At the forefront of affordable housing

Transcription

1 At the forefront of affordable housing

2 At the forefront of affordable housing The intricate legal challenges that arise in connection with federally assisted housing can be difficult to unravel, but practical, comprehensive solutions are available from Nixon Peabody s Affordable Housing Practice. Our attorneys have years of affordable housing experience, both in private practice and in government service, and are leading practitioners in the field. Our comprehensive understanding of the issues and our close collaboration with the firm s Syndication and Real Estate Groups enable us to provide astute legal counsel in all areas related to federally assisted housing.

3 Broad representation The Affordable Housing Group s attorneys represent: Developers of government-financed and -assisted multi-family projects Local housing authorities State housing finance agencies Management agents Financiers and equity syndicators of these projects Other public bodies We also represent national housing organizations on Capitol Hill and before relevant governmental departments. Members of our group counsel clients in the following areas: Section 8 contract expiration, renewal, and opt-out The expiration of Section 8 project-based housing assistance payments contracts raises many legal questions. HUD has issued a myriad of rules, guidance, and procedures concerning contract renewal, expiration, tenant notices, rent levels, and assignment approvals. Members of our group have been involved in Section 8 financing and program rules since inception of many of these contracts. Mortgage restructuring We represent owners and lenders in all types of mortgage restructuring matters. Our experience includes mark-to-market mortgage restructurings, partial payments of claims, and workouts. Prepayment and preservation/section 236 decoupling The attorneys in our group help owners exercise their right to prepay Section 236 mortgages and decouple the 236 interest reduction payment subsidy to preserve the project as affordable housing. These transactions typically include new tax-exempt bonds and low-income housing tax credits. As many multi-family apartment buildings age, owners are reexamining their ELIHPA and LIHPRHA processing. Those programs were intended to purchase much of the owner s equity at the time, but more value may have accrued. In other cases, the properties have been denied adequate revenue and now, many years later, are in need of rehabilitation. Many of our lawyers have unparalleled historical knowledge because they helped implement the ELIHPA and LIHPRHA programs and have lobbied on the legislation over the years. Affordable seniors housing/202 prepayments We represent developers and financiers of senior housing, ranging from independent living to assisted living to nursing homes, and we are familiar with the state laws and regulations that affect such developments. We are also at the forefront of the new authority to prepay and refinance HUD 202 projects and to develop new Section 202 projects using the mixed-finance development method. Public housing privatization Affordable Housing Practice attorneys represent public housing authorities and private developers under the HOPE VI and mixed-finance programs. We assist our clients in their efforts to create public-private partnerships, which enable new units to be built on former public housing sites. Our group works closely with members of Nixon Peabody s Syndication and Public Finance Practices, as most of these developments use the low-income housing tax credit and tax-exempt bonds. We also represent housing authorities and issuers in connection with capital fund securitizations, which allow housing authorities to leverage their capital fund monies to renovate new projects more efficiently. HUD regulatory compliance In addition to working with HUD-assisted properties, we also represent conventional property owners, lenders, brokers, and agents subject to other federal regulatory programs. These regulations range from program regulations to general federal regulation. Program regulations include FHA insurance rules, transfers of physical assets, audits, quality control plans, and other financespecific requirements. Other general federal regulations such as lead-based-paint rules, the Uniform Relocation Act, RESPA, and similar programs under HUD affect all forms of real estate, not just federally assisted properties. Our experience extends from multi-family programs into public housing and single-family real estate regulation.

