and 

$4,927, but these figures are somewhat skewed by a few very high values.16 Montgomery County has 

the next highest average purchaser cash investment ($4,157). Three sites have averages between 

$2,000 and $3,000 and four sites have averages between $1,000 and $2,000. Milwaukee and Danville 

have average purchaser cash investments of less than $1,000, although the “average” in Milwaukee is 

based on only one purchase transaction. In sites where there is relatively little down payment and 

closing cost assistance available, generating enough personal savings to meet the lender’s down 

payment requirement can be a significant hurdle for program participants. 

 16 One Bernalillo County purchaser was able to contribute $20,914 towards the purchase with the assistance 

of gifts from family members. In Vermont, one purchaser was able to contribute $21,374 towards the 

purchase with the assistance of an IDA matched savings program. 

5-20 
Exhibit 5-8 

Measures of LTV and Purchaser Cash Investment 

Purchase LTV Potential LTVa Purchaser Cash 

Site Name N Investment 

Range Average Range Average Range Average

Bernalillo Co. 10 88.0 - 

103.7% 97.1% 88.0 - 103.7% 97.1% $0 - $20,914 $5,545 

Colorado 10 95.8 - 

104.3% 101.2% 91.7 - 104.3% 98.6% $509 - $2,178 $1,156 

Danville 10 98.6 - 

103.9% 101.3% 36.6 - 101.5% 83.3% $500 - $555 $506 

Green Bay 4 94.6 - 

104.7% 99.9% 93.9 - 100.4% 96.3% $500 - $6,700 $2,186 

Milwaukee 1 99.7% 99.7% 99.7% 99.7% $0 $0 

Missoula 5 97.4 - 

100.8% 99.0% 97.4 - 100.8% 99.0% $1,000 - $3,207 $1,759 

Montgomery Co. 10 93.5 - 

100.0% 97.3% 93.5 - 100.0% 97.3% $1,300 - $11,000 $4,157 

Nashville 10 91.9 - 

106.5% 102.1% 84.7 - 106.1% 100.0% $275 - $8,333 $1,798 

San Bernardino 3 86.8 - 

100.0% 91.4% 86.8 - 100.0% 91.4% $1,139 - $3,334 $2,501 

Syracuse 9 99.3 - 

107.8% 100.5% 89.1 - 107.8% 100.8% $182 - $8,139 $2,639 

Toledo 2 66.9 - 

100.7% 83.8% 66.9 - 100.7% 83.8% $1,437 - $2,010 $1,724 

Vermont 10 77.4 - 

102.5% 94.1% 77.4 - 102.5% 94.1% $0 - $21,374 $4,927 

Total / Weighted 

Average 

84 98.8% 95.6% $2,775 

a

 In the Potential LTV calculation, the numerator equals the sum of deferred loans, amortized loans, and forgivable loans

with a forgiveness term of more than five years, and the denominator equals the purchase price as a proxy of the value of 

the property.

5-21 
PITI Burden and Total Housing Cost Burden 

Another element of risk in these purchase transactions is associated with purchasers’ ability to make 

their monthly mortgage payments, as well as to pay for utilities, routine maintenance, and 

replacements, thereby maintaining livability and protecting the value of the property. The greater the 

share of income required for housing costs, the more vulnerable borrowers are to being unable to 

make their payments should their incomes decline or their other financial burdens increase. We now 

examine the financial burdens of mortgage payments and other housing costs. Exhibit 5-9 

summarizes PITI Burden and Total Housing Cost Burden by site. The exhibit also provides 

purchaser income and purchase price information for reference. 

The PITI Burden—defined as the ratio of the purchaser’s share of the monthly PITI payment (not 

including the HAP) to the purchaser’s gross monthly income—averaged 17.5 percent across all 

transactions.17 This average is lower than one might have expected given that limits on PITI burdens 

are generally in the range of 28 to 33 percent for conventional and FHA loans. However, several of 

the study sites are using the HAP as income model and, as discussed in Chapter 4, the HAP as income

model typically results in lower PITI burdens. In addition, PHAs factor in other housing costs 

(utilities and maintenance and replacement reserves) in addition to the PITI when calculating the 

amount of the HAP and evaluating the maximum loan the purchaser can afford. 

Although the average PITI burden is low, it varies considerably both across sites and within sites. At 

one end of the spectrum, three purchasers in our sample have negative PITI burdens. A negative PITI 

burden means that the HAP is greater than the monthly PITI payment. With a negative PITI burden, 

the entire PITI is covered by the HAP and there is HAP left over for the participant to use for other 

homeownership expenses. This situation can arise if the PITI is a relatively small share of the total 

monthly homeownership expenses and the HAP is relatively high, usually because the purchaser’s

adjusted income is low or the purchaser has a large family. On the other end of the spectrum, two 

purchasers have PITI burdens above 40 percent of gross monthly income. Overall, 74 of the 84 

borrowers in our sample have PITI burdens at or below 30 percent of gross monthly income. 

Looking at average PITI burdens by site, three sites had averages at or below 11.1 percent: Colorado 

at 5.6 percent, Missoula at 8.8 percent, and Milwaukee at 11.1 percent. Both Missoula and Colorado 

have deferred loans and grants available, and Colorado has forgivable loans available, all of which 

reduce the amount to be borrowed and paid off as part of PITI. Recall that Colorado and Missoula 

have some of the highest average purchase prices at $90,680 and $105,780. This means that 

Colorado and Missoula program purchasers have been able to buy relatively expensive houses with 

low average PITI Burdens. 

Three sites had average PITI burdens between 14.0 and 15.4 percent. Another four sites had averages 

ranging from 19.0 to 25.0 percent. Nashville and Toledo had the highest average PITI Burdens at 

28.5 and 30.1 percent respectively, with San Bernardino not far behind at 25.0 percent. These 

burdens result from the methods used to underwrite the first mortgages in these sites, which maximize 

 17 For mortgages that required private mortgage insurance (PMI), the PMI payment is included in the PITI 

payment.

5-22 
the amount of the first mortgage based on gross monthly income (within set constraints).18 These 

average PITI burdens are not correlated directly with either average income or purchase price. 

In order to get a more inclusive picture of the financial burden of homeownership for program

purchasers, we add other monthly homeownership costs to the PITI payment and look at total housing 

costs as a proportion of gross monthly income. Adding estimated utility costs, replacement and 

maintenance allowances, and other allowable housing costs (such as debt incurred to make the unit 

accessible for a person with disabilities) to the monthly PITI payment yields the most complete 

measure of total housing costs available. Because we were only able to collect partial information 

from the study sites on replacement and maintenance allowances, we chose to assign an average 

combined replacement and maintenance allowance of $75 for all sites and for all purchase 

transactions. 

The Total Housing Cost Burden—defined as the ratio of the purchaser’s monthly contribution to total 

housing costs to the purchaser’s gross monthly income—averaged 37.4 percent across all 

transactions. Of the 84 homebuyers examined, 20 have total housing cost burdens below 30 percent 

of their gross monthly income. By contrast, 11 of the 84 purchasers have total housing cost burdens 

at or above 50 percent of their gross monthly income. Purchasers with high housing cost burdens 

may find it difficult to pay for maintenance and replacement needs as they arise. The majority of 

purchasers sampled (53 out of 84) have total housing cost burdens between 30 and 49 percent of gross 

monthly income. 

