The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Inspector General, audited HUD’s Office of Multifamily Housing Programs upon receiving a hotline complaint.  The hotline complaint contained allegations that (1) HUD routinely fails to perform Endangered Species Act analysis or consultations; (2) there are many projects that have deficiencies in noise analysis and environmental assessment site factors; (3) the…

We audited the Lake View Towers Apartments’ Section 8 housing assistance payments program based on our analysis of risk factors related to multifamily projects in Region 5’s jurisdiction and the activities included in our fiscal year 2019 annual audit plan.  Our audit objective was to determine whether the management agent administered the project’s program in accordance with the owner’s contract with the U.S. Department of Housing and…

The OIG investigation focused on the Cairo, IL, based Alexander County Housing Authority's (ACHA) improper usage of HUD subsidized Asset Management Project (AMP) funds with prosecutorial consideration being given to 18 USC 666 (Theft, Intentional Misapplication of Funds), 18 USC 1001, (False Statements) and 18 USC 371 (Conspiracy). These funds (also referred to as operating funds and low rent housing project funds) and Capital funds are governed…

We audited the Public Housing Capital Fund program at the Housing Authority of the City of Woonsocket, RI, based on a request by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and because we have not audited the Authority in more than 10 years.  We also received a complaint regarding a property purchase and later demolition next to one of the Authority’s developments.  The audit objective was to determine whether the…

We audited the Housing Authority of the City of North Chicago’s Housing Choice Voucher Program based on our analysis of risk factors related to the public housing agencies in Region 5’s jurisdiction and the activities included in our 2018 annual audit plan.  Our audit objective was to determine whether the Authority appropriately managed its program in accordance with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) and its own…

We audited the City of Chicago’s Department of Public Health’s (Department) Lead Hazard Reduction Demonstration Grant Program based on our analysis of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Office of Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes grantees in Region 5’s jurisdiction.  Our audit objective was to determine whether the Department administered the Program in accordance with HUD’s and its own requirements. The…

We audited the Housing Authority of the County of Lake, IL’s Housing Choice Voucher Program based on the activities included in our 2018 annual audit plan and our analysis of risk factors related to the public housing agencies in Region 5’s jurisdiction.  Our audit objective was to determine whether the Authority appropriately managed its program in accordance with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) and its own…

We audited Luther Towers II because it was a high-risk multifamily project that received low inspection and financial assessment scores on our multifamily risk assessment for projects within our region and we had never audited it.  Our audit objective was to determine whether the owner managed the project in accordance with its regulatory agreement and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) requirements. The owner of Luther…

We audited the City of Providence RI’s HOME Investment Partnerships program based on an OIG risk assessment, which ranked the City as the highest risk HOME grantee in New England.  The objective of the audit was to determine whether the City properly committed and disbursed HOME funds in accordance with Federal and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) rules and regulations. City officials did not properly administer their…

We audited DuPage County’s Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery program.  The audit was part of the activities in our fiscal year 2017 annual audit plan.  We selected the County’s program for review because the County had spent the most program funds authorized under the Disaster Relief Appropriations Act of 2013 in Region 5’s jurisdiction.[1]  Our objective was to determine whether the County administered its…

We audited the Menard County Housing Authority’s Housing Choice Voucher program based on the activities included in our 2017 annual audit plan and our analysis of risk factors related to the public housing agencies in Region 5’s jurisdiction.  Our audit objective was to determine whether the Authority complied with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) and its own requirements regarding the administration of its…

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Inspector General audited Majestic Management, LLC’s management agent activities for the public housing program at the East St. Louis Housing Authority.  Our objective was to determine whether Majestic Management made only eligible and supported payments for payroll, complied with procurement requirements, and properly performed initial tenant certifications and annual…

We audited MB Financial Bank, a Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-approved direct endorsement lender, as part of our efforts to protect the integrity of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) single-family housing mortgage insurance programs.  We selected MB Financial for review based on an analysis of underwriting and default data maintained by HUD.  Our objective was to determine whether MB Financial…

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) resident home-ownership program grant for Lakeview East Cooperative (project) based on the results of a risk assessment of multifamily housing programs in Region 5’s jurisdiction (States of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin).  The audit was part of the activities in our fiscal year 2017 audit plan.  Our objective was to determine whether…

We audited the Stone Terrace Apartments’ Section 8 housing assistance payments program based on a citizen’s complaint alleging mismanagement of its housing assistance payments contract.  The audit was part of the activities in our fiscal year 2017 annual audit plan.  Our audit objective was to determine whether the management agent administered the project’s program in accordance with the owner’s contract with the U.S. Department of…

We audited the Housing Choice Voucher and public housing programs at the West Warwick Housing Authority as a result of concerns from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and a hotline complaint.  The audit objectives were to determine whether (1) procurements were executed in accordance with Federal regulations, (2) West Warwick officials established adequate controls over the Housing Choice Voucher and public housing…

We audited Alpine First Preston Joint Venture II, LLC, a contracted asset manager in HUD’s real estate-owned Management and Marketing III program, as part of the activities included in our 2017 annual audit plan and because it was the sole contractor to market and sell U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) owned properties located in Illinois. Our audit objective was to determine whether Alpine complied with its contract with…

We audited Health Concepts Ltd., a management agent that administers six Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-insured nursing homes.  We conducted this audit based on our review of the Pine Grove Health Center.  The review found that Pine Grove’s owners paid salaries for onsite staff that were covered under the management agreement and charged for services that should have been included in the management fee.  Our objectives for…

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Inspector General (OIG), in coordination with the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois’ Eastern Division, conducted a joint review of the former president and founder of MDR Mortgage Corporation. MDR Mortgage provided annual verifications to HUD in 2006, 2007, and 2008, certifying that none of its…

We audited the Federal Housing Administration-insured Burrillville Nursing Home, Incorporated, doing business as Pine Grove Health Center, based on a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Inspector General risk assessment.  Additionally, HUD identified Pine Grove as a high financial risk and a potentially troubled facility, and Pine Grove’s auditors reported substantial doubt regarding its ability to continue as…