Funding Announcement: Virginia Housing Trust Fund and VHDA REACH Grant Program FY2014. Housing Counseling and Education Foreclosure Prevention

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1 Agency Name: Virginia Housing Development Authority (VHDA) Funding Announcement: Virginia Housing Trust Fund and VHDA REACH Grant Programs Housing Counseling and Education Foreclosure Prevention April 2014 Funding Opportunity Title: Two available grant opportunities to be completed in one application VHDA REACH Housing Counseling and Education VHDA REACH Foreclosure Prevention Grant Period: July 1, 2013 June 30, 2014 Available Funds: The intent of VHDA REACH Grant Program is to expand and supplement housing counseling services in the area of pre-purchase, mortgage delinquency or default, rental, nondelinquency post-purchase, and homeless prevention, reverse mortgage and fair housing. REACH funding levels have not been established prior to the release of this application. Funding levels are anticipated to be similar to previous years. Funding in the amount of $500, from the Virginia Trust Fund will supplement the REACH Foreclosure Prevention Grant opportunity. Funding Thresholds: Maximum request for each opportunity is $50, There is no minimum request. Average s for each opportunity are expected to be $25, Dates and Timeline Application Application Announcement April 15, 2013 Web-Ex Presentation Application Overview April 22, 2013 and April 30, 2013 Application Due Date May 20, 2013 Award Announcements July 1, 2013 Reporting/Allocations Activity Due Date Award Allocation Receipt of signed grant August 1, % of August 15, 2013 agreement Quarterly report October 15, % of November 15, 2013 July 2013 September 2013 Quarterly Report January 15, % of February 15, 2014 July 2013 December 2013 Quarterly report April 15, % of May 15, 2014 July 2013 March 2014 Final Report July 2013 June 2014 July 15, 2014 Page 1 of 6

2 Eligibility Criteria: HUD Approved Local Housing Counseling Agencies (LHCAs), Multi-State Organizations, or Subgrantees of an eligible intermediary or VHDA, doing business in Virginia are eligible to apply. Local Housing Counseling Agencies must have their designation in place prior to the release of this application Multi-State organizations must have a physical presence in Virginia. Funding will only support the Virginia agency National intermediaries are ineligible Branches of a national intermediary are ineligible A sub-grantee of an intermediary is eligible to apply directly if they are doing business and have a physical presence in Virginia Sub-grantee must have designation through their intermediary in place as of October 1, Funding Priority Foreclosure Prevention counseling must target localities with the highest incidence of foreclosure activity. HUD Approved Local Housing Counseling Agencies (LHCAs)Affiliate Status Branches or sub-grantees of HUD approved intermediaries are not considered HUD approved LHCAs simply as a result of affiliation. LHCA approval must be secured directly from the Office of Housing Counseling Organizations providing comprehensive services and creating collaboratives with other housing counseling agencies Organizations providing VHDA Homebuyer Education course Eligible Activities: VHDA Housing Counseling and Education Grant Program: 1. Individual Housing Counseling. Individual counseling sessions regarding one or more of the following topics: Pre-Purchase/Home Buying Non-Delinquency Post-Purchase Rental Homeless Prevention Reverse Mortgage Fair Housing For counseling to be eligible, at a minimum, a housing counselor must perform and document each of the following activities: a. Budget/Financial Analysis. A review of the client's income, expenses, spending habits, and use of credit in order to evaluate their unique financial situation relative to their housing needs. b. Housing Analysis. A review of the client s housing needs, current housing quality, and housing affordability relative to their financial capability. c. Action Plan. Except for reverse mortgage counseling, the housing counselor and client must establish an action plan that outlines actions the housing counseling agency and client will do in order to meet the client s housing goals and, when appropriate, addresses the client s housing problem(s). d. Discuss Alternatives. Identify and discuss with the client at least three (3) alternatives or options available to the client relevant to the specific housing need. Page 2 of 6

3 e. Follow-up. Efforts made by the counselor to have follow-up communication with the client, to ensure that the client is progressing toward his or her housing goal(s), to modify or terminate housing counseling services, and to determine and report outcomes. 2. Group Education/Classes: Group education or classes regarding one or more of the following topics: Pre-Purchase/Home Buying Non-Delinquency Post-Purchase Rental Homeless Prevention Reverse Mortgage Fair Housing Applicants that provide education regarding any of these topics must also offer individual counseling that complements the education. 3. Fair Housing. For both individual and group counseling, as appropriate, educate the client with respect to fair housing, fair lending, and accessibility rights (e.g., how to file a Fair Housing Act complaint, legal and illegal inquiries related to disability, reasonable accommodations, placement in the most integrated setting appropriate to the person s needs, additional protections available under state and local laws, etc.) 4. Marketing and Outreach Initiatives. This includes providing general information and materials about housing opportunities and issues, conducting informational campaigns, advocating with lenders for non-traditional lending standards and raising awareness about critical housing topics, such as fair housing rights and remedies, lending discrimination, predatory lending, mortgage fraud, other fair lending issues or energy efficiency options to reduce homeowner energy costs. Agencies will be expected to document time spent on outreach activities. 5. Training. Eligible expenses include training, testing and certification on housing counseling topics. 6. Quality Assurance. Eligible expenses include costs associated with ensuring compliance with program rules and regulations, internal and external quality assurance, program evaluation and improvement, and the cost of implementing improved management, supervision and oversight of the housing counseling program. 7. Computer Equipment/Systems. Eligible expenses include the cost of computer equipment/systems acquired with the objective of improving the quality of counseling and education services available. 8. Capacity Building. This includes costs associated with hiring additional staff to meet the demand for counseling and to effectively expend grant s. Foreclosure Prevention Housing Counseling Grant Program: 1. Individual Housing Counseling. Individual counseling sessions regarding one or more of the following topic: Page 3 of 6

