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Abbreviations

  1. DT – Departmental Technician
  2. PPM – Policy/Procedure Manual
  3. HA – Housing Agent
  4. RM – Regional Manager
  5. PHA – Public Housing Authority
  6. RS – Resource Specialist

Glossary

Absence
No family member resides in the unit.
Adult
A person who is 18 years of age or older.
Applicant
A potential recipient of HCV assistance who is already placed on the appropriate county waiting list and whose name has been pulled from the waiting list to receive services.
Application Language
Appropriate language is included in the Application (MSHDA 322) informing applicants that a check or “screening” for criminal activities, alcohol abuse, and sexual offenses will be performed and their participation may be denied if it is discovered that they or members of their household have committed such activity.
Assisted Family
Family residing in the project at the time of the repayment/termination who currently receives tenant-based Section 8 rental assistance through a local housing agency.
Co-Head
Co-head is a boyfriend, girlfriend, or significant other. The person has equal responsibility for the lease with the Head of Household. A family may have a spouse or co-head, but not both.
Consent Forms
Every individual applicant (and additional adult family members if applicable) is required to submit a signed consent form which authorizes any law enforcement agency to release their agency’s criminal conviction records. By executing the consent form, the adult household member(s) consent to the law enforcement agency releasing the information and for MSHDA to use the records to determine if denial of or admission to the program is warranted.
Covered Person
A tenant, any member of the tenant’s household, a guest or another person under the tenant’s control.
Credible Evidence
Includes documentation of drug raids, arrest warrants, or other information obtained from police and/or court reports. Testimony from neighbors when combined with other factual evidence can be considered credible evidence.
Currently Engaging in
With respect to behavior such as illegal use of a drug or other criminal activity, currently engaging is defined by MSHDA as having occurred within the past twelve months.
Dating Violence
Violence committed by a person who is or has been in a social relationship of a romantic or intimate nature with a victim based on length or type of relationship or frequency of interaction between the persons.
Dependent
A family member (except foster children and foster adults) who:
  • Is under 18 years of age; or An other adult with a verified disability; or A verified full-time student ; or
  • A spouse or co-head under 18 years of age.
Disabled Person
A person who has a disability, as defined in
  • 42 U.S.C. 423 and is determined to have a physical, mental, or emotional impairment that is expected to
    1. be of long-continued and indefinite duration,
    2. substantially impede his or her ability to live independently, and
    3. be of such a nature that the ability to live independently could be improved by more suitable housing conditions, or
  • has a developmental disability as defined in 42 U.S.C.6001.This definition includes persons who have the disease of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) or any conditions arising from the etiologic agent for acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. For purpose of qualifying for low-income housing, it does not include a person whose disability is based solely on any drug or alcohol dependence; and means “individual with handicaps”, for purposes of reasonable accommodation and program accessibility for persons with disabilities.
A person receiving Supplemental Security Income (SSI) or Supplemental Security Disability Income (SSDI) under age 65, or who meets the definition of disabled as described on the Verification of Disability (MSHDA 16), or who identifies themselves as disabled on the application.
Domestic Violence
A felony or misdemeanor crimes of violence committed by the current or former spouse of the victim; person similarly situated to a spouse of the victim; person with whom a victim shares a child in common; person who cohabits with or has cohabited with the victim; or any other person against an adult or youth victim who is protected from that person's acts under the domestic or family violence laws of the jurisdiction.
Drug
A controlled substance as defined in Section 102 of the Controlled Substances Act [21 U.S.C. 802].
Drug-Related Criminal Activity
The manufacture, sale, distribution, or use of an illegal drug, or the possession of an illegal drug with intent to manufacture, sell, distribute, or use the drug.
Elderly Person
Age 62 or older.
Emancipated Minor
Emancipation occurs by operation of law or court order. Operation of law occurs when
  • a person reaches 18 years of age, or
  • during the period when a minor is on active duty with the armed forces of the United States . Court order pursuant to a petition filed by a minor with the probate court. The court may issue an ‘Emancipation Order’ if it determines that emancipation is in the best interest of the minor. A copy of the Emancipation Order is required to confirm that the minor is emancipated.
Engaged In Or Engaging In Violent Criminal Activity
Means any act within the past 3 years by an applicant or household member which involved criminal activity that has as one of its elements the use, attempted use, or threatened use of physical force substantial enough to cause, or be reasonably likely to cause, serious bodily injury or property damage.