In terms of variation in average housing cost burdens across sites, Milwaukee and Missoula had 

average housing cost burdens below 30 percent of gross monthly income. Six sites had average 

housing cost burdens between 30 and 40 percent of gross monthly income. Three sites (Nashville, 

Colorado, and Bernalillo County) had average burdens between 40 and 45 percent of gross monthly

income. Toledo had the highest average housing cost burden at 53.9 percent of gross monthly

income, based on two purchase transactions. 

The analysis on total housing cost burden suggests that although PITI burden is the more typical 

measure of risk in the mortgage industry, other housing costs—such as utilities and maintenance and 

replacement costs—can add up to a significant share of the gross monthly income of voucher 

homeownership program participants. Consistent with the program regulations, most of the study

sites appear to have structured their financing models with this total housing cost in mind. For some

purchasers, however, the total housing cost burden may nevertheless be unaffordable, particularly if 

the actual amount that the homeowner has to spend on utilities, maintenance, and repairs exceeds the 

PHA’s estimated allowance amounts. 

 18 Nashville, Toledo, and San Bernardino are using the two-mortgage model in which the first mortgage is 

based on income and the second mortgage is paid off primarily by the HAP. 

5-23 
Exhibit 5-9 

Measures of PITI Burden and Total Housing Cost Burden 

Income Purchase Price PITI Burden Tot

Site Name Financing Model(s) N Range Average Range Average Range Average Bernalillo Co. Income & Offset 10 $13,338 - $25,092 $15,662 $56,000 - $167,300 $98,022 2.4 - 43.1% 23.7% 31.Colorado Offset 10 $5,796 - $14,280 $8,310 $65,000 - $127,000 $90,680 -5.9 - 21.1% 5.6% 23.Danville Income & Offset 10 $7,371 - $17,923 $11,209 $21,500 - $62,000 $46,532 2.6 - 26.4% 15.4% 22.Green Bay Offset 4 $10,377 - $24,283 $19,818 $42,000 - $105,000 $84,000 17.2 - 24.9% 20.5% 31.Milwaukee Income & Offset 1 $13,773 $13,773 $42,000 $42,000 11.1% 11.1% 25Missoula Offset 5 $10,744 - $24,160 $18,087 $94,000 - $128,000 $105,780 -3.5 - 17.4% 8.8% 18.Montgomery Co. Income 10 $15,480 - $33,208 $26,004 $65,000 - $130,000 $89,990 4.1 - 25.6% 15.3% 21.Nashville Two Mortgage 10 $15,392 - $33,803 $23,180 $54,000 - $111,000 $84,590 22.6 - 36.2% 28.5% 35.San Bernardino Two Mortgage 3 $20,800 - $24,777 $22,278 $101,000 - $114,000 $108,333 22.6 - 26.9% 25.0% 31.Syracuse Income 9 $15,017 - $32,984 $21,932 $33,000 - $71,979 $54,870 4.8 - 45.6% 19.0% 20.Toledo Two Mortgage 2 $11,300 - $13,065 $12,183 $43,000 - $70,000 $56,500 29.0 - 31.2% 30.1% 49.Vermont Income 10 $12,098 - $35,148 $19,004 $60,500 - $128,000 $89,555 -8.8 - 31.7% 14.0% 21.Total / Weighted Average 84 $17,926 $81,338 17.5% 

5-24 
5.4 Participant Views 

During the course of the site visits, we interviewed one to two program participants at each of the 

study sites. Across the 12 sites, we interviewed a total of 23 individuals who had purchased through 

the program. The interviews were conducted as discussions rather than structured interviews and 

covered the following broad topics: 

• Why the participant chose to enroll in the program; 

• What the participant thought of the pre-purchase homeownership counseling; 

• How the participant found the house that he/she purchased; 

• Why the participant selected that house and neighborhood; 

• How satisfied the participant was with the purchase process; 

• How satisfied the participant was with the financing terms and monthly mortgage payment 

amount; and 

• Whether the participant has had any problems or concerns related to the house since 

purchasing. 

Across all of the sites, the participants interviewed were generally satisfied with their houses and 

neighborhoods, comfortable with their financing terms, and reported that they thought that program

staff, counselors, and lenders had their best interests in mind during the purchase process. One 

participant reported that she was disappointed with the quality of the manufactured home that she had 

purchased,19 and other participants, as described below, had concerns about certain parts of the 

purchase process. However, none of the participants interviewed was dissatisfied with the program

overall. Most participants were overjoyed that they had been able to purchase at all and several 

conveyed a sense of disbelief that they were homeowners, using phrases such as “I feel like the place 

is mine and I can fix it up how I want it.” None of the participants interviewed had been in their 

houses for more than a year. Against this backdrop of general enthusiasm, several common themes 

emerged from the 23 interviews. 

Many participants chose to enroll in the voucher homeownership program because they believed that 

homeownership offered them greater housing stability and an opportunity to build assets for the 

future. Several of the participants interviewed had wanted to own their own homes for some time 

and had periodically attempted to save money toward a down payment. These participants spoke of 

family stability and asset building in the same breath, suggesting that homeownership was an 

opportunity for them to improve their immediate family circumstances at the same time as building an 

asset to leave to their children. Many described the voucher homeownership program as a chance to 

do better for themselves and their children. As one Bernalillo County purchaser put it, 

I always wanted my own home but did not think it would ever be possible. This program 

changed that, and now I live in an area I always wanted to live in. I never thought I would 

have something to pass on to my daughter. This is one of the biggest benefits of the program 

for me. 

 19 Program staff at this site now ensure that participants receive counseling about issues of housing quality 

when considering what to purchase. 

5-25 
For persons with disabilities, the stability aspect of homeownership was particularly important. The 

participants with disabilities interviewed in Colorado and Bernalillo County described the anxiety that 

they had felt as renters—never knowing when the landlord may choose not to renew the lease and 

whether they would be able to find housing that met their needs. This sense of anxiety was 

particularly acute among purchasers in Denver, where the rental market is very tight. One Colorado 

participant, who had been in the voucher program for 11 years and had rented multiple apartments in 

Denver, described her situation as follows: 

When you are renting, you worry about how long it will last. In my last building, the 

landlord threw everybody out because he did not want to rent it anymore. I kept getting the 

feeling that I would have to move every four years. I wanted to get out of the stress of 

renting and having to search, especially when so many people do not want Section 8. 

Without this program, if I was still renting, there would be no way I could keep up with the 

rising rents and I would eventually have to move out of Denver. 

Some participants interviewed were close to being able to purchase prior to enrolling in the voucher 

homeownership program. Several participants reported that they had been saving for some time 

either on their own or through an IDA program and were already thinking about trying to purchase 

when they learned of the voucher homeownership program. Participants in this position sometimes 

said that they did not think that people should be purchasing without a good income and some

savings. The participants interviewed in Syracuse, for example, expressed support for that program’s

requirement (which is allowed because Syracuse is a pilot site and is still operating under the 

proposed rule) that voucher homeownership participants have an annual income of at least $15,000. 

Other participants interviewed stated categorically that they never would have been able to purchase 

without the voucher assistance. This was particularly true of persons with disabilities, who (in our 

sample) tended to have lower incomes and less income from wages. One purchaser described how he 

had never been able to afford to purchase a house because his disabilities made it difficult for him to 

work full-time. He said that he would never have tried to purchase without the voucher subsidy.

