We audited the Section 8 program administered by Summit Bradford Apartments in Tulsa, OK.  We selected Bradford because we were informed that its management agent may have received Section 8 subsidies for vacant units.  Our objective was to determine whether Summit Bradford Apartments, LP, the owner, and Summit Housing Partners, LLC, the management agent, administered Bradford’s Section 8 program in compliance with its housing assistance payments contract with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

Bradford received more than $81,000 in Section 8 rental subsidies for units with questionable occupancy and that did not meet HUD requirements.  In addition, HUD may have paid more than $96,000 for over subsidized units.  These conditions occurred because the management agent did not establish effective control systems for its onsite manager, who did not keep accurate or complete records.  As a result, Bradford did not effectively and efficiently operate its Section 8 program and incurred questioned costs totaling more than $177,000.  Bradford’s owner benefited from these conditions because it may have received more Section 8 subsidies than allowed.

We recommend that the Director of the Fort Worth Office of Multifamily Housing Programs require the owner to either support or repay HUD more than $177,000 spent on vacant, substandard, or over subsidized units.  Further, the management agent should implement controls to prevent future questionable payments.