Engaged In Or Engaging In Violent Criminal Activity
Any act within the past two years by an applicant, or participant household member which involved criminal activity that has as one of its elements the use, attempted use, or threatened use of physical force substantial enough to cause, or be reasonably likely to cause, serious bodily injury or property damage.
Enhanced Voucher
Subject to the availability of appropriations, enhanced voucher assistance will be offered to eligible residents who remain in a complex under the following categories of Housing Conversion actions: Project-Based HCV Owner Opt-Outs, Preservation Prepayments, HUD Enforcement Actions and HUD Property dispositions.“Enhanced” vouchers differ from regular HCV vouchers in two ways. First, the family must contribute towards rent, at least the amount the family paid for “enhanced” payment standard is substituted in cases where the family stays in the unit and the owner’s new gross rent after the prepayment exceeds the normally applicable payment standard. Enhanced vouchers are tenant-based assistance. The family selects their unit. MSHDA approves the unit for leasing. The family and owner execute the lease agreement. The owner and MSHDA execute an individual housing assistance payment contract for each family.
Family
Person living alone or multiple person households whose combined income does not exceed the income limits prescribed by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
Family with Children
Single person, couple, or family with children where the head/spouse/co-head is not Disabled (D) or Elderly (E). NOTE: Includes a pregnant applicant living alone.
Family without Children
Single person, couple, or family without children where the head/spouse/co-head is not Disabled (D) or Elderly (E).
Federally Assisted Housing
Housing assisted under any of the following programs:
  • Public Housing;
  • Project-based or tenant-based assistance under Section 8 of the U.S Housing Act of 1937 [42 U.S.C. 1437f].
  • Housing insured, assisted, or held by HUD or by a State or local agency under Section 236 of the National Housing Act [12 U.S.C. 1715z-1].
Financial Assistance
Included in annual income is any financial assistance that a student received in excess of tuition (e.g., athletic and academic scholarships) and that the student receives
  • under the Higher Education Act,
  • from private sources, or
  • from an institution of higher education as defined by the Higher Education Act of 1965. Financial assistance does not include loan proceeds.
First Come, First Served Method
Utilized by counties with open Waiting List periods of more than one week. Applicants are serviced in the order in which they applied (subject to verified preferences).
Fraud
A single act or pattern of actions that constitute a material, false statement, misrepresentation, omission, or concealment of a substantial fact made by any participant with the intent to deceive or mislead.
Fugitive felon
One who has fled to avoid prosecution for a felony, or to avoid confinement for the conviction of a felony, or who is violating a condition of probation or parole imposed for the condition of a felony.
Good Standing
A Program applicant/participant who has complied with all applicable HCV rules and regulations. The applicant/participant must be current on any Tenant Repayment Agreement(s), must not have any delinquent debts to MSHDA or any other PHA, must have properly terminated his/her Lease/Contract (if applicable), hold an active Voucher, etc.
Gross Rent
The sum of the rent paid by the family to the owner plus any tenant paid utility allowance. (If the proposed contract rent does not include all the utilities, use the MSHDA utility allowance schedule to calculate the new gross rent).
Guest
A person temporarily staying in the unit with the consent of a tenant or other member of the household who has express or implied authority to so consent on behalf of the tenant.
Head of Household
The head of the household is the adult member of the household who the family designates as head (on the Family Composition form/MSHDA 51a), who wholly or partly has responsibility for paying the rent, and has the legal capacity to enter into a lease under state and/or local law.
Higher Education Act Assistance
Under the Higher Education Act of 1965 includes Pell Grants, Federal Supplement Educational Opportunity Grants, Academic Achievement Incentive Scholarships, State Assistance under the Leveraging Educational Assistance Partnership Program, the Robert G. Byrd Honors Scholarship Program, and Federal Work Study programs.
Household
The family and PHA approved live-in aide [24 CFR Part 982].
ICHAT
Michigan State Police Internet Criminal History Access Tool
Immediate Family Member
Is defined to mean, "with respect to a person
  1. a spouse, parent, brother or sister, or child of that person, or an individual to whom that person stands in loco parentis; or
  2. any other person living in the householf of that person and related to that person by blood or marriage. (42 U.S.C. 1437f(f)(11) and 1437d(u)(3)(D)
Initial Housing Agent
The HA who will transfer the client’s case to a new county.
