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Open Recommendations by Oversight Area
Oversight Area	Priority Recommendations	Open Recommendations
Housing Assistance	75	100
Community Development	3	75
Disaster Recovery	3	82
Financial Risk and Accountability	6	130
Technology and Cybersecurity	4	88
Health and Safety	1	53
HUD's Operations	4	100
Total	96	628

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We audited the Columbus Metropolitan Housing Authority’s Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) Program. The audit was initiated based on our assessment of risks associated with public housing agencies’ HCV Program units and recent media attention and public concern about the conditions of subsidized…

Oversight Area: Housing Health and Safety

Provide evidence that the owners corrected the 248 deficiencies for the 48 units with outstanding deficiencies. If the owners fail to make corrections, the Authority should implement its stop payment procedures and provide supporting documentation to HUD.

Implement a quality control process for monitoring its contracted inspectors to ensure that units meet HUD’s requirements to prevent nearly $36 million in program funds from being spent on units that do not meet HQS over the next year.

Implement procedures and controls regarding its quality control inspections to ensure that the results of those inspections are appropriately used to evaluate and monitor the performance of the Authority’s contracted inspectors and documentation is maintained on communications with the contractor on corrective actions taken to address recurring inspection deficiencies.

Pursue collection from the applicable owner or reimburse its HCV Program $5,194 from non-Federal funds for HAP that was not properly stopped for two units with outstanding HQS deficiencies.

Provide support showing whether HAP was appropriately stopped for the four units cited in the finding or reimburse or pursue collection of $10,233 from non-Federal funds for HAP to owners with outstanding HQS deficiencies.

Implement procedures and controls regarding its stop payment process to ensure that it consistently (1) stops payments as required by its HCV Program administrative plan and HUD requirements, (2) verifies and documents the correction of deficiencies, and (3) maintains sufficient documentation to support the stop payment for each unit.

Implement controls over its inspection processes and procedures to ensure that emergency failures are properly identified, reinspected, and corrected within 24 hours in accordance with its HCV Program administrative plan or the housing assistance to the owner is stopped.

Work with its contractor to ensure that the contractor’s inspectors receive training on how to properly identify and categorize life-threatening deficiencies.

Develop and implement policies and procedures that align with HUD’s requirements and controls to ensure that owners follow the requirements of the LSHR.

Work with HUD’s Office of Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes to provide technical assistance to the Authority’s staff to develop and implement policies, procedures, and controls for managing cases of children with EBLLs to ensure compliance with the LSHR, including attempts to collaborate with public health departments to identify cases of EBLL in children under 6 years of age under its HCV Program and updating its policies and procedures accordingly.

We audited the Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority’s management of lead‐based paint in its public housing program based on our assessment of the risks of lead‐based paint in public housing. The risk factors assessed included the age of buildings, the number of units, household demographics,…

Oversight Area: Housing Health and Safety

Develop and implement adequate procedures to ensure that confirmed EBLL cases, unconfirmed EBLL cases, and environmental investigations are reported to HUD.

Develop and implement adequate procedures and controls to ensure that environmental investigations are completed when required.

Work with HUD’s Office of Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes to provide training for the Authority’s staff on the appropriate testing methodology for confirming that a child has an EBLL and to provide technical assistance on procedures and controls to address the issues cited in this finding.

Perform a search for historical documentation to support the lead-free status of the 15 units and the associated developments. If adequate documentation is not found to support that all lead-based paint was identified and abated and clearance was achieved as required, the Authority should complete a lead-based paint inspection of the developments to determine whether they are lead free.

Develop a quality control process to ensure that records for the remaining 1,385 units contain evidence of lead-free status. If adequate documentation is not found to support that all lead-based paint was identified and abated and clearance was achieved as required, the Authority should complete a lead-based paint inspection of the developments to determine whether they are lead free.

Implement procedures that align with HUD’s requirements and controls to ensure that visual assessments for lead-based paint are completed at least every 12 months.

Implement policies and procedures that align with HUD’s requirements and controls to ensure that reevaluations are completed when required.

Implement controls to ensure that accurate lead disclosures are provided to prospective and current tenants.

Work with HUD’s Office of Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes to provide training for the Authority’s staff on the management of lead-based paint, including technical assistance with developing and implementing procedures and controls to address the issues cited in this finding.

Work with HUD’s Office of Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes to assess whether the lead-based paint inspections and risk assessments with missing elements are sufficient to support the lead-based paint status of the Authority’s properties. If it is determined that the lead-based paint and risk assessment reports are not sufficient, HUD should require the Authority to perform new assessments.

