Affordable Senior Housing News 2026Feb12

HUD Releases Utility Allowance Factors

The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has released the Utility Allowance Factors (UAFs) for properties participating in the agency's Multifamily Housing programs and receiving HUD assistance for tenant utilities, including properties serving older adults. Similar to the Operating Cost Adjustment Factors (OCAFs) released by HUD earlier in February, the UAFs were delayed due to a combination of staff capacity reductions and the government shutdown in the fall, causing some interruption in housing providers processing budget renewals and adjustments. Despite the delay, these factors are still applicable to Utility Allowance adjustments effective February 11, 2026, and later. HUD's data tables can be found here.

House Passed Major Housing Bill

On February 9, with a vote of 390-9, the U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed HR 6644, the Housing for the 21^st Century Act. This comprehensive, bipartisan legislation is the House response to the Senate's ROAD to Housing Act, which was incorporated into Division I of Senate version of the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year (FY) 2026. LeadingAge has been monitoring both bills very closely and was encouraged by the inclusion of a requirement for the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to study barriers to scaling the affordable housing supply for older adults through the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Section 202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly program in the House-passed legislation. Expanding the supply of affordable housing for older adults continues to be a top priority for LeadingAge as rates of housing insecurity in the aging population increase. "The passage of the Housing for the 21st Century Act includes real, bipartisan solutions to expanding supply, lowering costs, and providing families with more options," House Committee on Financial Services Chairman French Hill (R-AR) stated after the vote. Ranking Member Maxine Waters (D-CA), also agreed, stating, "The passage of H.R. 6644, the Housing for the 21st Century Act, is a historic first step toward confronting a housing crisis that is squeezing families and communities nationwide. While more must be done, including real federal investments to meet the scale of this housing crisis, HR 6644 provides a strong foundation to build on." The House and Senate will now work to merge their two bi-partisan housing bills. LeadingAge looks forward to working with Congress on these important issues for our members.

HUD Streamlines Budget Approvals for Section 202 PRACs

In a January 13, 2026, memo to the Multifamily Housing staff, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) describes a LeadingAge-supported streamlining approach to budget approvals for Section 202 Project Rental Assistance Contract (PRAC) properties requesting a less than 5% increase. The memo describes more than 20 workflow alignment measures that will help the Multifamily Housing regional offices adjust to reduced capacity following significant reductions in 2025. On average, the Multifamily Housing offices lost roughly 30% of their staff through reductions and early retirements actions. The PRAC budget streamlining directive is listed as #12 in the document and applies to overall increases of less than 5%, as opposed to individual line items. In the case of streamlined approvals, the Account Executive is directed to automatically approve the request without review. More information is here.

Immigration Enforcement Preparedness Guide Updated

In response to feedback from some of our affordable senior housing providers, we have updated the resource on immigration enforcement preparedness to include additional guidance for housing providers on potential enforcement actions targeting residents. You can access the new version here.

Affordable housing Weekly Recap. Here is your weekly Affordable Housing Weekly Recap