Participants generally thought the homeownership counseling they had received was helpful, although 

in some cases overwhelming. All of the participants interviewed reported that they had found the prepurchase counseling to be very useful, and several prefaced their comments by saying that they began 

the counseling knowing “nothing” about homeownership. None of the participants made any direct 

criticisms of the counseling, but many commented that it was a huge amount of information to 

absorb. As one Milwaukee purchaser put it, “I learned a lot from those classes. Some things I forgot, 

but one thing stuck: pay the mortgage on time.” A participant with cognitive disabilities commented 

that a lot of the material covered in homebuyer education “went over my head.” His mother had 

accompanied him to the counseling, however, and was able to assist him throughout the home 

purchase process. 

When asked if they felt ready to purchase when they completed the counseling, several participants 

laughed and commented that they never felt ready to purchase. However, the interviews suggested 

that having been through counseling and the purchase process, participants were quite knowledgeable 

about homeownership. In one counseling session observed during the site visit to Montgomery

County, a person who had purchased through the program shared her experience with the group and 

answered questions about the purchase process. She displayed considerable knowledge about 

working with a realtor, the inspection process, and issues related to home purchase financing. She 

5-26 
said that she had not known any of this before enrolling in the program. Some of the participants 

interviewed were the first in their programs to purchase and as a result worked closely with lenders 

and the PHA while the details of the program were still being worked out. Overall, it appears that 

“learning by doing” is an important component of purchasers’ homebuyer education. 

The participants interviewed generally said that they were comfortable with their monthly mortgage 

payments, which in most cases were about the same or slightly more than what they had been paying 

in rent. All of the participants appeared to understand that their primary obligation was to pay the 

mortgage, even if it required taking a second job when their income fell short. As one Toledo 

purchaser put it: 

Sometimes I get worried that I am paying a bit more now than I was in rent, but I worked out 

a system so that even if I don’t get my child support one month, I will be OK. It’s worth it for 

me to pay a bit more. The house is mine and I can do what I want with it. I am so proud that 

I feel like my chest is about two feet out, because I did it myself.

Some participants also made the point that the first few years would be the hardest for them, but that 

eventually the “burden” of the mortgage would diminish as their incomes increased relative to the 

fixed mortgage payment. One Montgomery County purchaser described her situation as follows: 

Since buying the house, I have kind of been living paycheck to paycheck. I have a lot less 

cash for now, and I haven’t been able to put aside anything. But it’s worth it every day when 

I come home. And every time I get a raise it will be better. 

When asked if it was harder to be a homeowner than a renter, this participant responded: 

More expensive, maybe. Harder, no. It just pushes me more to do well in life. 

Most participants reported that they had tried hard to find units in good condition so that they would 

have minimal repair costs in the foreseeable future. But most participants who bought existing, as 

opposed to newly built, houses had had something go wrong since they moved in. A number of the 

interviewees had home warranties that they had used for things such as replacing a screen door or 

repairing a faulty furnace and reported that they were grateful to have had somewhere to turn when 

these things went wrong.20 Participants who bought new or rehabilitated houses from local nonprofits 

or community development corporations commented that one of the benefits of buying these houses 

was that many things were under warranty. 

Several participants noted that they would like to take care of basic repairs and maintenance 

themselves but did not feel that they had the skills or knowledge to do so. Although repairs and 

maintenance are generally covered in the pre-purchase counseling, at most sites these topics are not 

covered in depth. In addition, these things are much more difficult to teach in a traditional classroom

format than other topics such as budgeting and how to select a realtor. Some sites plan to hold postpurchase counseling focused on maintenance, but none of the participants interviewed had yet 

received any such counseling. One Green Bay purchaser, a Hmong speaker, suggested that she had 

 20 In most cases, the seller, either an individual or a nonprofit organization, offered these warranties. In 

Colorado, the Colorado Housing and Finance Authority (CHFA) paid for home warranties for the first few 

purchasers through the program. 

5-27 
been hoping that someone would teach her how to make repairs herself because she did not think she 

could afford to pay someone else to do so. Language barriers presented an additional challenge for 

this purchaser, who said that she would not know whom to call if there was a problem with the house. 

For the most part, program participants were complimentary about the program staff and lenders they

worked with, although opinions of realtors were more mixed. Several respondents were surprised at 

the level of attention that they were given by program staff and lenders and reported that they were 

confident that these staff and lenders had the participants’ best interests in mind. Some participants 

also said that they had a good experience with their realtor, although others described changing 

realtors once or twice before finding one whom they trusted and who would show them appropriate 

houses. 

The extent to which participants had a positive experience with either lenders or realtors depended in 

large part on the agents’ familiarity with the voucher program or willingness to learn about it. In one 

case, for example, the participant thought that the realtor was put off by the requirement to have two 

inspections (as well as the FHA appraisal) and as a result did not advocate on her behalf with the 

seller. In another case, the participant was very upset by a lender who had not returned his calls for 

several weeks, apparently insensitive to the difficulty of finding an affordable house in his market and 

the need to act quickly when one is found. 

Interestingly, in the cases where participants reported having a bad experience with a lender, they had 

usually found an advocate in a realtor, or vice versa. Few respondents mentioned the counseling 

agencies as providing much support during the search and purchase process, although in some cases 

the respondents were unable to distinguish between PHA staff and counseling agency staff. The 

extent to which participants relied on program staff also varied, although all noted that the staff had 

been supportive and helpful. In some cases, participants appeared to have developed close 

relationships with program staff, but most had had little contact with these staff since purchasing. In 

general, it appears that program participants find an advocate in the home search and purchasing 

phase and that this person may be the one they feel most comfortable turning to if they have concerns 

post-purchase. 

Some participants reported that being a homeowner had changed several aspects of their lives, 

including making them feel more involved in their community. In particular, participants who had 

purchased in areas with homeowners associations had started to attend meetings so that they could 

have a say in how their dues are being spent. One Colorado purchaser that she was annoyed at the 

“legalese” that she had to wade through in the covenants of her homeowners association, but reported 

that she was pleased that she had taken the time to do so because, after a recent increase in the dues, 

she is now eager to get involved. 

Finally, several participants commented on the benefits of homeownership to their family’s well 

being. For one Vermont purchaser, who struggled with drug addiction and mental illness for much of 

her life but is now in recovery and has guardianship of her granddaughter, being able to buy a house 

in a quiet, drug-free neighborhood near her granddaughter’s school has given her great peace of mind. 

Another purchaser, in Nashville, reported that her new house is now the place “where the whole 

family comes together” for holidays and celebrations. 

5-28 
Chapter 6 

Lessons Learned 

This chapter summarizes the key findings from this study of the early implementation of the voucher 

homeownership program. The chapter builds both on the lessons that staff at the study sites believe 

they have learned—presented in the case studies—and on the analysis of cross-site findings presented 

in Chapters 2 through 5. The main study findings can be grouped under three broad headings: 

program outcomes; implementation challenges; and program outlook. 

6.1 Program Outcomes 

In most sites, the voucher homeownership program has been successful in helping voucher-eligible 

households obtain affordable financing and purchase homes in reasonably good condition and in 

neighborhoods that are similar or slightly better than those in which they were renting. 

In the nearly two years since HUD’s publication of the final rule on the voucher homeownership 

program, PHAs and their partners have implemented the program across the country, in a range of 

housing markets and serving voucher program participants of different income levels. Through the 

reconnaissance effort for this study, we learned of 47 PHAs that had implemented voucher 

homeownership programs as of November 2001, resulting in approximately 135 voucher program

participants becoming homeowners. As of September 2002, HUD estimates that approximately 100 

PHAs have active voucher homeownership programs and that approximately 500 individuals and 

families have purchased homes through the program. 