We audited the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles’ management of lead-based paint and lead-based paint hazards in its public housing units. We selected the Authority based on our assessment of the risks of lead‐based paint in public housing agencies’ (PHA) housing developments, including…

Oversight Area: Housing Health and Safety

Implement procedures and controls to ensure that visual assessments for lead-based paint are completed at least every 12 months.

Implement procedures and controls to ensure that risk assessments and reevaluations are conducted in accordance with HUD’s requirements.

Obtain lead-based paint risk assessments for the five developments for which hazard reduction work was completed and perform the required reevaluations.

Determine whether the remaining five developments (Imperial Courts, Mar Vista Gardens, Nickerson Gardens, Ramona Gardens, and Rancho San Pedro) have deteriorated paint and if so, obtain lead-based paint risk assessments and reevaluations when applicable.

Coordinate with HUD’s Office of Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes to obtain training for the Authority’s employees responsible for managing lead-based paint on the management of lead-based paint, including the requirements for visual assessments, risk assessments, reevaluations, and hazard reduction.

We audited the Boston Housing Authority’s Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) Program. We initiated this audit based upon our assessment of risks associated with public housing agencies' HCV Program units, as well as recent media attention and public concern about the conditions of subsidized housing…

Oversight Area: Housing Health and Safety

Provide evidence to support that the owners corrected the 46 deficiencies for the 20 units with outstanding deficiencies. If the owners fail to provide evidence that they made the required corrections, HUD should require the Authority to implement its HAP enforcement procedures and provide supporting documentation to HUD evidencing that it did so.

Improve its quality control process for monitoring its inspectors to enhance the effectiveness of its unit inspections and ensure that all units meet HUD’s and its own requirements to prevent more than $34 million in Program funds from being spent on units that do not meet HQS over the next year. This process should include but not be limited to procedures (1) requiring its staff to use the quality control inspection results to evaluate and monitor the performance of the Authority’s inspectors, along with maintaining adequate supporting documentation on feedback provided to the inspectors for recurring inspection deficiencies and (2) for evaluating the training provided to its inspectors to determine what improvements are needed to ensure that unit deficiencies are detected.

Pursue collection from the applicable owners or reimburse its HCV Program from non-Federal funds $106,477 ($180,309 - $73,832) in inappropriate HAP

Provide evidence to HUD that it has improved its controls and procedures for its stop payment process to ensure that (1) payments to owners comply with its HCV Program administrative plan and HUD requirements and (2) it maintains documentation to support stop payments and resumption of those payments for each unit as applicable.

Provide documentation to support that HAP was appropriately paid to the owners for the 66 units that had more than one stop payment. If additional HAP was inappropriately paid, the Authority should pursue collection from the applicable owners or reimburse its HCV Program from non-Federal funds.

Review its records to confirm whether it had cases of children with EBLLs during our audit period and work with the owner(s) of the HCV Program units to provide required documentation to HUD.

Update publications and educational materials to owners to ensure that they understand their reporting responsibilities to HUD regarding confirmed cases of children with EBLLs.

Develop and implement procedures and controls for coordinating with public health departments and managing cases of children with EBLLs, including monitoring owners for compliance with the requirements of the LSHR.

Work with HUD’s OLHCHH to provide technical assistance to the Authority’s staff to develop and implement procedures and controls for monitoring owners for compliance with HUD’s EBLL requirements and attempting to collaborate with local health departments to identify cases of EBLL in children under 6 years of age under its HCV Program.

HUD’s Office of Housing contracts with performance-based contract administrators to administer the housing assistance payments (HAP) contract with owners. Through RAD, HUD oversees the HAP contracts for converted properties and monitors owners for compliance with HUD’s requirements, which include…

Oversight Area: Housing Health and Safety

Review the non-life-threatening health and safety and other deficiencies observed by the audit team and ensure that property owners and agents make the necessary corrections to the deficiencies as appropriate.

Determine the appropriate timeframe for when initial management and occupancy reviews (MORs) should be completed for all properties that convert under the Rental Assistance Demonstration and issue updated guidance that includes a system to track the timeliness of initial MORs.

Status

Given current resource constraints, HUD will create guidance based on risk-based Management and Occupancy Review (MOR) parameters to ensure that field staff and leadership perform the initial MOR for PBRA RAD-converted properties. This guidance will specify which assessments can be done on-site or remotely (such as desk reviews). Furthermore, the guidance will require that the existing MOR tracking tools (e.g., PowerApps) be used to monitor planning for the MORs and progress throughout, until final closing of the review. As of July 2025, HUD has completed 233 MORs for the 834 RAD-converted properties. The tool allows HUD staff to filter by the type of conversion (e.g. RAD PIH, RAD PRAC, etc.) as well as other risk indicators (e.g., troubled status), location and servicer (e.g. Account Executive, Senior Account Executive, Resolution Specialist). OIG has concurred with HUD's corrective action plan that it will create guidance to allow for a risk-based approach for completing MORs, which HUD anticipates completing by September 30, 2025.

