We completed a review of the Oakland Housing Authority in response to a hotline complaint alleging that the Authority engaged in various questionable functions involving its inspection services. The objective of the review was to determine whether the complaint allegations against the Authority were valid. Most of the allegations against the Authority were generally not valid. However, we found indications that 13 of the 19 housing…

We audited Weststar Mortgage Corporation, a Federal Housing Administration (FHA) nonsupervised direct endorsement lender located in Albuquerque, NM. We selected Weststar for review based on a risk assessment of lenders in New Mexico. Our objective was to determine whether Weststar complied with U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and FHA loan origination requirements for loans on which the borrowers defaulted and…

We performed an audit of the National Foundation for Credit Counseling based on a citizen’s complaint alleging that it misused Federal funds. Our objective was to determine whether the Foundation complied with U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) requirements when administering its housing counseling program. The complaint alleging that the Foundation misused Federal funds could not be substantiated. The Foundation…

We completed an audit of the Lawrence Housing Authority, Lawrence, MA, (Authority) pertaining to its administration of U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) programs. The objective of this audit was to determine whether the Authority had acceptable management and financial practices to efficiently and effectively administer the use of Section 8 and public housing program funds in compliance with its annual…

We audited the Jefferson Parish Housing Authority as part of our annual audit plan to review public housing programs. Our objective was to determine whether the Authority operated in accordance with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) and other requirements. Specifically, we wanted to determine whether the Authority (1) complied with procurement requirements and (2) ensured that its expenditures were eligible…

We audited the West Village Expansion Project in Durham, NC, a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Section 220-insured property, due to a citizen’s hotline complaint. The anonymous complainant alleged that the managing member of the project’s ownership entity spent an excessive amount of project funds on legal fees, transferred more than $500,000 to another entity owned by it, and failed to keep the mortgage current…

We completed the 16th audit report in our ongoing review of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation’s administration of the $2.783 billion in Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Disaster Recovery Assistance funds awarded to the State of New York in the aftermath of the September 11, 2011, terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City. During the audit period, April 1, 2010 through March 31, 2011, LMDC disbursed…

We audited the City of Newark, NJ’s administration of its Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP1), funded under Title III of Division B of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008, in support of the Office of Inspector General’s (OIG) goal to improve the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) execution of and accountability for its fiscal responsibilities. We selected the City based upon a risk assessment that…

We audited the City of Houston’s Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Disaster Recovery downpayment assistance program. The program allowed the City to provide up to $45,000 in downpayment assistance for homebuyers in low to moderate income areas within the City limits. We initiated the audit as part of the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Inspector General’s (OIG) annual audit plan to implement…

To meet the Office of Inspector General’s (OIG) objective to review funds provided under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and at HUD's suggestion, we reviewed the Housing Authority of the City of Mineral Wells Public Housing Capital Fund Stimulus (formula) Recovery Act funded activities. Specifically, our objectives were to determine whether the Authority followed the Recovery Act rules and regulations when…

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Inspector General audited the City of Seattle’s Community Development Block Grant- Recovery (CDBG-R) program to determine whether the City used its CDBG-R funds in accordance with HUD and Recovery Act requirements and subgrantee expenditures were appropriate, eligible, and supported. We selected the City for review because it received $3.26 million in CDBG-R funds…

We audited the City of Philadelphia, PA’s administration of its Neighborhood Stabilization Program 2 grant that it received under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 as part of our fiscal year 2012 audit plan. Our objective was to determine whether the grantee administered the grant in accordance with Recovery Act and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) requirements. We found that the grantee…

We audited the Gonzales Housing Authority’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 Public Housing Capital Fund formula grant because it met the Office of Inspector General’s (OIG) most recent audit plan objective to contribute to the oversight objectives of the Recovery Act and the San Antonio Office of Public Housing recommended it for audit. Our objectives were to determine whether the Authority (1) properly obligated and…

We completed a review of the City of Phoenix’s (City) Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP) grants NSP1 and NSP2. We performed the review because it supports the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Inspector General’s strategic plan to contribute to the oversight objectives of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and the City received a $60 million grant as one of 56 NSP2 grantees. Our…

HUD OIG audited Universal American Mortgage, Co. LLC, located in Miami, FL, in accordance with our annual audit plan. Universal was selected for review because its default rate of 3.8 percent was higher than the Miami area default rate of 1.9 percent. Our objectives were to determine whether the lender followed U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) requirements when originating and underwriting loans and implementing…

We audited the Los Angeles Neighborhood Housing Services’ Neighborhood Stabilization Program 2 (NSP2). We performed the audit because American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 reviews are part of the Office of Inspector General’s (OIG) annual plan and Neighborhood Housing Services was awarded $60 million in Recovery Act NSP2 funds in a consortium agreement with 12 other organizations on February 11, 2010. Our audit objective was…

We audited the Housing Authority of the City of Perth Amboy’s transactions with its nonprofit subsidiary, the Perth Amboy Redevelopment Team for Neighborhood Enterprise and Revitalization (PARTNER), in response to a hotline complaint. The audit objectives were to assess the merits of this complaint and determine whether Authority officials complied with provisions of the Authority’s regulatory agreement and other U.S. Department of…

We audited the financial and procurement operations of the Housing Authority of the City of Port Arthur, TX. We conducted this audit due to deficiencies identified in a prior audit. Our objectives were to determine whether the Authority had sufficient financial and procurement controls to ensure it used U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) funds in accordance with laws, regulations, and policies. This review…

We audited the public housing program of the Housing Authority of the City of Hickory, NC, due to a citizen’s hotline complaint. Our objectives were to evaluate the merits of the complaint allegations and determine whether the Authority complied with U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) requirements for procurement, cash disbursements, a 2004 Resident Opportunity and Self-Sufficiency (ROSS) grant, and inventory…

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Inspector General audited Nations Lending Corporation, a Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-approved nonsupervised direct endorsement lender approved to originate, underwrite, and submit mortgages for insurance under the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) direct endorsement program. We selected Nations for audit based on our risk assessment of…