Institution of Higher Education
An educational institution that meets the Higher Education Act of 1965 as defined in 20 U.S.C. 1001 or 1002.
Law Enforcement Agency
The National Crime Information Center, police departments and other law enforcement agencies that hold criminal conviction records.
Live-In Aides
A person who resides with one or more elderly persons or persons with disabilities, and who is:
  • Determined by a licensed Health Care Professional to be essential to the care and well being of an elderly person or a person with disabilities; and Is not obligated for the support of the person(s), and
  • Is living in the unit only to provide necessary supportive services.
Lottery Placement Method (Random Sort)
A method of placing names on the waiting list. It is utilized for counties with open waiting list periods of one week or less. Eligible applicants are placed on the waiting list in random order (subject to preferences) using a computer generated random sort after all names are entered on the data base.
Minimum Rent
Applies to Enhanced Vouchers. The amount of gross rent a family paid as of the date of the prepayment or date of the voluntary termination by the owners in a HUD conversion action becomes the minimum rent the family is required to pay.Minimum TTP – Effective November 1, 2004, MSHDA has established its minimum TTP to be $50.
Minority and Poverty Concentrated Areas
A small geographic area located within a larger metropolitan Fair Market Rent (FMR) area that is concentrated with poverty and/or minorities as determined from 1990 census data. Minority Concentration – Census tracts where 50% or more of the population were not Caucasians.
Move
A move within the same county in Michigan where the tenant currently resides.
Movers
Section 8 families who move from their current unit during a Preservation/Opt Out conversion action. Opt Out – A conversion action where an owner, after at least twenty (20) years of participation, chooses to no longer participate in (opt-out of) certain programs by not renewing an expiring Section 8 or Section 236 project-based contract with HUD.
Other Person Under The Tenant’s Control
The person, although not staying as a guest in the unit, is, or was at the time of the activity in question, on the premises because of an invitation from the tenant or other member of the household who has express or implied authority to so consent on behalf of the tenant. The person is a short-time invite who is not “staying” in the unit. The person is only “under the tenant’s control” during the period of the invitation. Absent evidence to the contrary, a person temporarily and infrequently on the premises solely for legitimate commercial purposes is not under the tenant’s control.
OTIS
Michigan Department of Corrections Offender Tracking Information System
Parents
For purposes of student eligibility restrictions, and consistent with long-standing HUD policy regarding eligibility for the HCV program, means the biological or adoptive parents, or guardians (e.g. grandparents, aunt/uncle, godparents, etc).
Participant
A person/family that holds an active Voucher and has been or is currently under Contract.
Pattern of Abuse
MSHDA defines a pattern of abuse as two or more occurrences of alcohol or drug-related offenses during the past twelve months.
Permanent Absence
A family member is away from the unit for 90 calendar days or more except as otherwise identified in this policy. The income of a permanently absent member is excluded.
Perpetrator in a domestic violence matter
is defined as the primary aggressor in a violenct relationship. In situations where there is doubt as to who the primary aggressor is in a violent relationship, consideration will be given to the relative severity of injuries each person has received as a result of the violence, any history of complaints of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking against either party, household members and other accounts of the history of the domestic violence, dating violence, or stalking and whether one person acted in self-defense.
PHA
Public Housing Authority
Portability
A move to or from another PHA outside of Michigan; or a move from another Michigan PHA to MSHDA. (Please see Chapter XVIII, Portability, Section I, for a list of definitions specifically related to portability.)
Poverty Concentration
Census tracts where 50% or more of the population had household incomes below $15,000.
Premises
The building or complex or development in which the assisted housing dwelling unit is located, including common areas and grounds.
Preponderance of Evidence
Evidence which is of greater weight or more convincing than the evidence which is offered in opposition to it; that is, evidence which as a whole shows that the fact sought to be proved is more probable than not. The intent is not to prove criminal liability, but to establish that the act(s) occurred. Preponderance of evidence may not be determined by the number of witnesses, but by the greater weight of all evidence.
Preservation
A conversion action where an owner of a Section 236 or Section 221(d) (3) funded property voluntarily elects to prepay the mortgage or voluntarily terminates the mortgage insurance with HUD, after at least twenty (20) years of participation.
