Fair Housing Requires Proper Handicapped Accessibility

Is your property meeting all of the standards of UFAS, ADA, and Section 504? Whether you have a HUD, LIHTC, USDA/RD property, there are requirements to ensure proper design for persons with disabilities. A UFAS/Section 504 Transition Plan helps you understand where your property stands and provides you with a guide to meeting full compliance.

A Transition Plan is a Map to Proper Compliance

US Housing can inspect your property and determine where you are not meeting the Uniform Federal Accessibility Standards (UFAS) and Section 504. Then we can help you to develop an effective and comprehensive Section 504/UFAS Transition Plan.

This Transition Plan will show you all of the issues on the site, both within the designated units and all of the common areas that need to meet handicapped accessibility standards.

• A Detailed Plan of all of the corrections required to meet UFAS Standards
• An Easy to Read Checklist indicates which UFAS standards passed and failed on your property – with photos of the issues.
• A plan that meets the standards on a schedule that can fit your property’s budget spread out over five years.
• A review of your units that are set-aside for residents requiring mobility-impaired modifications
• An explanation of the property’s requirements under UFAS and Section 504 for how many adapted units are required and what requirements exist for the public areas.

What If My Property Is Exempt from UFAS Requirements?

My property is “grandfathered”, many will say. However, this is often a misnomer. While properties built before 1983 have a different standard, as do properties built between 1983 and 1991 – no one is entirely exempt from Fair Housing.
While full compliance at some older property may be optional, it doesn’t mean they are exempt. First, the public areas are often required to be fully accessible. Secondly, a property needs to document what makes their property non-feasible for full barrier-free design. Lastly, some properties have a mixture of requirements to meet certain standards, while other provisions remain optional.

A UFAS Transition Plan is more than just a list of issues to fix. It is a report on your requirements based on the regulatory requirements for your property, depending on the funding program. HUD and USDA/RD properties require a transition plan, even if the property is older and doesn’t have to meet the modern standards outlined in the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1991. Most importantly, a transition plan keeps you in compliance and explains the risks of not meeting accessibility requirements.

The Fair Housing Act Requires Proper Accessibility Design

UFAS requirements for accessibility are a crucial part of Fair Housing.  Improper barrier-free design for persons with disabilities violates fair housing standards. The Americans with Disability Act and UFAS outline the requirements, and our UFAS Transition Plan creates an easy to read guide to meeting those standards

Whether you are from an affordable housing property that needs to make modifications to meet HUD, USDA/RD, or LIHTC requirements for a barrier-free design, or if you are a conventional property owner looking to ensure that you are safe from liability in your common areas, US Housing can assist you with creating an actionable plan that can work within your budget and time frame.

Contact us today.