HQS inspections are required by HUD to ensure minimum housing quality standards are met in units subsidized under HUD voucher programs. There are several different types of inspections:
The “initial inspection” must occur and pass before CHA can approve a tenant for move-in and enter into a Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) contract with an owner. A “special Inspection” or “complaint inspection” is an inspection that would occur at the request of the Landlord (LL) or tenant. “Annual or biennial inspections” are required to be completed and pass every year or every other year, depending on what program the subsidized tenant is in. “Quality Control (QC) inspections” occur to verify the inspection company is accurately inspecting apartments. A random selection of units/inspections are chosen each month to be re-inspected by a QC inspector.