Through May 2002, the 12 PHAs participating in this study assisted approximately 140 individuals 

and families to purchase houses. The purchasers have been mostly female heads of household with 

children.1

 In addition, more than one third of the purchasers in our sample are persons with 

disabilities. The annual incomes of purchasers range from approximately $5,800 to $35,000, with the 

lowest incomes belonging to persons with disabilities.2

 The median income of voucher 

homeownership purchasers is more than twice that of rental voucher households across the 12 study

sites. Approximately 48 percent of purchasers are minorities, and this share may be expected to grow 

as households currently in the home buying process reach closing. 

With the assistance of the voucher subsidy, program participants have been able to purchase homes in 

a range of housing markets. In the most expensive markets—Colorado, Montgomery County, and 

Missoula—purchasers have needed higher than average incomes (as in Montgomery County) or the 

full amount of the HAP as a direct offset to the monthly mortgage (as in Colorado and Missoula). 

The experience of these sites suggests that the voucher homeownership program can work in 

 1

 Purchaser characteristics are based on the sample of 84 purchasers described in Chapter 5. 

2 The study includes PHAs authorized to operate the program under the proposed rule as HUD pilot sites as 

well as PHAs operating the program under the final rule. The proposed rule did not establish a minimum

income requirement for program participation. Under the final rule, which applies to all PHAs with the 

exception of the HUD pilot sites, households—including households headed by persons with disabilities—

must have an annual income of at least $10,300 in order to participate in the program. 

6-1 
relatively expensive housing markets, assuming that purchasers are permitted to use the mortgage 

offset model. 

Additional subsidies—such as below-market interest rates and down payment and closing cost 

assistance—are almost always necessary to assist households with incomes close to the program

minimum to purchase. This is particularly true where there is a wide gap between purchaser incomes 

and house prices. The case studies detail the types and level of assistance available, which vary

considerably by site depending on need, the particular population served (e.g., persons with 

disabilities), and the relationships that the sites have been able to develop with local lenders and other 

financing resources. 

Participants typically rely on a variety of deferred and forgivable loans and grants to cover the down 

payment and closing costs and to reduce the amount of the first mortgage. In the 84 purchase 

transactions sampled for this study, participants on average received $4,784 in subsidy at purchase, 

including grants, forgivable loans, and seller assistance. In addition, more than half of the purchasers 

sampled obtained mortgages with low interest rates (below 7 percent), many of which were belowmarket loan products from state Housing Finance Agencies, Rural Housing Service, or 

NeighborWorks organizations. 

Analysis of a sample of purchase transactions suggests that more than half of program purchasers 

have LTVs of 100 percent or higher, meaning that they have no equity in the property at the time of 

purchase. The average loan-to-value ratio (LTV) across all purchasers is 98.8 percent. If they do not 

take equity out of the property during the term of voucher assistance, most purchasers—even those 

with an LTV at purchase of 100 percent—should have enough equity at the end of 15 years to 

refinance. The modest pace of equity accumulation, however, may not meet program participants’

expectations. 

Homeownership expenses (which include the monthly mortgage payments plus utilities and 

allowances for maintenance and repairs) represent less than 30 percent of gross monthly household 

income for 24 percent of the purchasers sampled and between 30 and 49 percent of gross monthly

income for 63 percent of the purchasers sampled. For 13 percent of the purchasers sampled, 

homeownership expenses represented 50 percent or more of gross monthly income. Given the low 

incomes and minimal savings of most program purchasers, families with relatively high housing cost 

burdens (i.e., those for whom homeownership expenses represent more than 30 percent of gross 

monthly income) may find it difficult to pay for maintenance and replacement needs as they arise. 

This is consistent with the findings from the interviews that few program purchasers have been able 

to set aside funds either for routine maintenance or for unanticipated expenses. 

The purchase prices have averaged from 52 to 82 percent of the median house value (based on the 2000 

Census) in their PHA’s jurisdiction. Four sites had average purchase prices at or below 60 percent of 

the local median house value; six sites had average purchase prices between 60 and 80 percent of the 

local median; and in one site (Missoula), the average purchase price was more than 80 percent of the 

local median. 

Although all of the units purchased were in the lower half of the market in terms of purchase price, 

most were in reasonably good condition at the time of inspection. More than half of the units 

purchased failed HQS on the first inspection, but the repairs needed were typically minor and were 

readily made by the seller prior to closing. No purchase transactions fell through because the unit 

6-2 
failed HQS and the seller refused to make the repairs in time. However, several participants opted not 

to pursue the sale following the HQS inspection. In addition, some participants cancelled their 

purchase agreements as a result of problems found in the independent inspection. 

Program participants tended to purchase in neighborhoods with slightly higher average incomes and 

greater residential stability than where they had rented through the rental voucher program, based on 

1990 and 2000 Census data. Fifteen percent of purchasers bought the units they had been renting 

through the voucher program. Compared with the pre-purchase (rental) neighborhoods, the postpurchase neighborhoods (for those who moved) had slightly higher homeownership rates, more 

single-family detached housing (the type of housing purchased by most participants), and lower 

poverty rates. However, the homeownership rate in the post-purchase neighborhoods tended to be 

lower and the poverty rates higher than rates for the PHA’s overall geographic jurisdiction. 

Site visitors rated the two block area around most houses purchased as “good” or “excellent” (some 

areas were rated “fair”) and concluded that the neighborhoods generally had more positive than 

negative features. Most of the neighborhood housing appeared to be in sound condition, with good or 

excellent owner upkeep. Graffiti and litter were identified as major problems in only a few 

neighborhoods. Several of the neighborhoods were identified as in the process of revitalizing, 

suggesting they may improve over time and have the potential for housing price appreciation. In 

many cases, the property purchased through the program was identified as one of the higher quality

units on the block. All of the participants interviewed for the study expressed satisfaction with their 

units and neighborhoods, although none had owned them for more than one year. 

6.2 Implementation Challenges 

The main challenges that PHAs have faced in the early implementation of the program involve 

gaining the support of the local lending community and preparing program applicants for 

homeownership. Even with the help of outside partners, PHAs have found that assisting 

households to purchase through the voucher homeownership program requires a higher level of 

staff effort than the lease-up process in the rental program. 

Partnerships with Local Lenders 

The most common types of partnerships developed in the program have been partnerships with 

housing counseling agencies and lenders. In some cases, the same entity provides both counseling 

and financing assistance. (This is the case where the PHA has partnered with a NeighborWorks 

organization funded by the Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation.) Some sites have also built 

partnerships with realtors, but these partnerships tend to be less developed because of the concern of 

steering clients to particular realtors. Most sites have found it relatively easy—at least initially—to 

develop partnerships for the counseling component of the program. However, creating effective 

partnerships with lenders has proven much more difficult. 

All of the study sites emphasized the importance of creating lender partnerships as early in the 

program planning process as possible. The sites found that gaining the participation of local lenders 

was crucial to growing their voucher homeownership programs beyond one or two closings. Sites 

that struggled to get their programs off the ground (or are still doing so) struggled primarily with 

getting the financing component of the program in place. 

6-3 
Most of the study sites were surprised by the initial lack of lender support for the voucher 

homeownership program. Some sites began sending households to homeownership counseling 

thinking that they had lender partnerships in place, only to find that when the lenders learned the 

details of the program, they were unwilling to make loans to program participants. This was 

particularly true for sites that had preexisting relationships with lenders through the Section 5(h) 

program or other homeownership programs; these sites found that they needed to create new 

partnerships (even with the same entities) specific to homeownership vouchers. 

