Housing Leased to Lower Income Persons
Better Federal Guidance and Management Could Improve Quality Gao ID: CED-80-7 October 30, 1979Although the section 8 "existing housing" program managed by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has provided decent, safe, and sanitary housing to many lower income people, a large number of homes leased under the program violate federal housing quality standards. Accompanied by HUD inspectors, GAO inspected 160 section 8 units (apartments, single-family homes, and mobile homes) administered by 16 public housing agencies under the jurisdiction of 5 HUD field offices in Arizona, California, Georgia, Illinois, and Massachusetts.
About 42 percent of the homes contained an average of three substandard conditions. These conditions included: dangerous walks and steps; inadequate heat and electrical wiring; dangerously deteriorated floors, walls, and ceilings; and inoperative or unlockable windows and exterior doors. Four weaknesses in the guidance provided by HUD to housing agencies contributed to the leasing of substandard housing: federal housing quality standards are not always clear and comprehensive; housing authority inspection and approval practices are inadequate; the need for housing, tenant location preferences, and production concerns are given higher priority than housing quality; and landlords and/or tenants inadequately maintain leased housing. Program managers at headquarters have not been assigned specific responsibilities or held accountable for ensuring the quality of the houses leased under the program.
RecommendationsOur recommendations from this work are listed below with a Contact for more information. Status will change from "In process" to "Open," "Closed - implemented," or "Closed - not implemented" based on our follow up work.
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