HUD.GOV

The Work of PD&R

• Policy Development
• Research
• Demonstration Projects
• Transformation Initiative Projects, FY 2010
• Data Collection, Analysis, and Dissemination
• Conferences and Publications
• Guidelines for Preparing a Report
• Peer Review of Highly Influential Scientific Assessments
  

Policy Development

Drawing on its research and extensive program knowledge, PD&R advises the Secretary, the Deputy Secretary, and principal staff on program policy issues arising from the formulation of legislative and budget proposals, from regulatory responsibilities, and from other proposed major actions of the Department. Recent examples of PD&R' s policy advising role include providing data, analysis, and other input on issues such as regulatory and policy changes, as well as preparation of the Administration's annual budget and legislative proposals.

PD&R regularly interacts with the four primary HUD program offices and employs staff who are familiar with all of their programs. PD&R staff provides these offices with technical support, data, maps, and other materials relevant to their programs. Additionally, PD&R serves as a resource of information and institutional knowledge for divisions within the Secretary's Office, providing briefing materials and rapid responses for the Office of Public Affairs and the Office of Congressional and Intergovernmental Relations.

Research

Using in-house staff and contractors, PD&R undertakes studies and issues reports on HUD programs to determine how well they are achieving their objectives and how they can be improved. The report Voucher Homeownership Assessment is an example of this type of effort.

PD&R also conducts studies and issues reports on housing and community development matters not tied directly to HUD programs. The guidebook Developing Successful Infill Housing is an example in this category.

Examples of major recent PD&R reports include:

• Strategies for Reducing Chronic Street Homelessness
• Interagency Task Force for the Economic Development of the Central San Joaquin Valley 2003-2004 Progress Report

Discrimination in Metropolitan Housing Markets. This series of reports builds on the Housing Discrimination Study 2000, the most ambitious effort to date for measuring the extent of housing discrimination in the United States against people because of their race or color. The reports provide national estimates of discrimination that African Americans and Hispanics faced in 2000 and 2001 as they searched for housing in the sales and rental markets. The reports also provide an accurate measure of how housing discrimination has changed for these groups since 1989. Another report in this series will examine housing market discrimination that Native Americans face.

Housing Choice Voucher Location Patterns: Implications for Participant and Neighborhood Welfare. This study is the first to use HUD administrative data comprehensively to describe the location patterns of families participating in the Department's largest rental subsidy program, Housing Choice Voucher program. The study identifies central city and suburban locations, comparing where participants live with the locations of affordable housing. The report provides detailed information for the 50 most populous metropolitan areas in the country.

Developing Successful Infill Housing. This practical guidebook provides guidance on how to develop infill housing in developed areas and includes information on assembling land, obtaining financing, planning and design, and navigating the regulatory approval process. It contains case studies on successful infill projects and describes how they were successfully accomplished.

Demonstration Projects

PD&R conducts a limited number of demonstration projects based on new program concepts. The purpose of the demonstrations is to test new programs systematically to determine if they have measurable impacts that can inform public policy. Current examples are the Moving to Opportunity (MTO) and the Jobs-Plus demonstrations, both addressing ways to bring families receiving HUD housing assistance to greater self-sufficiency. Key research findings detailing the performance of the MTO initiative were published in October 2003.

Data Collection, Analysis, and Dissemination

PD&R makes a major contribution to the body of housing research by analyzing, distributing, and maintaining nationwide databases on housing market and local economic conditions. In cooperation with the Census Bureau, PD&R produces the American Housing Survey, a biannual survey of the nation's housing market, as well as other surveys of housing markets. PD&R has created and maintains several important housing and urban databases, such as the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit database and the State of the Cities Data Systems, which are available on our website, www.HUDUSER.org (part of a research information service and clearinghouse known as HUD USER that also offers Help Desk assistance at 1-800-245-2691). In addition, PD&R produces and distributes a public database on the mortgage purchase activities of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

As part of its in-house research efforts, PD&R maintains numerous other databases on the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), the mortgage market, and special segments of that market, such as subprime lending. PD&R also maintains extensive data on the characteristics of assisted housing tenants and voucher recipients. In-house analysis of these data has resulted in important policy recommendations by PD&R staff.