Lender concerns about the program typically have to do with how the HAP is calculated, how it is 

applied to the mortgage, whether the HAP is a stable form of income, and what happens when the 

amount of the HAP changes as the result of changes in participant income. Related concerns include 

whether loans made to program participants can be sold on the secondary mortgage market and how 

the loans will be serviced. Finally, there is a perception among lenders—which is true according to 

most lenders interviewed for this study—that loans to voucher program participants are more time 

consuming than loans to other low-income first-time homebuyers because of the different 

underwriting procedures required and the relatively small size of the loans. At the same time, making 

these loans allows lenders to satisfy their Community Reinvestment Act requirements. 

The sites that have been most successful in working through lender concerns are those that got 

lenders directly involved in the program planning process or otherwise solicited lender input when 

designing their programs. For the most part, sites using the two-mortgage model (where the first 

mortgage is based on the participant’s income alone) and sites using the HAP as income model have 

found it easier to gain the participation of private market lenders. However, sites where the cost of 

housing necessitates the use of the HAP as offset model, such as Green Bay, have also been 

successful in gaining lender participation. 

Several study sites have drawn upon outside partners to help secure the support of local lenders. For 

example, Colorado, Bernalillo County, Green Bay, and Milwaukee have all worked with the state 

Housing Finance Agency (HFA) to identify affordable loan products that are well suited for voucher 

program participants. Because the HFAs work though a network of local lenders for their regular 

loan programs, they are often able to encourage these lenders to make loans to program participants. 

Program staff in Colorado believe that the PHA’s partnership with the HFA is essential to the success 

of the program. In addition to providing below-market loans products and down payment assistance 

for voucher program participants, Colorado HFA staff play a key role in ongoing program monitoring 

and problem solving. 

In addition to state HFAs, some study sites have found working with local Fannie Mae 

representatives to be useful in developing lender relationships. Some PHAs participating in NR’s

voucher homeownership demonstration also have found that the NeighborWorks organizations 

already have established relationships and credibility among first-mortgage lenders. Finally, some

sites have noted that gaining the support of city or county officials can open up sources of financing. 

For example, the Executive Director of the Danville PHA noted that dialogue with staff from the City

of Danville’s Housing and Development Division led his agency to contact the nonprofit lender that 

provided mortgage financing for the first few program purchases. 

Several sites have succeeded in building relationships with a range of lenders by making the program

as simple as possible and being flexible to lenders’ needs. The Montgomery County Housing 

Authority (MCHA), for example, worked closely with a staff person from HUD’s Homeownership 

6-4 
Center in Philadelphia to design a program that would satisfy the needs of private lenders. Knowing 

that lenders are very concerned with understanding the sources of borrower income and the risk of 

these sources disappearing before the loan is repaid, the MCHA developed a form that tells the lender 

approximately how much monthly subsidy the borrower can expect to receive from the MCHA, 

affirms that the subsidy is likely to continue for at least three years, and explains the MCHA’s right to 

disapprove any financing terms that do not meet its affordability criteria. The MCHA also chose to 

send the HAP directly to the participant, unless the lender requested otherwise, so that the lender 

would not have to reconcile two checks (one from the MCHA and one from the participant) each 

month. 

Gaining lender support is a crucial first step for any voucher homeownership program, but program

staff also emphasized the need for effective ongoing communication between PHAs and lenders. For 

example, some lenders have been frustrated at getting referrals of voucher households who are not 

close to being able to purchase. San Bernardino encountered this problem and revised its program

procedures so that the PHA now takes a more active role in screening program applicants for 

creditworthiness before referring them to homebuyer education or to the lender for pre-qualification. 

Preparing Households for Homeownership 

Preparing households for homeownership is one of the biggest challenges to program administration 

that the sites identified. Most sites have found it effective to provide the homeownership counseling 

through outside partners. However, the poor credit of many program applicants has strained staff 

capacity even at sites with effective partnerships in place. Staff at several sites noted that credit 

issues may slow program growth. 

Most sites have found it relatively easy to develop partnerships with local nonprofit organizations that 

provide housing counseling services. Several PHAs in the study had existing relationships with 

counseling agencies from previous homeownership initiatives, such as the HOPE 3 program. Unlike 

lenders, for which PHAs found they could not rely on preexisting relationships, the counseling 

partners usually were able to transition easily from one program to the next. 

One challenge that all PHAs face in partnering with counseling agencies is how to allocate program

responsibilities and share “control” over the program. This is particularly difficult for PHAs that do 

not have preexisting relationships with counseling agencies and, therefore, are not familiar with the 

agency’s staff or with the quality of their work. However, a number of PHAs in the study

emphasized the benefits of relinquishing some responsibility to the partner agencies, so that each 

partner can take advantage of the other’s area of expertise. As one PHA Executive Director put it, “A 

lot of housing authorities think they have to do all of the work in-house. I think you have to be 

willing to give up some control. Letting go and having partners play key roles in certain 

programmatic functions has been a good thing for us.” 

Getting potential partner agencies involved during the program planning phase helped some PHAs in 

the study build relationships prior to program implementation. For example, in Colorado, a coalition 

of counseling agencies, lenders, realtors, and housing providers serving persons with disabilities 

worked together to plan the voucher homeownership program. Several study sites emphasized the 

importance of cementing partnerships with counseling providers during the planning phase, so that 

the relationships are not overwhelmed by the wave of interest that typically follows the program’s 

announcement. In Toledo, the relationship between the PHA and the NeighborWorks organization 

6-5 
was strengthened by a trip that key staff from both organizations made to Nashville during the 

planning phase to learn about Nashville’s program. 

The two state agencies in the study faced the additional difficulty of providing counseling to a 

geographically dispersed pool of program participants. In Colorado, the PHA works through a 

network of 31 counseling providers to achieve statewide coverage. With this many partners, ensuring 

that all program participants receive the same quality of counseling is a challenge. PHA staff rely

primarily on the state HFA’s certification process (and periodic audits) for quality control. Another 

challenge is making sure that counselors have a basic idea of how the voucher program works and 

understand that homeownership voucher candidates may face different constraints than the other firsttime homebuyers with whom the counselors work. The Vermont state agency noted that this can be 

especially difficult if there is a high level of staff turnover at the counseling agencies. 

In addition to building partnerships that effectively distribute program responsibilities, PHAs face the 

challenge of funding the counseling services provided to voucher homeownership candidates. In 

most cases the PHA does not pay for these services. Instead, the costs of counseling are typically

funded through NR funds, other grants to the counseling agencies, HFA funds, and fees paid by

lenders at closing. (PHAs may not require program participants to pay for homeownership 

counseling.) Most counseling agencies, however, have only limited resources to devote to voucher 

homeownership participants. As a result, PHAs and their partners need to make a number of 

decisions related to program efficiency. In particular, the relationship between how many people 

begin counseling, how many complete the counseling requirements, and how many go on to purchase 

can be important for counseling agencies that receive lender fees. 3 

Among the study sites where the counseling capacity is limited, PHAs have taken several approaches 

to maximizing available resources. Several PHAs initially thought that targeting households 

participating in the FSS program would be most efficient, but they found that FSS participants were 

not necessarily any more prepared for homeownership than other households in the voucher program. 

