News Release for Immediate Release September 17, 2003 DHCD Suspends New Applications for the Single Family Residential Rehabilitation Program  Effective July 1, 2003, the Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) suspended its acceptance and processing of new applications for programs within its Single Family Residential Rehabilitation Program Administration pending completion of administrative changes within the first quarter of Fiscal Year 2004. Applications that were approved prior to the suspension will continue through the process without delay. All applications that were not approved prior to the effective date of the suspension have been placed in a “pending” status and the applicants have been notified by mail. Those applications will be processed when the program has been reinstated. The suspension of the program is necessary in order to: 1) better serve the growing need for the program (more than forty percent of the city’s housing stock is aged); 2) resolve the inability to move applications expeditiously due to the implementation of lead-based paint requirements and the availability of certified District contractors; 3) provide access to private capital through implementation of a pilot program with other financial institutions where equity is substituted for income criteria of low- and moderate-income applicants; and 4) consider internal underwriting and agency regulatory changes. These changes will also enable the Department to efficiently and effectively accomplish the goal of meeting the needs of the community. It is anticipated that the administrative changes to the Single Family Residential Rehabilitation Program will be completed during the first quarter of Fiscal Year 2004. Informational requests and comments should be forwarded to Robert Mulderig, Deputy Director for Residential and Community Services, Department of Housing and Community Development, 801 North Capitol Street, NE, Sixth Floor, Washington, DC 20002 or by email.