We audited NOVA Financial & Investment Corporation based on a referral from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Quality Assurance Division detailing a separate lender that originated Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-insured loans that contained ineligible downpayment assistance gifts.  The HUD Office of Inspector General’s (OIG) analysis identified NOVA as a lender with the highest origination volume in the…

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) administration of its purchase card program in accordance with the Charge Card Abuse Prevention Act of 2012.  Our 2013 risk assessment review identified HUD’s purchase card program at medium to high risk for fraud or misuse, and our review of HUD’s Semiannual Purchase Card Violation Report (audit memorandum number 2014-FO-0801) raised concerns regarding…

We audited the Section 184 Indian Home Loan Guarantee program based on the U.S. Department Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Inspector General’s (OIG) research, analysis, and information provided by the Office of Investigation, detailing potential weaknesses in the program’s controls.  Our objective was to determine whether HUD had adequate controls in place to provide oversight of the Section 184 program. The Office of Loan…

We audited Virgin Islands Community AIDS Resource & Education, Inc.’s (VICARE) Housing Opportunities for Persons With AIDS (HOPWA) program.  This audit was the result of a referral from the San Juan Office of Community Planning and Development.  The objective of the audit was to determine whether VICARE spent HOPWA funds in accordance with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) requirements and for eligible…

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Inspector General audited the City of Colorado Springs’ Community Initiatives and Economic Vitality Division based upon findings identified in U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Inspector General, memorandum number 2014-DE-1802.  The objectives of our audit were to determine whether the City properly committed its HOME Investment…

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Inspector General audited the City of Colorado Springs’ Community Initiatives and Economic Vitality Division based upon findings identified in U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Inspector General, memorandum number 2014-DE-1802.  Our audit objective was to determine whether the City used its grant funds for eligible project costs and…

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Inspector General audited Christian Care Home based on prior instances of fraud and embezzlement and low quality ratings.  Our audit objective was to determine whether Christian Care Home properly maintained the residents’ trust balances and accounts receivable. Christian Care Home’s books and accounts for its individual resident trusts and accounts receivable were…

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Inspector General selected the Hidden Lake Care Center for review based on a news article entitled “Poorly Rated Nursing Homes Got HUD Guaranteed Mortgages Anyway,” published by the Center for Public Integrity.  The article stated that 240 facilities in 38 States and Washington, DC, received HUD-backed mortgages worth nearly $2 billion a month after receiving a low, one-…

We audited Prudential Huntoon Paige Associates, LTD’s underwriting of a $19.9 million mortgage loan to develop Amaranth at 544, a senior multifamily project located in Lewisville, TX.  We initiated the review based on the early default, assignment, and significant amount of the project.  Our objective was to determine whether Prudential underwrote and processed the loan for Amaranth according to the U.S. Department of Housing and…

We audited the City of New Orleans’ Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) assistance funds awarded to the City as a result of damages caused by Hurricane Isaac.  Our objective was to determine whether the City maintained adequate procurement controls and financial management systems and administered its CDBG-DR funds in accordance with Federal guidelines, HUD regulations, and other requirements. We found that the…

We performed the 19th review of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation’s (LMDC) 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, 2001, terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City.  The objective of the audit was to determine whether LMDC disbursed CDBG Disaster Recovery Assistance…

We reviewed the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Office of Affordable Housing Programs’ oversight of leases in HOME Investment Partnerships Program-funded rental housing projects.  The review was part of the activities in our fiscal year 2015 annual audit plan.  Our objective was to determine whether HUD’s Office had adequate oversight of participating jurisdictions to ensure that leases between rental projects…

The Inspector General Act of 1978 requires the Inspector General to prepare semiannual reports summarizing the activities of the Office of Inspector General for the preceding six-month periods. The semiannual reports are intended to keep the Secretary and the Congress fully informed of significant findings, progress the Agency has made and recommendations for improvement.

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) implementation and oversight of compliance with environmental requirements as part of the HUD Office of Inspector General’s annual audit plan to contribute to improving HUD’s execution of and accountability for its fiscal responsibilities.  Our objective was to determine whether HUD, specifically its Offices of Housing; Public Housing, and Native American Programs…

We conducted further analysis of our reported findings in fiscal years 2013 and 2014 that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) formula grant accounting did not comply with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), resulting in misstatements on the financial statements, and that HUD did not comply with the HOME Investment Partnership Act (also known as the HOME Statute).  The additional analysis was performed…

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) New Core Project as part of the internal control assessments required for the fiscal year 2015 financial statement audit under the Chief Financial Officer’s Act of 1990.  Our objective was to assess the status of the project and to determine whether the New Core Project team complied with Federal regulations and departmental project management processes.  This…

We completed a review of the City of New York, Office of Management and Budget’s administration of the Business Loan and Grant Program funded with Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) funds provided by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to assist in the disaster recovery and rebuilding efforts resulting from Hurricane Sandy.  The objectives of the audit were to determine whether the City (1…

Because of an anonymous complaint, we reviewed the Housing Authority of Bexar County, TX.  The complaint included allegations of improper procurement, improper use of Authority funds, misuse of the Authority’s credit card, and violations of Housing Choice Voucher regulations.  Our objective was to determine whether the Authority operated its public housing and Housing Choice Voucher programs in accordance with the U.S. Department of…

We audited the State of New Jersey’s Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery-funded Sandy Integrated Recovery Operations and Management System.  We conducted the audit based on the significant amount of funds associated with the system and the importance of the system to the successful implementation of the State’s Disaster Recovery grant.  Our objective was to determine whether the State procured services and products for…

We audited the Housing Authority of the County of San Bernardino’s Shelter Plus Care program due to a public complaint alleging that the Authority disregarded U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) program requirements related to participants’ eligibility.  Our objective was to determine whether the Authority administered its program funds in accordance with HUD rules and requirements, specifically related to participants’…