Some PHAs have opted to refer to homeownership counseling only households that meet certain 

criteria, such as being pre-approved for a mortgage or having a sound credit history. The benefit of 

this approach is that it avoids overwhelming the counseling agencies with candidates who are not 

likely to be able to purchase. In addition, if the households who are not ready for counseling are 

referred to credit counseling first, they are more likely to receive homebuyer education at the point at 

which it is most relevant for them—when they are close to being ready to purchase. 

This approach may work well if the counseling agency has the capacity to offer longer-term credit 

counseling or credit repair in-house—therefore making it less likely that households will give up on 

homeownership or attempt to get a loan from a predatory lender (before learning about the perils of 

predatory lending). Counseling agencies that offer different counseling “tracks,” such as many of the 

NR-funded agencies, may be best suited for this approach. 

At the same time, there are several drawbacks to restricting the number of households referred to 

homeownership counseling. First, households who may be able to purchase through the program

 3 Thus far, few PHAs have come up against serious resource constraints among the partner agencies. Many

counseling agencies have been willing to offer counseling free of charge to PHAs during the early 

implementation of the program. However, several agencies noted that they may need to find alternative 

sources of funding (or begin charging the PHA) as the program grows. 

6-6 
within a year or so may get discouraged from pursuing homeownership or may attempt to do it 

without the voucher subsidy using unaffordable financing arrangements (for example, loans obtained 

through a predatory lender). Second, screening program applicants for their purchase-readiness 

requires staff resources—from the PHA, counseling agency, or a lender partner. PHAs that have 

opted to do this screening have found that there is a learning curve associated with interpreting credit 

reports and employment histories. Finally, some PHAs are reluctant to limit the number of 

households offered homeownership counseling because the counseling builds budgeting and credit 

management skills that benefit a broader population than those who will be able to purchase in the 

near term. 

The need to think about issues of program efficiency—how to give the highest number of incomeeligible households the opportunity to purchase houses with a limited set of staff resources—is likely

to become more pressing as the number of closings grows and the pool of “purchase-ready”

applicants diminishes. Already, several sites have noted that they are concerned about being able to 

serve households requiring more intensive and/or longer-term credit repair. As one PHA Executive 

Director put it, “We spend a lot of time counseling the participants, but perhaps we could do more. 

We would like additional resources to work intensively for a full year with people to move them into 

homeownership, but we don’t have the resources to do that now.” Another Executive Director 

anticipated that at some point his agency would “hit a plateau in the number of families who are able 

to purchase homes through the program. We won’t be able to make the impact we’d like to without 

additional resources.” 

A recent analysis of the potential depth of the market for the voucher homeownership program

conducted for the Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation suggests that most PHAs have a 

significant number of households that meet the minimum income and employment requirements for 

the program and a large number of households at higher income levels as well.4

 However, the MTCS 

data on which the analysis is based do not allow for an assessment of the credit worthiness of this 

potential applicant pool. The experience of the sites in this study suggests that credit issues may slow 

the pace of closings for some local programs, particularly when the resources for offering additional 

counseling services (beyond the required homebuyer education) are limited. 

Staff Resources Needed for Program Administration

Related to the challenges of gaining lender support for the program and preparing program applicants 

for homeownership is the broader issue of staff resources that PHAs have devoted to administering the 

voucher homeownership program. There is consensus across the study sites that the voucher 

homeownership program is labor intensive both in the planning stage and in ongoing operations through 

the home purchase. In particular, the amount of individual assistance required during the home 

purchase process has generally exceeded the PHAs’ initial expectations. The sites with the most 

closings did not report that the level of staff effort per closing dropped significantly as the number of 

closings increased. Instead, as one staff person put it, “each transaction is a custom transaction.” The 

study sites did report a significant decrease in the amount of high-level staff time required after the 

PHA has developed and implemented the program. Once the program is fully operational, PHAs note 

that line staff take over much of the day-to-day administration of the program. In other words, 

 4

 Meryl Finkel et al., “Using HUD’s MTCS Data to Assess the Depth of Market for the Section 8 Home

Ownership Program,” unpublished report produced for the Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation, April

2002. 

6-7 
although the voucher homeownership program is more staff intensive than the rental program, the 

cost of the staff effort to the PHA is less once the program is fully operational than in its early stages 

of development. In addition, the likelihood that homeowners are much less likely to move over time, 

coupled with the fact that the PHAs do not evaluate and approve rent increases for voucher 

homeownership participants and are not required to conduct annual HQS inspections should, as the 

program matures, offset the “up-front” costs of getting households into homeownership. 

Most PHAs have lessened the burden of administering the program by developing outside 

partnerships—primarily with counseling agencies and lenders. Nevertheless, even with partnerships 

in place, PHAs in the study generally commit one half to one full-time staff equivalent to the 

program—a higher staffing ratio than those in effect for the rental voucher program or the FSS 

program. 

All of the PHA staff (and many of the program partners) interviewed for this study suggested that the 

staff resources needed to administer the program presented a potential limit on program growth. 

Program staff suggested that additional funding for staff positions—such as the FSS Coordinator 

funds that HUD has made available for homeownership efforts—would encourage more PHAs 

(particularly smaller PHAs with fewer resources) to offer the voucher homeownership option. 

While acknowledging the level of effort required to implement and operate the program, several of 

the study sites noted that they received a great deal of satisfaction from assisting voucher households 

to purchase homes. The voucher homeownership program has given these PHAs the opportunity to 

expand and cement their role as a leader in affordable housing in their communities. In addition, 

some PHAs have found that the program has provided job satisfaction for staff. As one PHA 

Executive Director put it, “Some days can be really frustrating, so on the tough days I remember the 

people we have helped move into homes. Very often in public housing we don’t get to see the 

improvements in people’s lives. With this program, we get to see low-income people gain the 

benefits of homeownership.” 

6.3 Program Outlook 

At this point in the implementation of the voucher homeownership program, less than two years since 

the publication of the final rule, most PHAs and their partners have focused on assisting qualified 

households to purchase houses in good condition and under financing terms that will be affordable 

over the long-term. The 12 programs that form the basis of this study have been effective in 

developing the partnerships, financing arrangements, and management strategies necessary to 

maximize the opportunities presented by their local markets and to minimize the constraints. Given 

the experiences of these sites, it is reasonable to expect that the program will ultimately be able to 

assist eligible households to purchase modest housing in a variety of housing markets, with the 

exception perhaps of the most expensive markets in the country. 

The ultimate success of the program, however, will rest on the ability of participants to make their 

mortgage payments, preserve or enhance their investment, and—should they find homeownership too 

difficult—make a smooth transition back to renting. Certain key questions that could only be touched 

upon by this study of early program implementation—such as how the purchases are financed, where 

participants purchase, and what support participants receive after purchase—will undoubtedly warrant 

further attention as the program matures. 

6-8 
In particular, the findings of this study suggest that: 

• Key measures of risk and burden—such as LTV, purchaser cash investment, PITI burden, and 

total housing cost burden—should be tracked across all purchases made through the program. 

Our analysis of a small sample of purchase transactions suggests that more than half of program

participants have LTVs of 100 percent or higher, meaning that they have no equity in the property

at the time of purchase. The average LTV across the sample of purchasers is 98.8 percent. In 

addition, although homeownership expenses represent less than 50 percent of gross monthly

income for approximately 87 percent of program purchasers, the very low incomes and savings of 

most purchasers, together with the findings from the interviews that few buyers have been able to 

set aside funds either for routine maintenance or unexpected expenses, suggests that affordability

may continue to be an issue. 