Conferences and Publications

Periodically, PD&R convenes conferences and seminars on housing and community development issues, often in conjunction with other HUD offices or outside organizations. PD&R brings scholars, decisionmakers, and advocates together in a variety of settings ranging from brown-bag seminars to major policy conferences. For example, PD&R, in conjunction with the America's Affordable Communities Initiative, a Department-wide effort to work with state and local governments to address regulatory barriers, hosted a national conference on regulatory barriers to affordable housing. The conference took place in April 2004 in Washington, DC, and brought together academics, practitioners, and government officials to review the impact of regulatory barriers on affordable housing and help plan for short- and long-term research to better understand and address this critical issue. The papers presented in conjunction with this conference will appear in an upcoming issue of PD&R's housing research journal Cityscape.

All research reports and studies that PD&R funds or prepares are available to the public in hard copy and electronic formats. Both versions can be obtained on www.HUDUSER.org. PD&R also publishes a number of periodicals, including our ResearchWorks newsletter and U.S. Housing Market Conditions (a quarterly publication of housing and mortgage market conditions).

Guidelines for Preparing a Report

This guide was prepared in response to numerous inquiries received by PD&R's Research Utilization Division (RUD) from HUD staff and contractors about how to prepare reports for publication and about publication standards and guidelines. Compiled in a single volume that can be readily shared with others, the guide addresses a variety of topics designed to answer frequently asked questions. It goes through a typical report section by section, providing explanations, tips, and guidance on formatting and style. It provides suggestions for making publications ready for timely Web posting and offers helpful hints for those asked to prepare material based on research findings.

Although RUD's principal responsibility is the dissemination of PD&R's research results, it also ensures that PD&R's publications reflect HUD's graphic and industry standards, that they are appropriately formatted for printing, and that they are accessible on the Web as quickly as possible. Your help in preparing print-ready and Web-ready products will mean that we can spend more time making sure the results of PD&R research are available to those who can benefit from it.

We hope this publication is useful to you and your contractors. It is a work in progress. As technology and publication policies change, the contents will be updated. And, of course, we're always interested in your suggestions.

Download the full text of the guidelines in PDF format (400 KB).

Other PD&R Functions

• Government Performance and Results Act
• Federal Housing Administration Support
• Government Sponsored Enterprise Data
• International and Philanthropic Activities
• Building Technology
• Support for Program Operations
• Economic Analysis of Major HUD Regulations
• Working with Universities
• Field Economists
  

Government Performance and Results Act

The Government Performance and Results act (GPRa) requires HUD and other agencies to engage in strategic planning and to report on performance. Working in partnership with the Office of the Chief Financial Officer, PD&R staff develop and produce an array of GPRa documents, including the 5-year Strategic Plan, the annual Performance Plan, and the annual Performance and accountability Report.

Federal Housing Administration Support

PD&R supports the Federal Housing administration by providing FHa with key policy and technical support. We also offer financial expertise on FHa's actuarial studies, assist FHa on automated underwriting and mortgage scorecard initiatives, conduct program evaluations, analyze mortgage market trends, and provide general policy support on a wide range of topics (such as FHa insurance premiums). In addition, PD&R Field Economists conduct market analysis of applications for FHa multifamily mortgage insurance. The most significant PD&R effort involves automated underwriting and mortgage scorecard work.

Government Sponsored Enterprise Data

In the past, the Department of Housing and Urban Development published a wealth of information on the mortgage purchases of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, two Government Sponsored Enterprises (GSEs) that HUD oversaw at the time. The GSEs are secondary-market institutions that purchase single-family conventional loans originated in the United States. HUD was responsible for establishing housing goals in accordance with the Federal Housing Enterprises Financial Safety and Soundness act of 1992 (the 1992 GSE act). Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were required to meet specified goals for purchases of mortgages that financed housing for very-low-, low- and moderate-income families and families living in areas traditionally underserved by the mortgage market. These data sets shed light on their efforts and provide additional data for mortgage research. The Housing and Economic Recovery act of 2008 (HERa) established the Federal Housing Finance agency (FHFa), and transferred HUD’s responsibility for setting GSE housing goals and monitoring GSEs’ performance to the FHFa. FHFa publishes updated versions of these data sets.

