During the August board meeting of the Corbin Housing Authority, Executive Director Robert Hayes shared with board members that the bottom line of the Authority’s tenants account receivable (TAR) currently sits at about $2,000. That represents a drastic decrease from $250,000, which is the approximate amount that was reflected by the Authority’s TAR about three years ago.
“We’re in great shape,” Hayes told the board last week, adding that the TAR is an indicator that is “noticed from afar” by Housing and Urban Development (HUD) officials in both the Louisville regional office and in Washington D.C.
Speaking about the TAR, Hayes said, “If things like that begin to tick upward, then it shows that you’re not doing something that you should be doing. Right now, ours is around $2,000, which is excellent.”
Earlier in the meeting, Hayes reported that the Corbin Housing Authority is currently operating at 100 percent capacity, with no units being taken offline for any extended periods of time. “No matter how heavy the hit, we’ve gotten it fixed and we’ve rented it,” he said.
Hayes added, “If an apartment is offline, then that is a family that is not being housed.”
When one board member raised a procedural question related to how rent is collected at the Housing Authority, Hayes said that, as part of a “change in the culture,” new processes had been put in place for how money is handled. This includes all rent payments being made at the bank instead of transactions taking place in the Housing Authority offices. From there, the funds are transferred into an operating account where it can be used for things like upkeep and repairs.
“We are trying to make improvements and stay in the black, so everyone understands that rent needs to be paid on time,” Hayes said. “If they get too far behind they will end up facing eviction, but we do everything that we can to keep people out of eviction.”
Hayes pointed out that he is trying to raise awareness about the fact that whether or not a tenant is good about paying their monthly rent on time is something that will effect that person’s FICO score. “We live and die by our FICO scores,” he said to provide some added incentive for those who are trying to establish good credit histories.
Returning to the idea of changing the culture within the Corbin Housing Authority, Hayes said that one of his early acts as executive director was to fire the previous auditor, who he said failed to find any wrong doings until the previous director was “already in handcuffs.”
Hayes has since used Sammy Lee with SK Lee CPAs (www.skleecpa.com) to perform audits at the Housing Authority, calling him a “legitimate auditor” who does not provide “fairytale audits.”
“I wanted to use the most reputable auditor that I could find in the state,” Hayes said.
Other items discussed at the meeting included:
– Hayes reported to the East Corbin Housing Board, which oversees operations at the McBurney Manor housing facility on Master Street, that those apartments are currently operating at 94 percent capacity while a couple of units are being heavily renovated. He also said that the building recently received a “completely refigured” plumbing system when emergency repairs had to be performed by Plumb-Tec, LLC. Since the repairs, the plumbing system has been working properly.
– Hayes reported to the Greater Corbin Housing Board, which oversees operations at the Cooper Building in downtown, that those apartments are currently operating at 96 percent capacity and some units will be advertised for rent soon. Overall, Hayes said that the Cooper Building is in “really great financial shape.”
– At the conclusion of last week’s meeting, Hayes answered questions about the planned installation of new playground equipment at the Corbin Housing Authority’s Madison Avenue location, as well as the possibility for a second playground area at another location. “I am bidding those, and I am challenging the playground companies to find things that are interactive and sensory-friendly,” he explained. “I am also trying to keep this in areas where there will be a lot of eyes on the kiddos.”
Hayes said that he is keeping a close eye on the budget as he continues to plan for the addition of the playground equipment, and he is hopeful that something will be in place by the end of this year.