Preservation Prepayment Date
The first date the owner can increase the rent after the prepayment; usually 60 days after the effective date of the prepayment.
Proof of Residency
A copy of a lease agreement, rent receipts, driver’s license, State ID card, Medicaid card, utility bill, employer or agency records, school records, voter registration records, credit reports, statement from household with whom the family is residing, or other proof of residency or work address. If an applicant is “hired to work” in the County, a letter from the employer is required.The verification must be submitted with the case material when the case is finalized. NOTE: Return envelopes/county postmarks/notarized statements from applicant are NOT considered adequate proof of residency.
Ranking Preferences
A preference used to select among applicants on a waiting list.
Receiving Housing Agent
The HA who will administer the client’s Voucher in the new county. The Program Office Assistant (POA) makes HA assignments in counties with multiple HA’s.
Remaining Tenant
The person(s) who remain in the unit if the head of household leaves the unit permanently, or dies, and meets the eligibility criteria of the HCV program.
Rent Reasonableness
A PHA determines that based on the current conditions of the unit, the proposed rent requested by the new owners is a reasonable rent in comparison to rents charged at other comparable unassisted units. The PHA does not base the rent reasonableness determination on any pending or planned enhancements to the property. If the PHA determines the proposed rent is not reasonable, the owner must lower the rent or the family must move to receive/continue assistance.
Residency Preference
A ranking preference based on residency at the time of Application and at the time an applicant’s name is pulled from the waiting list. The Applicant, spouse, or co-head must either reside, work, or have been hired to work in the County of Application. Residency is a Ranking preference.
Responsible Entity
For the Section 8 project-based voucher program and the Section 8 moderate rehabilitation program, responsible entity means the PHA administering the program under an Annual Contributions Contract with HUD, specifically MSHDA.
SOR
Michigan State Police Sex Offender Registry
Spouse
The spouse is the legal husband or wife of the head of household. The spouse is the marriage partner whom in order to dissolve the relationship, would have to be divorced. Spouse does not apply to boyfriends, girlfriends, significant others, or co-heads.
Stalking
To follow, pursue, place under surveillance, or repeatedly commit acts with intent to kill, injure, harass, or intimidate; and to place a person in reasonable fear of death, serious bodily injury, or emotional harm to that person, their immediate family member(s) or spouse or intimate partner.
Stayers
Families who remain in their same unit during and after a Preservation/Opt Out conversion action.
Student
All students enrolled either full-time or part-time at an institution of higher education.
Target Date
The date all parties must complete the housing conversion action and have the families under Section 8 tenant-based HAP contracts.
Target Populations
Any population determined as least likely to apply for rental assistance in a particular geographical area. Elderly and Disabled (E/D) populations are always targeted.
Temporary Absence
A family member is away from the unit for less than 90 calendar days. The income of the absent member is included.
Total Tenant Payment (TTP)
The total tenant payment (TTP) represents the minimum amount a family must contribute towards their monthly rent and utilities regardless of the unit selected. The TTP is calculated using a statutory formula and individual income information. To calculate TTP, annual adjusted income and annual (gross) income must be converted to monthly adjusted income and monthly gross income by dividing the annual figures by 12 months. The TTP is the greater of: a) 30% of monthly adjusted income; b) 10% of monthly gross income; c) the welfare rent [not applicable to Michigan] or, d) the PHA (MSHDA) established minimum rent ($50).
Transfer
A move within the State of Michigan, but out of the county where the tenant currently resides.
Unassisted Family
Family residing in the project at the time of the prepayment/ termination who is not a current voucher recipient.
Veteran
As used by the Department of Veterans Affairs as codified at 38 U.S.C. 101(2): a person who served in the active military, naval, or air service, and who was discharged or released from there under conditions other than dishonorable.
Victim service provider
A non-profit, nongovernmental organization, including rape crisis centers, battered women's shelters, domestic violence transitional housing programs, and other programs whose primary mission is to provide services to victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking.
Violent Criminal Activity
Any criminal activity that has as one of its elements the use, attempted use, or threatened use of physical force substantial enough to cause, or be reasonably likely to cause, serious bodily injury or property damage; including but not limited to rape, murder, robbery, arson, or assault.