One reason Smith Marion & Co. stands out from other accounting firms is that we proudly offer specialized auditing and review services to ensure that HUD accounting requirements for housing authorities remain up-to-date.

What Is HUD and What’s Its Current Role in Society

HUD is an acronym that stands for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and it is directly linked to public housing, a form of housing tenure that was established to provide decent and safe rental housing for eligible low-income families, the elderly, and persons with disabilities. According to the official HUD website, there are approximately 1.2 million households living in public housing units, managed by some 3,300 housing agencies (also known as HAs).

HUD administers federal aid to local housing agencies that manage the housing for low-income residents at personalized, affordable prices. This also furnishes technical and professional assistance in planning, developing, and managing these developments.

The Role of the Housing Authority (HA)

The housing authority is responsible for the management and operation of its local public housing program and may also operate other types of housing programs. There are also on-going functions for which HAs are responsible. It’s their responsibility to assure lease signature compliance from both parties; set other charges such as the security deposit, excess utility consumption, and damages to the unit; perform periodic reexaminations of the family’s income at least once every 12 months; transfer families from one unit to another in order to correct over- or under-crowding, repair or renovate a dwelling, or fulfill a resident’s request to be transferred; terminate leases when necessary; maintain the development in a decent, safe, and sanitary condition.

Other services such as homeownership opportunities for qualified families; employment training opportunities along with other special training and employment programs for residents; support programs for the elderly might also be provided by the HA.

Understanding the Relationship Between SMCO and HUD

As an accounting firm, it’s our responsibility to provide expert, reliable HUD and housing authority audits. Thus, we work with PHAs and other affordable housing providers to design and customize services, offering solutions to the needs of our agencies.  With a focus on clear and timely communication, we look for opportunities to share our knowledge and insight in order to keep our agencies current with HUD accounting and fiscal management requirements.

Our team of CPAs, EAs, and other professionals have collectively served over 100 PHAs and other affordable housing agencies in 10 states during our 30 plus years of experience with affordable housing providers. And our goal is to consistently deliver superior service to our partner agencies while developing long-lasting relationships. We want to ensure that we’re helping our agencies in their efforts to make a continuous positive impact within their communities.

Our affordable housing services include PHA audits, reviews, and compilations of financial statements; audits of PHA component units (low-income housing tax credit or separate non-profits); compliance audits (yellow-book, HUD, and OMB circular a-133/uniform guidance); cost certification audits and tax credit reporting (LIHTC); fee accounting; year-end closes; training sessions and education.

Using Smith Marion & Co. for Your HUD-Related Needs

Many accounting firms don’t offer the abovementioned service for various reasons — but we at Smith Marion & Co. are happy to help. We actively pursue ways to assist and improve your needs as our client. If you have any questions, please call and speak with one of our team members. Let us show you how we may make a difference for you.