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Housing authority approves development of landlord incentive program to preserve Section 8 units
Summary
The New Brunswick Housing Authority voted to advance a CSG Consulting–designed landlord incentive program and authorized staff to finalize program details, with a consultant cost cap of $17,500 and a commitment of up to $1 million from reserves if available.
The New Brunswick Housing Authority on Tuesday voted to move forward with a landlord incentive program presented by CSG Consulting that aims to encourage small landlords to maintain and rent units to Section 8 voucher holders. The board approved proceeding with program development and set a not-to-exceed consultant cost of $17,500 while committing up to $1,000,000 from reserves for a pilot program “if available.”
The program, as presented by Tanya Dempsey of CSG and project manager Jordan Thomas, would offer grants to private landlords for repairs and upgrades tied to commitments to house voucher holders. “Maybe the total funding pool is, you know, a million dollars, and maybe we're giving people grants up to 20,000 per project,” Dempsey said during the presentation. The presentation described eligible uses similar to public housing capital funds — windows, roofing and other habitability work — and noted the housing authority would amend its Section 8 administrative plan and conduct public comment before launch.
Board members and CSG staff discussed program mechanics the board asked staff and counsel to tighten: target landlords (small local owners vs. larger portfolio owners), maximum grant per property, monitoring, site inspections, construction supervision, and legal mechanisms such as deed covenants or clawbacks if a landlord sells within the affordability term. Zach (housing authority staff) described the proposed clawback approach: if a landlord sells during a set affordability period the authority could “claw back those funds plus interest by putting some sort of covenant on the, deed or title.” CSG suggested common clawback lengths of seven to 10 years; the board referenced a seven-year framework discussed in the presentation.
The board said the program responds to federal guidance and local conditions that are reducing landlord interest in voucher tenants. The authority read a Department of Community Affairs notice referenced in the meeting that landlords may see effective freezes or limits on HUD-allowed rent increases, reinforcing the urgency to find local solutions to preserve voucher housing.
The motion approved development of the program and authorization for CSG to proceed with work up to the $17,500 consultant cap; the board further recorded a commitment to allocate up to $1 million from reserves for the program if the funds are available. Counsel Alberto Camacho read amended resolution language into the record reflecting those limits. The vote was recorded as: Commissioner Medina Hernandez — yes; Commissioner Dunlap — yes; Commissioner Waldy — yes; Commissioner Blevins — yes; Chairman Wright — yes. Commissioner Georgiani was absent.
Next steps, as outlined during the meeting, include a legal review, an amended Section 8 administrative plan with a public comment period, landlord outreach and briefings, creation of an application portal, site visits and a contract stage for construction oversight and reimbursement. CSG said it charges by phase and by hourly staffing and offered to build local capacity rather than run the program indefinitely.
Board members asked staff to return with a tighter program plan and budget at the next meeting before any funds are encumbered. Counsel and staff said the commitment of funds would be more fully protected once a contract and encumbrance are approved by the board.
