NAHMANews-NAHMA Announces 2007 Communities of Quality® Awards Program

NAHMA Announces 2007 Communities of Quality® Awards Program Guidelines September 6, 2007, Alexandria, Va. — The National Affordable Housing Management Association (NAHMA) is calling for entries in its 2007 Communities of Quality® Awards program, which recognizes outstanding property management companies providing the highest possible quality of safe, affordable multifamily rental housing in communities around the country. NAHMA is also pleased to announce that this year’s Communities of Quality® (COQ) Awards Program will again be sponsored by The Home Depot Supply, a leading supplier of maintenance and renovation products to the multi-housing industry. COQ awards entry materials should be mailed to NAHMA by November 17, 2007, c/o NAHMA COQ Awards Entry, 400 N. Columbus Street, Suite 203, Alexandria, VA 22314. Award winners will be notified in early January 2008 and will receive their awards in a special ceremony at the NAHMA 2008 winter meeting in Washington, DC, on Monday, March 10. Now in its 15th year, the awards competition will include five categories: * Exemplary Family Development * Exemplary Development for the Elderly * Exemplary Development for Residents with Special Needs * Exemplary Development for Single Room Occupancy Housing * Outstanding Turnaround of a Troubled Property At the same time, a new COQ Corporate Partner Designation has been created for management companies that have had at least 50 percent of their property portfolio accepted into the COQ National Recognition program. Communities of Quality® are outstanding properties whose owners and managers provide the highest-quality safe, affordable, multifamily rental housing in communities around the country. The COQ Awards Program, paired with the COQ National Recognition Program, acknowledges individual properties and/or companies. The new Corporate Partner designation recognizes truly outstanding accomplishment and was created specifically to honor management companies that successfully maintain a significant portion of their properties at the high standards of the COQ National Recognition program. The portfolio calculation can be based on either number of units or number of properties managed in the company’s affordable portfolio and is self-reported. “It publicly declares that these companies are among the finest managers of affordable multifamily housing in the industry,” said NAHMA President Michelle Norris, NAHP-e, SHCM. Several companies have achieved this designation thus far: Metropolitan Associates, First Realty Management, TESCO, Westminster Company and PRD Management, Inc. Details for qualifying as a Corporate Partner can be found on the NAHMA website at www.nahma.org. Please send any questions to joe.thomas@nahma.org. A new brochure available at the NAHMA website at http://www.nahma.org/content/COQ%20Awards%20App_Final_2007.pdf contains details on how to enter the 2007 COQ awards program. Also available at the website is an updated COQ Recognition Program application that includes special consideration for small property participation in several key categories. Also available at the website, is a tutorial on filling out the application. How to Enter the COQ Awards Program Step One – Become a Nationally Recognized Community of Quality Property To enter the 2007 Communities of Quality® Awards competition, a property must first apply for and achieve National Recognition as a NAHMA Community of Quality. To earn National Recognition, a property must meet the minimum required point total of each of the six categories designated under the program (Inspections; Financial Management; Employee Credentials; Programs and Services; Endorsements; and Photographs and Reports) as well as earn an overall total minimum of 225 points. To be eligible to enter the 2007 Communities of Quality® Awards competition, a property must have scored a minimum of 325 points on its National Recognition application (see Step Two for more details for properties that have scored 325 points on past applications). Detailed application information and submission materials for the NAHMA Communities of Quality® National Recognition program are available at the NAHMA website at www.nahma.org (please click on the Communities of Quality® or COQ navigation links). If your property initially received less than 325 points when your COQ National Recognition application was first submitted to NAHMA, you may elect to update this original application to earn more points if you have made improvements to your property since then. Simply photocopy your original COQ application (application only, not original supporting documents), and use a colored marker and highlighter to edit the form and indicate where changes have been made and new points should be awarded. Please send the updated application – and documentation that supports the edits made – directly to NAHMA at the address above, with a check payable to NAHMA for $25 (record administration fee). Please note that this limited score updating process does not impact the requirement that every COQ property must submit a complete renewal application every two years from the date of entry into the program; renewal applications are available on our website. Step Two – If You’re Currently Nationally Recognized – You’re Ready to Enter If your property has earned National Recognition status as a NAHMA Community of Quality® -- and received 325 or more points on the National Recognition application – then you’re ready to enter the 2007 Communities of Quality® Awards competition! (Properties that competed in past COQ Awards program but did not win are invited to reapply for the 2007 awards program; 2006 award winners are not eligible to re-compete.) Step Three – Prepare and Submit Entry Materials Your COQ awards competition entry materials will consist of the following: 1) The National COQ Recognition Program application you have already submitted (you do not need to resubmit a copy of the application; NAHMA will refer to the copy it has on file) 2) The Entry Form panel from the COQ Awards brochure, designating which of the five categories you will be competing in (you are invited to enter more than one category and/or multiple entries in a single category; please copy the entry form panel from this brochure and submit a separate form and separate essay for each entry). 