4 Rural Housing Service The group has extensive involvement in the Rural Housing Service and its predecessor agency, the Farmers Home Administration, primarily in the Section 515 multi-family program, but also in other programs such as the Section 538 guaranteed loan program. We have assisted owners, investors, and Section 538 lenders in closing loans and syndicating equity. We have represented owners in mortgage prepayment, refinancing, workouts, and regulatory compliance. Defaults, foreclosures, and property disposition We represent owners in HUD enforcement actions, including: REAC FASS 2530 clearances Suspension and debarment procedures Mortgage workouts to prevent foreclosure Mortgage prepayment overrides Defeasance Partial payments of claims We also represent mortgagors and potential mortgage buyers in the HUD mortgage sale program and project buyers under the HUD property disposition/up-front grant program. We represent lenders before the Mortgagee Review Board and MAP lenders in connection with HUD probation actions. HUD-insured multi-family finance Our attorneys represent both lenders and borrowers under the HUD-FHA Mortgage Insurance Programs, TAP, MAP, and risksharing, as well as Fannie Mae DUS. Housing litigation and enforcement Like any other business, the ownership and operation of multifamily housing can generate disputes between owners, managers, tenants, lenders, investors, and others. Disputes arising under statute, regulation, and contract can emerge between both owners and managers of affordable housing projects and between federal and state agencies, and can take the form of: Civil litigation (such as disputes between owners and contractors) Bankruptcy proceedings Administrative investigations (such as many discrimination claims) Administrative enforcement proceedings (for example, those involving property inspections) Accounting practices Suspension and debarment Other regulatory matters Contractual disputes with government agencies Cases involving civil money penalties Allegations of criminal violations We have represented clients in all venues, including federal agencies, boards of contract appeals, and state and federal courts (including the U.S. district courts, the Court of Federal Claims, and appellate courts). When disputes arise, we counsel clients on the legal and factual issues involved, advise them concerning the opportunity to settle or resolve disputes through alternative dispute resolution techniques, and represent them in administrative proceedings and judicial trials. Affordable housing bond issuances We represent private developers, nonprofits, and syndicators, as well as issuers, in the financing or refinancing of affordable housing projects, either through public offerings or private placements of tax-exempt or taxable bonds. Fair Housing The Fair Housing Act, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and other federal and state laws, impose strict obligations to prevent discrimination on the basis of race, sex, religion, national origin, familial status, and disability, among other criteria. Because of the expense and embarrassment that even inadvertent violations can cause, compliance with antidiscrimination laws

5 should be a priority for owners, managers, and others involved in multifamily housing. Risks can be greatly reduced or eliminated if owners learn about and take action to satisfy these antidiscrimination laws. We counsel public and private entities, including owners, builders, managers, and others, in developing strategies to comply with these laws. Home and CDBG The group works with developers and public organizations that use the HOME and Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program with the Section 108 loan guarantee program. Congressional representation Our attorneys represent leading housing organizations on Capitol Hill and have been involved in shaping every significant housing bill since 1970, as well as tax legislation affecting affordable housing. Related state law issues Much federally assisted housing is also regulated and assisted at the state and local levels. In the jurisdictions where our attorneys practice, the Affordable Housing Practice has worked with developers and financiers in using these local programs and coordinating them with the federal programs. For example, in New York State, we have helped for-profits and nonprofits take advantage of the various private housing finance laws including Articles 2, 5, and 11 while undertaking mortgage restructurings, decouplings, and insured and uninsured financings. We have also advised owners in restructuring and decoupling transactions and on the various NYS rent regulations that impact their proposals. In Massachusetts, we represent public housing authorities in connection with the redevelopment of existing public housing projects. We have represented the first Massachusetts public housing authority in the issuance of tax-exempt debt for the redevelopment of a state public housing project using lowincome housing tax credits. We are consulting with several housing authorities regarding the redevelopment and reuse of their properties through public/private joint ventures. In California, our attorneys have been involved in working out critical protocol language for melding the MHP program administered by the California Department of Housing and Community Development with the Section 202/811 program administered by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development. As a result, this very useful state funding program can now be used to help produce housing for the elderly and disabled. We have also been active in advising both nonprofits and forprofit developers with respect to the controlling California statutes related to the preservation requirements triggered by prepayment or termination of existing housing or loan subsidies. Top educators on housing issues Attorneys in our Affordable Housing Practice have chaired more than 150 national seminars on programs sponsored by Housing and Development, the Institute for Responsible Housing Preservation, and the Institute for Professional and Executive Development. They frequently speak at seminars and meetings of housing trade associations focusing on affordable housing issues. The strength of a nationwide firm Nixon Peabody LLP is a full-service, international law firm and is recognized as a Global 100 firm one of the largest in the world. The firm s size, diversity, and advanced technological resources enable it to offer comprehensive legal services to individuals and organizations of all sizes in local, state, national, and international matters. To find out more about the Affordable Housing Practice, please contact: Steve Wallace swallace@nixonpeabody.com

6 This may be considered advertising under certain professional rules of conduct AFFHOUS