Analysis

To implement this recommendation, HUD needs to provide evidence that it has updated guidance with appropriate timeframe for conducting MORs and a system to track the timeliness of initial MORs. Failure to determine the timing of the initial MORs could delay HUD's performance of them, which may result in property owners' untimely corrective actions, and thus potentially impact the health and safety of families.

The implementation of this recommendation has the potential to directly impact the health and safety of families.

Complete the initial management and occupancy reviews (MORs) for the Rental Assistance Demonstration properties that have not had an initial MOR.

Status

Given current resource constraints, HUD will create guidance based on risk-based Management and Occupancy Review (MOR) parameters to ensure that field staff and leadership perform the initial MOR for PBRA RAD-converted properties. This guidance will specify which assessments can be done on-site or remotely (such as desk reviews). The guidance will outline the timing requirements for when the initial MOR should be completed. To date, HUD staff have completed 233 MORs for the 834 RAD-converted properties. HUD anticipates completing the initial MORs for the remaining 501 properties by the end of 2027. HUD HQ and field staff will use the Power BI MOR tool to track the MOR through the stages: scheduling, review, issuance of report and finally the closing of the report. As of July 2025, OIG has concurred with HUD's corrective action plan that HUD will begin completing the initial MORs using a risk-based approach. The target completion date for HUD to demonstrate it is taking corrective action is set for December 31, 2025.

Analysis

Completing initial MORs would assist HUD in holding property owners accountable for maintaining the conditions of their properties and sufficient reserve for replacement accounts balances, which could impact property owners' ability to make needed capital repairs.

The recommended corrective action has the potential to directly impact the health and safety of families.

Develop and implement a plan to determine how to implement the risk-based approach to review the Rental Assistance Demonstration properties that have not had subsequent management and occupancy reviews (MORs) in more than 3 years and to require periodic MORs going forward.

Status

Given the current resource constraints, HUD will create guidance based on risk-based Management and Occupancy Review (MOR) parameters to ensure that field staff and leadership perform MORs using a risk-based model for PBRA RAD-converted properties. This guidance will specify which assessments can be done on-site or remotely (such as desk reviews) and the timing requirements for when ongoing MORs should be scheduled once the initial MOR is completed. As of July 2025, 641 MORs need to be scheduled for the Office of Asset Management's portfolio of 834 RAD-converted properties. Of those, 85 properties are managed by Performance-Based Contract Administrators (PBCA). Depending on risk indicators for each property, MORs will be scheduled accordingly. HUD reported that its staff resources are limited in comparison to the PBCAs and will therefore take a risk-based approach for prioritizing the MORs that HUD staff must complete. The Office of Asset Management will develop a plan to address the backlog of RAD-converted MORs using the current risk factors which include the physical condition, last MOR score, financial health of the property and other indicators. The target completion date is December 31, 2025.

Analysis

Developing a plan to implement the risk-based approach would establish the criteria for identifying properties that are at a higher risk of noncompliance.

The recommended corrective action would help HUD to monitor property owners' compliance with its requirements and thus, potentially protect families from living in unsafe units.

Provide training to field staff members to ensure that they have the skills necessary to complete MORs of converted properties.

Review the reserve for replacement account balances for the 13 properties (11 underfunded and 2 overfunded) to determine whether the balances are maintained in accordance with the applicable HUD requirements and executed HUD business documents and require owners to fully fund any underfunded reserves and determine whether any overfunded accounts should have the deposits suspended for a specified period.

Review the HUD business documents, such as the RAD conversion commitment, HAP contract, and regulatory agreement, for the four properties that did not contain consistent reserve for replacement information and update the documents to be consistent as appropriate.

Issue guidance to RAD property owners clarifying that the owner is responsible to follow both the HUD business documents and the property’s business documents and that the most restrictive document indicates the amount and timing of the annual deposits into the reserve for replacement account.

Develop and implement a process to ensure that the reserve for replacement requirements in HUD’s business documents are consistent for all converted properties.

Develop and implement a plan to review the reserve for replacement accounts for all converted properties from the date on which the account was established to the date of the review. Based on the reviews completed, HUD should take appropriate actions to ensure that reserve for replacement accounts are appropriately funded or determine whether overfunded accounts should have the deposits suspended for a specified period.