• Given the tight budgets under which many purchasers are operating, PHAs, counseling 

agencies, and lenders should develop more proactive strategies to address potential postpurchase issues—such as loan delinquencies or unaffordable refinancing. To date, programs 

have devoted relatively few resources to post-purchase components of the program, such as postpurchase counseling and loan tracking. This is a complicated issue given that homeownership is 

seen as the final step toward self-sufficiency for most voucher program participants and that it 

may be more difficult, or not desirable, for PHAs to place additional demands on households after 

they purchase. Moreover, it is understandable that PHAs would expect lenders to take primary

responsibility for anticipating and preventing loan default. However, it may not be advisable for 

PHAs or HUD to give full responsibility for this key program component to private lenders, who 

may not have experience working with this population. In order to make the program successful 

over the long-term, PHAs and lenders may need to work as closely on post-purchase strategies as 

they have done to assist participants to purchase. 

• It would be worth investigating further the characteristics of the neighborhoods in which 

program participants are purchasing, compared to where they rented, to understand how the 

program fits in with the broader goal of mobility in tenant-based programs. The analysis of 

neighborhood characteristics presented in this study was limited by the small sample size, as well 

as the current unavailability of certain key Census data at the neighborhood level.5

 It may be

useful to explore further whether program participants across the country are indeed purchasing 

in neighborhoods similar to those in which they are renting and what the potential is for houses in 

these neighborhoods to appreciate in value over time. It would also be interesting to know 

whether program participants who end up purchasing in high poverty neighborhoods deliberately

choose to do so or believe that they have no other choice, given what they can afford. Finally, it 

may be valuable to compare the characteristics of neighborhoods where homeownership 

participants are purchasing to the characteristics of neighborhoods where participants in the rental 

voucher program are renting. This kind of analysis would shed light on whether participants in 

the rental and homeownership programs have access to the same kinds of neighborhoods (in 

terms of poverty rate, homeownership rate, urban/suburban location, and other key

characteristics), or whether one program appears to offer a greater range of neighborhood options 

than the other. 

 5 As explained in Chapter 5, as of July 2002, at the writing of this report, certain key socioeconomic and 

market data—including data on poverty rates, receipt of public assistance, and house values—were not 

available from the 2000 Census at the census tract (neighborhood) level. 

6-9 
Appendix A 

Voucher Homeownership Programs as of November 2001 

and September 2002 

Exhibit A-1 

PHAs with Closings or Anticipating Closings through the Voucher Homeownership Program 

as of November 2001, Ordered by Number of Closings

PHA Name State Closings

Closings

Expected by

February 2001

Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency Tennessee 26 6

Burlington Housing Authority Vermont 25 6

Colorado Department of Human Services Colorado 14 3 

Syracuse Housing Authority New York 8 5 

Vermont State Housing Authoritya Vermont 8 6

Danville Redevelopment and Housing Authority Virginia 7 3 

DHCR of New York State/CDC of Long Island New York 6 8 

Housing Authority of the City of Waco Texas 6 5 

Missoula Housing Authority Montana 5 2 

Montgomery County Housing Authority Pennsylvania 5 3

Housing Authority of Jefferson County Kentucky 5 2 

Bernalillo County Housing Authority New Mexico 4 8 

Hickory Housing Authority North Carolina 3 3 

Housing Authority of the County of San Bernardino California 3 2

Housing Authority of Somerset Kentucky 2 2

Brown County Housing Authority Wisconsin 2 2

Austin Housing and Redevelopment Authority Minnesota 2 0 

Rockford Housing Authority Illinois 1 5

Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee Wisconsin 1 4 

Lafayette Housing Authority Louisiana 1 3 

Mississippi Regional Housing Authority No. VI Mississippi 1 3 

Coventry Housing Authority Rhode Island 1 2 

Fort Wayne Housing Authority Indiana 1 2 

Galveston Housing Authority Texas 1 2 

Woburn Housing Authority Massachusetts 1 1 

Housing Authority of the County of Beaver Pennsylvania 1 0 

Perth Amboy Housing Authority New Jersey 1 0 

Wadena Housing and Redevelopment Authority Minnesota 1 0 

Housing Authority of the City of Vallejo California 1 0 

Housing Authority of New Orleans Louisiana 0 12 

New Hampshire Housing Finance Authority New Hampshire 0 5 

Pueblo Housing Authority Colorado 0 5 

Dubuque Housing Authority Iowa 0 3 

Hocking Metropolitan Housing Authority Ohio 0 3 

Orlando Housing Authority Florida 0 3 

Lehigh County Housing Authority Pennsylvania 0 2 

Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Authority California 0 2 

Butler Metropolitan Housing Authority Ohio 0 2 

Rochester Housing Authority New York 0 2 

A-1
Exhibit A-1 

PHAs with Closings or Anticipating Closings through the Voucher Homeownership Program 

as of November 2001, Ordered by Number of Closings

PHA Name State Closings

Closings

Expected by

February 2001

Ann Arbor Housing Commission Michigan 0 1 

Hugo Housing Authority Oklahoma 0 1 

Michigan City Housing Authority Indiana 0 1 

Minneapolis Public Housing Authority Minnesota 0 1

Municipal Housing Authority of City of Yonkers New York 0 1 

Queen Anne's County Housing Authority Maryland 0 1

Saint Mary's County Housing Authority Maryland 0 1 

South East MN Multicounty Housing and 

Redevelopment Authority

Minnesota 0 1

Source: Based on reconnaissance conducted by Abt Associates in October and November 2001.

A-2
Exhibit A-2 

PHAs with Closings through the Voucher Homeownership Program as of September 2002, 

Ordered by Number of Closings

PHA Name State Closings

Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency Tennessee 42

Burlington Housing Authority Vermont 38

Bernalillo County Housing Authority New Mexico 37 

Lakewood RAP New Jersey 32 

Colorado Department of Human Services Colorado 24 

Vermont State Housing Authority Vermont 20

Danville Redevelopment and Housing Authority Virginia 19 

Housing Authority of the City of Waco Texas 17 

DHCR of New York State/CDC of Long Island New York 14 

Brown County Housing Authority/Green Bay Housing Authority Wisconsin 14 

Milwaukee Housing Authority Wisconsin 13 

Montgomery County Housing Authority Pennsylvania 12

Syracuse Housing Authority New York 12 

Orlando Housing Authority Florida 11 

Philadelphia Housing Authority Pennsylvania 11 

Housing Authority of the City of Shamokin Pennsylvania 10 

Tallahassee Housing Authority Florida 9 

Portage Metropolitan Housing Authority Ohio 8 

Housing Authority of Jefferson County Kentucky 8 

Lorain Metropolitan Housing Authority Ohio 7 

Housing Authority of New Orleans Louisiana 7 

Lafayette Housing Authority Indiana 7 

Hickory Housing Authority North Carolina 6 

Minneapolis Public Housing Authority Minnesota 6 

Wichita Housing Authority Kansas 6 

Missoula Housing Authority Montana 5 

Tennessee Housing Development Agency Tennessee 5 

DuPage County Housing Authority Illinois 4

Fort Wayne Housing Authority Indiana 4 

Hocking Metropolitan Housing Authority Ohio 3 

Housing Authority of the County of San Bernardino California 3

Lucas Metropolitan Housing Authority Ohio 3 

Housing Authority of the City of Pueblo Colorado 3 

Rochester Housing Authority New York 3 

Lincoln County Housing Authority Missouri 3

Austin Housing and Redevelopment Authority Minnesota 3 

Island County Housing Authority Washington 3

Mississippi Regional Housing Authority No. VI Mississippi 3 

Amherst Town Housing Authority New York 2 

Dayton Metropolitan Housing Authority Ohio 2 

Housing Authority of the City of Austin Texas 2 

Wadena Housing and Redevelopment Authority Minnesota 2 

Housing Authority of Somerset Kentucky 2

Albany Housing Authority New York 2 

Woburn Housing Authority Massachusetts 2 

South East MN Multicounty Housing and Redevelopment Authority Minnesota 2

Plymouth Housing Authority Massachusetts 2 

Schenectady Housing Authority New York 2 

A-3
Exhibit A-2 

PHAs with Closings through the Voucher Homeownership Program as of September 2002, 

