1. Preparation for A HUD MONITORING VISIT
How to Sooth the Trauma You May feel with Tips, Tools, and your Talent
Shirletta Best
City of McKinney, TX

2. Monitoring visits – The type
CPD – Conducting program and financial. Can include review of your Full Program, Subrecipients, Program Management/Financial Systems. Also Federal Crosscutting Requirements including:
Environmental
Civil Rights – Fair Housing
Davis-Bacon
Procurement

3. the hud visit - introduction
You receive, “The call/ ,” from your HUD rep: Asking or informing you of the site visit.
CPD HUD representative will: Coordinate, date/time, location, program areas and years of review, etc. Ask those important questions: Who needs to be present during the visit? Which agencies will they review? How long will they be there (about 1 week); What areas may be monitored?
NEXT….
Followed by a formal letter 30 days prior to the visit. The Mayor/City Manager will receive the formal letter directly and it will be forwarded to you.
MEANWHILE….

4. Nervous… scared… really ready to retire now?
Nervous, yet confident…ready to move forward?
Which face best indicates how you feel when you begin to prepare for the hud visit?

5. Risk analysis: how you (and hUD) prepare for visit
Annual Action Plan – What did you propose to complete? Is it under your Comp Plan? Completed those environmentals?
CAPER – Did you accomplish what you said you would do? Everything met National Objective and is an Eligible Activity?
IDIS – Are you reporting regularly and accurately? Timeliness test? Performance? Grant Accounting accurate?
Audits – Did you upload Single Audit in Census Clearinghouse?
Public – any complaints? Resolution? Policies & Procedures
Other: Your Website, Media, past visits
You/Staff: Attending HUD meetings? Timely Correspondence? No response?
Activity/Program Type: High or Low? New to HUD programs? High at-risk activities?

6. review
Do you have the proper documentation? Remember: “If it’s not in the file, it doesn’t exist.” Can you read it? Are papers faded, etc.
Monitor Your Program – Use HUD’s checklists
Before the Monitoring Visit – Please review you administrative and program files for the program year to date and the previous year. Inform your program and financial staff immediately and help prepare them for the visit. Determine who will be your leads for the monitoring.
Ensure the files tell the story how you use funds appropriately; no sticky notes, questions that are unanswered, erroneous information.
Prep your subrecipients.
HUD visiting agencies? Properties? Map out the visit and showcase the great work that has been accomplished .

7. Ensure the key staff participating during the visit are knowledgeable about the programs and activities under review. The rep will have an introduction interview before the monitoring begins. If someone does not know the answer to a questions, this is NOT the time to guess. Find someone who knows.
Try to ensure your CPD rep has adequate, quiet space to review files and meet as needed.
You’re regular work must continue; be readily available to ask questions as needed
TIME FOR THE VISIT……

8. Tips: YEAR-ROUND PREPARATION
Conduct internal, annual audit of your program in addition to your subrecipients, using HUD’s Monitoring guide and checklists. It will help you become familiar with questions and need to make any adjustments or corrections.
Review policies/procedures annually at the time you develop your AAP and adjust as needed. Your policies/procedures should be dated no more than 3 years old between reviews. Ideal: 2 yrs.
Financial: Run your IDIS PR 56 report monthly. If you are drawing down quarterly, consider changing it to monthly or bi- monthly to meet timeliness faster.
Communicate, train, and check-in with your funded departments, agencies and contractors to ensure they understand requirements and prepare them for visits also.

9. Suggested resources HUD CPD Monitoring Guide (6509.2 ver. 7)
Your documents (AAP, Con Plan, CAPER
HUD Exchange (CPD Notices, including CPD14-04)
Desk Guides
NCDA Trainings: Take advantage of them!
HUD Integrity Notices: Remember memos on Conflict of Interest, Procurement, Subrecipients
Federal Census Clearinghouse: