-- The U.S. Housing Act of 1937, as amended, which authorizes rental assistance to certain lower-income households under Section 8 of the Act;

-- The National Housing Act, as amended, which authorizes the provision of mortgage or loan insurance for single family and multifamily housing and for health care facilities such as hospitals and nursing homes;

-- Sections 201 and 203 of the Housing and Community Development Amendments of 1978, as amended, which govern the management and disposition of housing projects;

-- Section 202 of the Housing Act of 1959, as amended, which authorizes capital grants and rental assistance for the development of housing for the elderly or handicapped;

-- Section 811 of the National Affordable Housing Act which authorizes capital grants and rental assistance for the development of housing for the disabled;

-- Title IV of the Housing and Community Development Amendments of 1978, as amended, which authorizes the Congregate Housing Services program;

-- Section 101 of the Housing and Urban Development Act of 1965, as amended, which authorizes rent supplements on behalf of needy tenants living in privately owned, privately operated and privately financed housing;

-- The Interstate Land Sales Full Disclosure Act, as amended, which requires developers of subdivisions to file registration statements with the Secretary;

-- The National Manufactured Home Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974, which authorizes HUD to develop and enforce construction and safety standards for all manufactured homes sold in the United States; and

-- The Real Estate Settlement Procedure Act of 1974, as amended, which authorizes the regulation of certain lending practices and settlement and closing procedures in Federally related mortgage transactions to eliminate unnecessary costs and to minimize difficulties of settlement.

-- encouraging homeownership opportunities for first-time homebuyers and very low-income, low-income and moderate-income families and families living in areas under-served by the housing finance and mortgage credit markets by insuring mortgages on both existing and new homes as well as supporting and encouraging related efforts by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac;

-- providing programmatic regulation of the mortgage finance activities of Government Service Enterprises (GSE) by establishing, monitoring and enforcing housing goals, approving new programs, establishing additional fair lending requirements, and expanding awareness of the GSE's mortgage purchase activities;

-- reengineering the portfolio of project-based Section 8 assistance so that FHA losses will be minimized and all projects will be financially viable with market-rate rents;

-- maintaining and preserving homeownership by insuring mortgages and loans used for the rehabilitation or improvement of existing homes;

-- preserving homeownership for elderly Americans through the insurance of "reverse" mortgages that allow elderly homeowners to remain in their homes by converting the equity in their homes to a stream of income;

-- encouraging the development of affordable rental housing by insuring mortgages on both new and existing apartment buildings;

-- supporting the provision of community-based health care and economic development by insuring mortgages on hospitals and other health-care facilities, such as nursing homes and assisted living facilities;

-- developing underwriting standards, making actuarial determinations, and establishing fees and premiums for mortgage insurance for homes and projects and other financial and related assistance authorized by the National Housing Act;

-- collecting FHA mortgage insurance premiums, processing and accounting for premiums, refunds to lenders/homeowners and insurance premium claims, providing financial/accounting services for assigned loans, HUD-insured/HUD-held mortgages/notes, real property acquisitions/dispositions and asset sales for Single Family/Multifamily/Title I insured programs;

-- managing FHA financial assets through loan sales, debt restructuring and other loss mitigation initiatives;

-- performing property disposition activities which include supervision of Real Estate Asset Managers, rehabilitation of acquired properties, management of the property inventory and the sale of HUD-owned properties;

-- providing debt management and collection services to recover debts owed to the Federal government arising from FHA insurance and loan programs, Section 312, and other HUD programs;

-- performing preapplication and other review activities through to construction completion, execution and closing of contracts and mortgages;

-- participating in the analysis, review, and evaluation of HUD-insured and other multifamily projects during the construction and occupancy stages;

-- reviewing and monitoring multifamily projects including analyzing operating statements and annual financial reports and inspecting the physical condition of projects to ensure that appropriate management activities are conducted as well as enforcing the terms and conditions of contracts between HUD and participants;

-- reviewing and monitoring State agency administration of Federal housing programs;

-- setting standards and providing oversight for servicing and managing the disposition of HUD-insured and HUD-held mortgages for Single Family and Multifamily insurance programs, negotiating forbearance agreements, and handling assignments of mortgages;

-- managing existing housing programs for the elderly and disabled, (development of new housing will be done as part of the HOME program which is administered through NAHA);

-- developing new instructions and issuances and revising existing issuances such as Annual Adjustment Factors for the Section 8 program;

-- managing short-term contract renewals, opt-outs and replacement subsidies for expiring Section 8 project-based subsidy contracts;

-- directing special initiatives such as Neighborhood Networks and the Safe Neighborhood Action Program (SNAP), which require coordination with owners, managers, residents, community groups, local businesses and providers of social and educational services;

-- monitoring and reviewing the performance of mortgage lenders and other program participants for compliance with Federal housing program requirements under the National Housing Act, as well as approving lenders for participation;

-- certifying or recertifying housing counseling agencies;

-- developing and enforcing the Manufactured Home Construction and Safety Standards which require extensive coordination with State agencies, industry and consumer groups to regulate over one-third of the total U.S. Single Family housing production;

-- examining registration statements and other required material from developers of subdivisions involved in interstate commerce to determine their formal and legal adequacy and issuing exemption orders and advisory opinions under the Interstate Land Sales Registration Act;

-- protecting consumers of real estate settlement services by requiring disclosures of settlement costs;

-- training and educating the market place, industry participants and potential homebuyers and renters in the availability of the insurance programs;

Headquarters staff have the responsibility for performing the following principal functions:

-- developing, revising and evaluating program and policy recommendations for all Housing programs;

-- directing and coordinating the administration of all Housing programs and providing technical assistance and procedural guidance to the Field staff;

-- monitoring, reviewing, and evaluating Field program operations and reviewing administrative practices of local agencies to ensure that programs are managed efficiently and that services and assistance are provided as intended;

-- operating and evaluating national asset disposition strategies;

-- providing accounting, actuarial and debt management support for FHA programs to ensure the fiscal health of these funds;

-- providing administrative, budgetary contract administration support for Housing programs;

-- administering regulatory functions of the Department as required; and

-- providing budget formulation and execution support for Housing's Programs and Salaries and Expenses to ensure proper fiscal control and resource management.