The information is intended to aid mortgage lenders, planners, researchers, and housing advocates in studying the flow of mortgage credit and capital in america's communities. It will also help you understand where Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac focused their affordable homeownership efforts under HUD’s oversight. You can obtain or view data from the GSE Public Use Database in several ways. The principal methods include downloading data sets directly from the Internet, ordering data sets from our website, ordering data sets on CD-ROM from HUD USER, and ordering or viewing tables derived from the GSE Public Use Database. In addition to data, there is more general information available on HUD's implementation of the 1992 GSE act, monitoring of the GSEs' housing goals performance, and studies related to the GSEs.

International and Philanthropic Activities

The Office for International and Philanthropic Innovation (IPI) supports HUD's efforts to find new solutions and align ideas and resources by working across public, private, and civil sectors to further HUD's mission. IPI does this by performing research, developing networks, and facilitating collaboration of key partners and resources. To position HUD as a hub for innovation, IPI works to build new capacity and clarity within HUD by providing expert resources and a venue for staff and partners to access the best available evidence, innovations, and lessons from the philanthropic and international sectors. Within these sectors, IPI supports HUD and the Office of Policy Development and Research (PD&R) by:

• Engaging in outreach and information exchange;
• Providing client management and assistance;
• Conducting joint research and knowledge management; and
• Stimulating project co-investment.

IPI has the unique task of linking domestic policy and practice to innovative and timely models from our international and philanthropic partners.

Building Technology

PD&R works with other agencies and private-sector organizations to make american housing more affordable, durable, safe, energy-efficient, and disaster-resistant by sponsoring objective research on the effects of new programs and technologies.

Support for Program Operations

PD&R maintains and produces large databases that are essential to HUD program operations. This support includes collecting information through national and locally based surveys, including FMRs and assisted housing income limits. PD&R also has the lead in conducting periodic quality control studies that measure the accuracy of housing program rent and subsidy determinations and serve as the basis for setting priorities for program office corrective actions.

Economic Analysis of Major HUD Regulations

Executive Order No. 12866 requires that federal agencies promulgating regulations prepare economic analyses of regulations that have a significant economic effect. In addition, the Regulatory Flexibility act (RFa) requires agencies to prepare regulatory flexibility analyses for regulations that have a substantial impact on a significant number of small entities. Economic and regulatory flexibility analyses are frequently combined into a single document. The intent of E.O. 12866 and the RFa is for the required analyses to inform the rulemaking process and ensure adequate public understanding of the potential effects of major regulations. Because of the high level of expertise in economics and statistical analysis required to complete these large-scale assessments, PD&R is the primary manager of the Department's regulatory analysis function. PD&R reviews all new HUD regulations for potential impact on the economy; prepares economic analyses of new HUD rules, as needed, or directs the preparation of economic analyses of new HUD rules by PD&R contractors; reviews economic analyses prepared by other offices for methodological soundness and feasibility; and advises program office officials on how proposed regulations can be altered to achieve the regulatory objective while avoiding unnecessary costs to the economy.

Working with Universities

PD&R administers competitive grant programs to colleges and universities to help them expand their role and effectiveness in addressing community development needs in their localities, including neighborhood revitalization, housing, and economic development principally for low- and moderate-income individuals/families. PD&R also administers the Doctoral Dissertation Research Grant Program, which enables doctoral candidates enrolled at accredited institutions of higher education accredited to complete their dissertations on policy-relevant housing and urban development issues.

Field Economists

PD&R provides technical oversight and supervision of the staff economists in HUD field offices who perform market analyses of proposed housing projects, participate in developing Section 8 FMRs, provide housing market intelligence information, and undertake other analytical assignments in support of HUD program management in the field. Our Field Economists also provide research support to Field and Regional Office directors, and are relied upon for their expertise and insight on local housing markets.