Implement adequate procedures and controls to ensure that servicing lenders comply with HUD time requirements in scheduling initial inspections of FHA-insured RAD PBV properties.

Determine an appropriate timeframe in which non-FHA-insured Project-Based Rental Assistance (PBRA) properties converted under the Rental Assistance Demonstration should be initially inspected, work with HUD’s Real Estate Assessment Center (REAC) to ensure that inspections are ordered and completed within that timeframe, and update HUD’s publicly available and internal guidance to ensure consistent messaging in accordance with HUD’s determination.

Status

As of July 2025, Multifamily Housing planned to develop and implement adequate policies, procedures, and controls to ensure non-FHA insured PBRA properties under RAD are inspected within 90 days after the original date of the HAP contract, unless the property has been approved for inspection delay during major rehabilitation, then within 90 days after the end of the approved inspection delay. Further, Multifamily Housing will provide appropriate updated guidance to both internal and external partners relative to non-FHA-insured PBRA properties converted under RAD. The target completion date is September 30, 2025.

Analysis

Determining the appropriate timeframe for initial inspections would result in the timely identification and correction of life-threatening and non-life-threatening deficiencies.

The recommended corrective action has the potential to directly impact the health and safety of families.

HUD’s Office of Single Family Housing did not consistently monitor its Field Service Management (FSM) contractors’ property preservation and protection services. Specifically, HUD provided inconsistent monitoring for 34 of the 79 statistically sampled records we reviewed, and these involved…

Oversight Area: Housing Health and Safety

Develop and implement uniform procedures for the FSM desk monitoring review, including a second level review for the FSM monitoring reviews and process for each inspection type.

Update the FSM monitoring plan and FSM qualitative monitoring database to: (a) clearly define the monitoring questions, (b) include a section for Q7 New Not Ready to Show (NRTS) properties, (c) define which routine inspection reports will be reviewed to conduct the routine inspection monitoring reviews and (d) develop a monitoring question to evaluate photo date stamps.

Ensure that program officials periodically provide all FSM CORs and staff involved in the monitoring process uniform property inspection training.

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to determine whether HUD had adequate oversight of the physical condition of the public housing units that converted to non-Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-insured project-based vouchers (PBV) under RAD.We found HUD needs to…

Oversight Area: Housing Health and Safety

Implement procedures and controls for targeting non-FHA-insured RAD PBV projects to monitor the physical conditions and reserve for replacement accounts.

Implement procedures for monitoring property owners’ reserve for replacement accounts for compliance with HUD’s requirements, using reserve for replacement account data collected on projects from PHAs.

Provide inspection reports for the units identified in this report that failed to meet HQS showing that the units and associated buildings meet HUD’s current physical condition standards.

Implement a policy to ensure that monitoring of RAD PBV projects includes, at a minimum, a review of the accuracy of the reserve for replacement account balances and compliance with HUD’s physical condition and inspection requirements.

Review the reserve for replacement accounts for the 12 underfunded projects to ensure that the account balances are maintained in accordance with the applicable HUD requirements and executed HUD business documents and require owners to fully fund any underfunded reserves, as applicable.

Review the reserve for replacement accounts for the 14 project owners that did not make annual adjustments for inflation, as identified in the capital needs assessment, to determine whether the account balances are sufficient to meet anticipated capital needs. If the account balances are not sufficient, HUD should require the owners to appropriately fund the accounts.

Implement a plan to review the reserve for replacement accounts for all RAD PBV projects to ensure that reserve for replacement accounts are appropriately funded.

Obtain documentation from the PHAs to support that more than $1 million in withdrawals from the eight reserve accounts complied with HUD’s requirements or require the project owners to reimburse the reserve accounts for the unsupported withdrawals.

Implement a process, in conjunction with the Office of Recapitalization, to ensure that the reserve for replacement requirements in HUD’s business documents, such as the RAD conversion commitment, HAP contract, and operating agreement, are consistent for converted projects.

Collect data on projects’ reserve for replacement accounts to support the Office of Field Operations’ monitoring activities.

We audited the Puerto Rico Public Housing Administration’s management of lead‐based paint in its public housing program based on our assessment of the risks of lead‐based paint in public housing. The risk factors assessed included the age of buildings, the number of units, and reported cases of…

Oversight Area: Housing Health and Safety

Conduct risk assessments in public housing without adequate lead-based paint inspection documentation to ascertain the existence of lead-based paint hazards.

