HUD requests clearance for the
proposed questions to be used on the 2024 Rental Housing Finance
Survey (RHFS). Data collection will occur between June 24, 2024 and
November 30, 2024. Estimates derived from the RHFS sample will help
public and private stakeholders better understand the financing,
operating costs, and property characteristics of the rental housing
stock in the United States. Many of the questions are similar to
those found on the 1995 Property Owners and Managers Survey, the
rental housing portion of the 2001 Residential Finance Survey, and
the 2012, 2015, 2018, and 2021 RHFS. Title 12, United States Code,
Sections 1701z-1 and 1701z-2(g) provide authority to collect this
information. Title 13, U.S.C., Section 8b provides the U.S. Census
Bureau authority to collect this information for the Department of
Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The collected data will be
protected by the confidentiality provisions of Title 13, U.S.C.,
Section 9.
US Code:
12 USC Title 12 Name of Law: Sections 1701z-1, 1701z-2(g), and
1701z-10a
US Code:
13 USC Title 13 Name of Law: Section 8b
The 2024 RHFS questionnaire
content is substantially similar to the 2021 RHFS questionnaire,
with the following exceptions: a. Addition of one question about
military-owned housing: This question will identify properties that
are owned by the military. These properties will receive a limited
set of questions as all the questions do not make sense for these
types of properties. b. Addition of one question about manufactured
homes: This question will help determine if a property should be
considered out-of-scope. c. Addition of two questions about
property addresses being part of a larger complex: These questions
will help determine if the property was defined accurately that
will provide more accurate data. Additionally, these questions will
help determine duplicate cases, i.e., multiple sample addresses
belonging to the same property. d. Addition of one question about
appraisal waivers: In conversations with the Federal Housing
Finance Administration (FHFA), they noted that appraisal waivers
are becoming more common, but that more data is needed on them.
This question will therefore allow HUD to gather more information
on the extent of the use of appraisal waivers. e. Addition of one
question about how rental payments are received: This question will
allow HUD to understand how rent payments are received, potentially
identifying sources of data on rents that would be timelier than
surveys like ACS. Because there is some preliminary evidence that
landlords have been slower than other industries to move to online
payment systems, this question would allow us to gain a baseline
understanding of which forms of payments landlords accept. f.
Addition of two questions about rental units that were previously
available as long-term rentals: These questions will allow HUD to
assess the effect of AirBNB and similar short-term rental
arrangements on housing markets. g. Addition of two questions about
rental application fees: These questions will allow HUD to better
understand the upfront costs of renting units that may be applied
in altering rules on the use of voucher subsidy funds to improve
voucher recipients’ leasing success. h. Addition of one question
about security deposits: This question will allow HUD to better
understand the upfront costs of renting units that may be applied
in altering rules on the use of voucher subsidy funds to improve
voucher recipients’ leasing success. i. Addition of three questions
about ownership of additional properties: These questions will
allow HUD to better distinguish institutional investors from
mom-and-pop landlords. j. Addition of one question about green
mortgages: This question will allow HUD to understand how its loan
programs could be improved in a way that helps multifamily rental
property owners reduce their operating expenses and improve the
nation’s rental housing stock. The question can also help gauge the
level of public interest among rental property owners in making
green improvements and their perception of the return on investment
for those improvements. When applicable, government-sponsored
entities (GSE) can use various multifamily green building
certifications that a rental property owner may already have to
offer preferential loan pricing. GSEs can also use rental property
owner commitments to make improvements that reduce energy and water
consumption by specific levels to offer incentives like
preferential pricing, free energy audits and additional loan
proceeds. k. Reinstating a previously removed question about
condominiums: This question identifies properties that are
individually owned condominiums and helps ensure the accuracy of
the data. l. Removal of one question about the percentage of units
available for daily or weekly rental.
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that
the collection of information encompassed by this request complies
with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR
1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding
the proposed collection of information, that the certification
covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a
benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control
number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of
these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked
and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.