3) An Essay of 500 to 1500 words, outlining the outstanding features and/or aspects of the property, and why it should be selected by the judges as an award winner; and 4) For “Best Turnaround Property” entrants only – at least four “before” pictures Your COQ awards entry materials should be mailed to NAHMA by November 17, 2007, c/o NAHMA COQ Awards Entry, 400 N. Columbus Street, Suite 203, Alexandria, VA 22314. Any questions? Please call Joe Thomas at NAHMA at 703-683-8630, or visit our webpage at www.nahma.org. Please note – local Affordable Housing Management Associations (AHMAs) will also be honoring NAHMA Communities of Quality® program participants. Please check locally for your AHMA’s program details; a directory of the AHMAs is available at the NAHMA website. The Judging Process To conduct the judging, NAHMA will assemble an independent panel of representatives from the affordable housing arena, including government, academia and trade associations, to review the entry materials. Award winners will be notified in early January 2008, and will receive their awards in a special ceremony at the NAHMA 2008 winter meeting in Washington, DC, on Monday, March 10. Benefits of Participation Properties that earn the NAHMA Communities of Quality® National Recognition receive the following benefits: • A congratulations letter and certificate • A draft press release for use with local media • A draft letter for sending to Congressional representatives • Guidance on how to use the COQ trademark in promotional materials • A free subscription to NAHMA News (a $100 value) • A listing in the National Registry of Communities of Quality® on NAHMA’s website • A brochure offering a variety of COQ logo materials available for purchase for local marketing efforts (such as banners, golf shirts, pins, hats, etc.) Properties that receive both National Recognition and a COQ Award receive all of the benefits listed above. In addition, they receive: • Recognition at an AHMA awards ceremony • Recognition at NAHMA’s annual COQ luncheon • A crystal award • Inclusion in a press release distributed by NAHMA to national media and trade press • Inclusion in a detailed article on award winners in NAHMA News and on the NAHMA website “Each year, winners of NAHMA’s Communities of Quality® Awards demonstrate the commitment of property owners and managers nationwide to provide low- to moderate income residents with the quality affordable housing that is worthy of resident and community pride,” said NAHMA President Jim McGrath, SHCM, NAHP-e. “As a leading supplier to multifamily properties across the nation, The Home Depot Supply is particularly proud to be involved in an award that honors those properties that are doing the right thing for their communities,” said Mike Hendel, Director of Multifamily Business Development, The Home Depot Supply. “Giving back to the community is part of the way we do business in The Home Depot family of companies, and it is a pleasure to actively share this value with many of our customers in the multifamily industry.” NAHMA is the leading voice for affordable housing, advocating on behalf of multifamily property owners and managers whose mission is to provide quality affordable housing. NAHMA supports legislative and regulatory policy that promotes the development and preservation of decent and safe affordable housing, is a vital resource for technical education and information, fosters strategic relations between government and industry and recognizes those who exemplify the best in affordable housing. Founded in 1990, NAHMA’s membership today includes the industry’s most distinguished multifamily owners and management companies. The Home Depot Supply, a leading supplier of maintenance and renovation products to the multi-housing industry, recently acquired Hughes Supply. The Home Depot Supply and Hughes Supply are now One Team delivering More Solutions. As the largest maintenance and renovation supplier in the multifamily industry, customers have access to time and money-saving solutions that’ll improve the efficiency of maintenance staff and increase resident satisfaction. Together, The Home Depot Supply and Hughes Supply are offering more than ever before. Get more product choices from the broadest selection in the industry delivered next-day to most locations. Select from thousands of products, including brand-name plumbing, hardware, appliances, lighting and HVAC merchandise. The companies offer more services, including Renovation Services, fabrication and training. Call 1-800-431-3000 to order through The Home Depot Supply or 1-877-766-3991 to order through Hughes Supply. For more information, contact your Home Depot Supply representative or Mike Hendel, Multifamily Strategic Marketing, at 858-831-2357 or mike_hendel@homedepot.com. NAHMA and the NAHMA Educational Foundation are not affiliated in any way with The Home Depot Supply or its related companies, or their products. For more information, contact Joe Thomas at 703-683-8630. ###

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