Chapter VII: Rent Reasonableness/Surveys


Section B: Survey Documentation Requirements

  • Each HA is responsible for entering and updating the comparable data in Elite. The Reasonable Rent Test/MSHDA 37 may be used to gather/consolidate the comparable information for subsequent Elite data entry. Housing Agents working in the same county share the data collection/entry requirement.
  • When gathering the survey information, focus on the following:
    1. Use similar unassisted (i.e. non-subsidized) units, currently vacant unassisted units, or unassisted units leased within the past twelve months. Units cannot be subsidized units, tax credit units, or currently receiving Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) assistance.
    2. Three (3) surveys are required to support a unit’s rent.
    3. Surveys must be dated less than one year from the transaction effective date. Purge or update all rent surveys older than one year. It is recommended that the updating and purging of old surveys be completed on an ongoing basis.
    4. Surveys must be in close proximity to the subject unit, in the surrounding neighborhood, whenever possible. If the database provides few units for the selected location, the geographic area may need to be expanded to include the entire survey area. (See Exhibit A for identified Survey Areas.)
    5. The survey bedroom size and unit type must be identical to the subject unit. (For example: a family with a two-bedroom voucher requesting a three-bedroom unit would require a three-bedroom survey.)
    6. Survey units may be located in the same building as the subject unit of an apartment complex/multifamily property. Survey units must be unassisted units and may not be located in a substantially assisted apartment complex/multifamily property.
    7. An unassisted unit in a different building within an apartment complex may be used for one of the surveys.
    8. The Gross Rent of each survey must equal or exceed the Gross Rent of the subject unit. Gross rent equals contract rent plus utility allowance. NOTE: Any changes to the contract rent or utilities will change the gross rent amount.
    9. New rent surveys must be entered into Elite.
    10. Space Rent situations use Space Rent surveys. The Space Rent (versus the Gross Rent) is utilized.
    11. Use the MSHDA utility schedule allowances based on the actual unit size for the subject unit and the surveys when determining Gross Rent.
    12. In rare circumstances, if surveys are not available for the same unit size and type, surveys for a smaller unit of the same type would be acceptable. Elite will only compare identical bedroom size and unit type. For example, if no 4BR apartment rent surveys are available in your survey area, you would use a 3BR apartment survey. The smaller unit must have similar services, amenities, etc.
  • Every effort must be made to find rent surveys for these subject units. If unable to locate rent surveys, document the rent surveys used by completing Reasonable Rent Test Evaluation forms (MSHDA 38) for each rent survey needed. (Note: Because three surveys are required, if one survey is available on Elite, two MSHDA 38 forms would be needed to meet the documentation requirements.) Document the reason surveys are unavailable under “Comments” on the MSHDA 38, sign, and date. The MSHDA 38 forms would be filed in Part 4 (Landlord Section) in the MSHDA file.