4 Resolving or Preventing Mortgage Delinquency or Default For counseling to be eligible, at a minimum, a housing counselor must perform and document each of the following activities: a. Budget/Financial Analysis. A review of the client's income, expenses, spending habits, and use of credit in order to evaluate their unique financial situation relative to their housing needs. b. Housing Analysis. A review of the client s housing needs, current housing quality, and housing affordability relative to their financial capability. c. Action Plan. The housing counselor and client must establish an action plan that outlines actions the housing counseling agency and client will do in order to meet the client s housing goals and, when appropriate, addresses the client s housing problem(s). d. Discuss Alternatives. Identify and discuss with the client at least three (3) alternatives or options available to the client relevant to the specific housing need. e. Follow-up. Efforts made by the counselor to have follow-up communication with the client, to ensure that the client is progressing toward his or her housing goal(s), to modify or terminate housing counseling services, and to determine and report outcomes. 2. Group Education/Classes: Group education or classes regarding one or more of the following topics: Resolving or Preventing Mortgage Delinquency or Default; Applicants that provide education regarding this topic must also offer individual counseling that complements the education. 3. Fair Housing. For both individual and group counseling, as appropriate, educate the client with respect to fair housing, fair lending, and accessibility rights (e.g., how to file a Fair Housing Act complaint, legal and illegal inquiries related to disability, reasonable accommodations, placement in the most integrated setting appropriate to the person s needs, additional protections available under state and local laws, etc.) 4. Marketing and Outreach Initiatives. This includes providing general information and materials about housing opportunities and issues, conducting informational campaigns, advocating with lenders for non-traditional lending standards and raising awareness about critical housing topics, such as fair housing rights and remedies, lending discrimination, predatory lending, mortgage fraud, other fair lending issues or energy efficiency options to reduce homeowner energy costs. Agencies will be expected to document time spent on outreach activities. 5. Training. Eligible expenses include training, testing and certification on housing counseling topics. 6. Quality Assurance. Eligible expenses include costs associated with ensuring compliance with program rules and regulations, internal and external quality assurance, program evaluation and improvement, and the cost of implementing improved management, supervision and oversight of the housing counseling program. 7. Computer Equipment/Systems. Eligible expenses include the cost of computer equipment/systems acquired with the objective of improving the quality of counseling and education services available. Page 4 of 6

5 8. Capacity Building. This includes costs associated with hiring additional staff to meet the demand for counseling and to effectively expend grant s. Counseling and Education Requirements and Compliance All counseling and education activities must meet HUD requirements as detailed in the HUD Housing Counselor Handbook. VHDA will conduct on-site agency reviews and off-site file reviews during the grant year. All reporting and file requirements will be provided to participating organizations through a grant agreement. Content and Form of Application Submission: Narratives should be double spaced, 12 point Arial Font, 1 inch margins. Page limitations for each narrative are specific and provided below as well as in the application. Narratives and attachments should be submitted in Excel, Word, or PDF format. Label each file as directed below. Each Narrative should include a header to identify the agency s name, factor and subtitle. Narratives 1. Agencyname_Factor2_PastPerformance 4 pages / 5 pages if applying for the Foreclosure Prevention Grant 2. Agencyname_Factor3_Quality 6 pages / 7 pages if applying for the Foreclosure Prevention Grant 3. Agencyname_Factor3_ProjectedWorkPlan 6 pages / 7 pages if applying for the Foreclosure Prevention Grant 4. Agencyname_Factor3_ ProjectedServices 2 pages / 3 pages if applying for the Foreclosure Prevention Grant 5. Agencyname_Factor3_ProgramEvaluationOversight 6 pages / 7 pages if applying for the Foreclosure Prevention Supporting documents / Attachments 1. Agencyname_NIS PDF, scanned certificate 2. Agencyname_Factor1_CounselorCertification PDF, scanned copies of certifications 3. Agencyname_Factor2_ Historical9902Data PDF from Client Management System or VHDA fillable template 4. Agencyname_Factor2_HistoricalHCProgramBudget 5. Agencyname_Factor2_HistoricalFPProgramBudget 6. Agencyname_Factor3_Projected9902Data VHDA Template provided 7. Agencyname_Factor3_ProjectedHCProgramBudget 8. Agencyname_Factor3_ProjectedFPProgramBudget 9. Agencyname_AgencyCertification Scanned signed PDF document Page 5 of 6

6 Submission Dates and Times Applications must be submitted electronically to by May 20, 2013 at 5:00pm. Late applications will not be considered for funding. Application Review Information Responses to the rating factors should provide information and relevant examples regarding housing counseling work of the organization. The maximum points for each factor are outlined in the application. The maximum number of points for each application will be 100 points. Information from performance reports, financial status, monitoring reports, past sub-grantee audit reports, and other information available to VHDA may be used in scoring applications. Page 6 of 6