Conduct lead-based paint inspections at public housing abated through removal methods where an abatement report is unavailable to ensure that units are “lead-free.”

Abate or implement interim control measures to reduce the risk of exposure to lead-based paint hazards identified through risk assessments.

Implement an ongoing maintenance program for lead-based paint to ensure unabated and “lead-safe” units remain hazard free.

Implement adequate policies and procedures regarding the management of lead-based paint in its public housing, including maintaining adequate records, completing interim controls, and conducting ongoing maintenance for lead-based paint hazards.

Ensure that it provides appropriate and accurate lead-based paint disclosures to prospective and current tenants.

Revise and update the Authority’s policies to ensure that environmental investigations are completed for EBLL cases and ensure that HUD and residents are notified of the results of environmental investigations in a timely manner.

Coordinate with HUD to provide training for the Authority’s employees on managing of lead-based paint hazards and to provide technical assistance such as developing written procedures, improving internal controls, or contracting with subject matter experts to address the issues cited in this report.

Provide evidence that it abated lead-based paint hazards in one EBLL case where the Authority did not abate the hazards identified in an environmental investigation.

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Office of Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes’ (OLHCHH) oversight of Lead-Based Paint Hazard Control (LBPHC) and Lead Hazard Reduction Demonstration (LHRD) grant programs. These programs help reduce lead hazards in…

Oversight Area: Housing Health and Safety

Provide support to show that the performance history element was factored as part of the grantees’ capacity to manage the grants awarded through the 2025 NOFO.

Reevaluate ‘High Risk’ designation criteria as part of the SOP update and reimplement its updated ‘High Risk’ criteria to reflect how grantees will be designated as ‘High Risk’ within the program. In addition, train OLHCHH staff on the new ‘High Risk’ designation criteria stated in the SOP.

Notify grantees of HUD’s updated ‘High Risk’ designation criteria and HUD’s expectations when designated as ‘High Risk.’

Provide assistance to the nine identified ‘High Risk’ grantees that will help meet established performance benchmarks to be completed by the end of the respective grants in 2026.

Recapture $3,775,916 in undisbursed grant funds not used to meet agreed-upon performance benchmarks for the two identified ‘High Risk’ grantees whose period of performance ended in June and July 2025, respectively. In addition, identify those grantees that received 2020 through 2022 LBPHC and LHRD grants with a period of performance that ended on or before December 31, 2025, to determine whether agreed-upon performance benchmarks were met by that date, and take appropriate actions that include recapturing undisbursed grant funds.

Consider grantees’ suggestions to improve training sessions, technical assistance, and communication of information that grantees can use to help meet agreed-upon performance benchmarks. In addition, provide documentation to support the guidance OLHCHH plans to share with grantees to ensure agreed-upon performance benchmarks are met.

Reassess, establish, and incorporate a maximum review period of grantee-submitted QPRs into an SOP. Inform staff of the review period to ensure consistency and understanding of HUD’s expectations of the time to review grantee-submitted QPRs. In addition, establish formal guidance and implement internal controls to monitor and track the timely review of QPRs.

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Residential Care Facilities’ (ORCF), oversight of Section 232 residential care facilities’ mortgage insurance program. We performed this audit because HUD-insured residential care facility loan defaults were rising.…

Oversight Area: Healthcare Programs

Open Recommendations by Oversight Area

Oversight Area

Status

Priority

The Columbus Metropolitan Housing Authority, Columbus, OH, Did Not Always Comply With HUD’s Requirements for Its Housing Choice Voucher Program Units

The Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority, Cleveland, OH, Did Not Have Adequate Oversight of Lead-Based Paint in Its Public Housing

The Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles Did Not Adequately Manage Lead-Based Paint in Its Public Housing Units

The Boston Housing Authority Did Not Always Comply With HUD’s Requirements for Its Housing Choice Voucher Program Units

HUD’s Office of Multifamily Needs To Improve Its Oversight of PBRA and FHA-Insured PBV Properties Converted Under RAD

HUD’s Office of Single Family Housing Did Not Consistently Monitor Its Field Service Management Contractors’ Property Preservation and Protection Services

HUD's Office of Public and Indian Housing Needs to Improve Its Oversight of Non-FHA-Insured PBV Projects Converted Under RAD

The Puerto Rico Public Housing Administration Has Not Adequately Managed Lead-Based Paint in Its Public Housing

HUD Needs to Improve Its Award and Oversight of Lead-Based Paint Hazard Control and Lead Hazard Reduction Demonstration Grants

HUD Did Not Always Address Risks Reported in Borrowers’ Audited Financial Statements for Section 232 Residential Care Facility Portfolios

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