Ordered by Number of Closings

PHA Name State Closings

City of Dubuque Housing Services Department Iowa 2 

Oak Ridge Housing Authority Tennessee 2 

Lehigh County Housing Authority Pennsylvania 2

Lancaster County Housing Authority Pennsylvania 1

Williamsport Housing Authority Pennsylvania 1 

Pierce County Housing Authority Washington 1

Everett/Snohomish County Housing Authority Washington 1 

Birmingham Housing Authority Alabama 1 

Columbus Housing Authority Ohio 1 

Meigs Metropolitan Housing Authority Ohio 1 

City of Marietta Housing Agency Ohio 1 

Stark Metropolitan Housing Authority Ohio 1 

Lake Metropolitan Housing Authority Ohio 1 

Fulton County Housing Authority Georgia 1

Michigan City Housing Authority Indiana 1 

Monmouth County Housing Authority New Jersey 1

Housing Authority of the County of Clark Nevada 1 

Hugo Housing Authority Oklahoma 1 

Oklahoma Housing Finance Agency Oklahoma 1 

Housing Authority of Anthony Texas 1 

Galveston Housing Authority Texas 1 

Charlottesville Housing Redevelopment Authority Virginia 1 

Chippewa County Housing Authority Wisconsin 1

East Greenwich Housing Authority Rhode Island 1 

Coventry Housing Authority Rhode Island 1 

Narragansett Housing Authority Rhode Island 1 

Housing Authority of the County of Beaver Pennsylvania 1 

Perth Amboy Housing Authority New Jersey 1 

Lafayette Housing Authority Louisiana 1 

Housing Authority of the City of Vallejo California 1 

Bowling Green Community Development Agency Kentucky 1 

City of Buffalo Housing Authority New York 1 

Town of Islip Housing Authority New York 1 

Ann Arbor Housing Commission Michigan 1 

Northeast Nebraska Joint Housing Authority Nebraska 1 

Bloomington Housing Authority Indiana 1

Goshen Housing Authority Indiana 1 

Crossville Housing Authority Tennessee 1 

Chicago Housing Authority Illinois 1 

Rockford Housing Authority Illinois 1 

Lynn Housing Authority Massachusetts 1

Source: Data provided by HUD’s Office of Public and Indian Housing.

A-4
Appendix B 

Comparison Between Rental Assistance and 

Homeownership Assistance under the Housing Choice 

Voucher Program

Exhibit B-1 

Comparison Between Rental Assistance and Homeownership Assistance under the Housing 

Choice Voucher Program

Rental Assistance Homeownership Assistance 

Optional for PHA with 

Tenant-Based Program 

No Yes 

Program Funding Funding provided to support a variety

of tenant-based housing types 

No special funding 

Applicant Selection Voucher waiting list, using PHA’s 

selection criteria 

Voucher waiting list, using PHA’s 

selection criteria, or current rental 

assistance participants 

Eligibility Income, other PHA screening criteria Income, other PHA screening criteria 

plus: 

• Mandatory HUD requirements 

• Optional PHA requirements 

Housing Types One-family rental units, co-op, and 

(leased) condo units, including 

leased or owned manufactured 

housing on landlord’s property or 

leased pad 

One-family sales, co-op, and condo 

units, including manufactured housing 

on owned property

Initial Payment Standard 90-110% of FMR, or higher with 

HUD approval 

Same as rental payment standard 

Subsidy Calculation HAP = lower of (a) payment standard 

minus TTP or (b) gross rent minus 

TTP

HAP = lower of (a) payment standard 

minus TTP or (b) monthly

homeownership expenses minus TTP

Participant Training Applicant briefing Housing counseling 

Voucher Issuance Yes No 

Housing Search Family responsible for finding 

suitable unit 

Family responsible for finding suitable 

unit and for securing financing 

Portability To any jurisdiction with tenant-based 

rental assistance program 

To any jurisdiction with tenant-based 

homeownership program that is 

accepting new applicants 

Time Limits on Housing 

Search

At least 60 days, or longer at PHA 

discretion 

Time limits on finding and purchasing 

units set by PHA 

Participant Notice to PHA Request for Approval of Tenancy Proposed Contract of Sale 

Physical Inspection HQS Inspection HQS inspection plus professional 

independent housing inspection 

PHA Review of Cost Review of rent reasonableness 

required 

Review of rate and terms of financing 

usually required 

40% Affordability Cap Applicable Not applicable

B-1 
Exhibit B-1 

Comparison Between Rental Assistance and Homeownership Assistance under the Housing 

Choice Voucher Program

Rental Assistance Homeownership Assistance 

Restrictions on Owners Family may not lease from owners 

who are suspended, debarred, or 

LDP by HUD; PHA may have 

additional criteria for disapproval of 

owners 

Family may not purchase from seller 

who is suspended, debarred, or LDP 

by HUD; no additional criteria 

Failure to Find Housing –

Current Participant 

Rental assistance continues in 

current unit 

Rental assistance continues in current 

unit 

Failure to Find Housing –

New Admission

Applicant re-applies when waiting list 

is open 

Applicant re-applies when waiting list 

is open. PHA policy may also permit 

offer of rental voucher or return to top 

of waiting list 

Up-front Costs No program funds or provisions for 

security deposit 

No program funds or provisions for 

down payment and closing costs 

HAP Contract Between owner and PHA No HAP Contract – Family signs 

Statement of Family Obligations 

Effective Date of

Assistance 

HAP begins on date unit is approved 

or date family occupies unit, 

whichever is later 

HAP begins when family’s first 

mortgage payment is due and family

has taken possession of the unit 

Monthly HAP Payments To owner To family or to lender 

Annual Reexamination of 

Family Income 

Yes Yes

Reduction in Payment 

Standard 

In the first 24 months of the HAP 

contract, use the higher of (a) the 

initial payment standard minus the 

difference between the initial rent to 

owner and the current rent to owner, 

or (b) the payment standard at the 

most recent reexamination. After the 

first 24 months of the HAP, use the 

payment standard at the most recent 

reexamination 

Use higher of current payment 

standard or payment standard at 

commencement of homeownership 

assistance 

Annual HQS Inspection Required Not required by HUD, but PHA may

require 

Time Limits on Assistance None 10-15 years, depending on mortgage 

term – term limit does not apply to 

elderly or disabled families 

Compliance with Family

Obligations 

Required as condition for continued 

assistance 

Required as condition for continued 

assistance; PHA may establish 

additional post-purchase requirements 

for families 

Source: Adapted from table prepared by Abt Associates Inc. for HUD’s forthcoming “Homeownership

Vouchers: A How-to Guide for Program Start Up.”

B-2