Title 42 — Real Property.

(a) No less frequently than annually, the Office of the Chief Financial Officer of the District of Columbia shall calculate and publish the District of Columbia median family income on the basis of household size. (b) Affordable housing development projects that are publicly fina…

For the purposes of this chapter, the term: (1) “Council” means the Council of the District of Columbia. (2) “District” means the District of Columbia. (3) “Fund” means the Senior Citizens’ Home Repair and Improvement Program Fund established by § 42-2202. (4) “Lower income” mean…

(a) There is established in the District a revolving Senior Citizens’ Home Repair and Improvement Program Fund to be administered by the Mayor for the purpose of providing loans up to $5,000 to lower income senior citizen homeowners to enable them to make repairs and improvements…

The fund shall consist of, but not be limited to, monies from the following sources: (1) Appropriations pursuant to this chapter; (2) Grants and gifts from public or private sources to the fund or to the District for the purposes of the fund; (3) Repayments on principal and any i…

(a) An applicant is eligible for a loan if he or she is a senior citizen homeowner, is a resident of the District, and has resided in his or her principal place of residence for at least 3 years preceding the date of the application for assistance under this chapter. Lower income…

(a) For each loan issued under this chapter, the Mayor shall arrange a repayment schedule for which the repayment shall not create an economic hardship on the senior citizen homeowner receiving the loan. Loan repayment may be deferred to avoid economic hardship. (b) The loans gra…

Within 120 days of March 24, 1988, the Mayor shall, pursuant to subchapter I of Chapter 5 of Title 2, issue proposed rules to implement the provisions of this chapter. The proposed rules shall be submitted to the Council for a 45-day period of review, excluding Saturdays, Sundays…

The Mayor shall submit to the Council, not later than 6 months after the end of each fiscal year, a report on the financial condition of the fund and the results of the operation of the fund for the fiscal year.

For the purposes of this chapter, the term: (1) “Credit line deed of trust” means any deed of trust in which title to real property located in the District of Columbia is conveyed, transferred, encumbered, or pledged to secure repayment of money that is loaned in the form of peri…

(a) A credit line deed of trust shall include: (1) On the front page, either in capital letters or underscored, the words “THIS IS A HOME EQUITY CREDIT LINE DEED OF TRUST. DEFAULT ON PAYMENTS MAY RESULT IN THE LOSS OF YOUR HOME.”; (2) Language to convey notice to all parties that…

(a) From the date of the recording of a credit line deed of trust, the credit line deed of trust shall have priority: (1) Over all other deeds, conveyances, or other instruments, or contracts in writing, that are unrecorded as of that date and of which the noteholder has no knowl…

For the purposes of this chapter, the term: (1) “Disbursement of loan funds” means the delivery of loan funds by a lender to a settlement agent in the form of: (A) Cash; (B) Wired funds; (C) Certified checks; (D) Checks issued by the District of Columbia; (E) Cashier’s check or t…

This chapter applies only to transactions involving purchase money loans made by lenders that are secured by first or second deeds of trust or mortgages, excluding second deeds of trust or mortgages for refinancing purposes only, on real estate containing not more than 4 resident…

A lender shall, at or before loan closing, cause disbursement of loan funds to a settlement agent. A lender shall not receive or charge any interest on a loan until disbursement of loan funds and loan closing have occurred, and shall not require payment of any interest in advance…

The owner and real estate broker shall have in place, at or before settlement, all documents, deeds, titles, recordation tax returns, certified checks, and any other monies needed for settlement so that disbursements can be made in a timely manner.

A settlement agent shall cause recordation of the deed, the deed of trust or mortgage, or other documents required to be recorded, and shall cause disbursement of settlement proceeds within 1 business day of settlement. At least 5 days prior to settlement, the settlement agent sh…

Failure to comply with the provisions of this chapter shall not affect the validity or enforceability of any loan documents.

(a) Any person suffering a loss due to the failure of a lender or of a settlement agent to cause disbursement as required by this chapter shall be entitled to recover, in addition to the amount of actual damages, double the amount of any interest collected in violation of this ch…

For the purposes of this chapter, the term: (1) “Foreclosure rescue service” means any good or service related to or promising assistance in connection with: (A) Avoiding or delaying actual or anticipated foreclosure proceedings concerning residential property; or (B) Curing or o…

(a) It shall be unlawful, for compensation or gain or for potential or contingent compensation or gain, whether at the time of the transaction or in the future, to engage in, arrange, offer, promote, promise, solicit participation in, or carry out a foreclosure rescue transaction…

Any person who advertises, offers, promotes, or provides foreclosure rescue services to a homeowner owes a fiduciary duty to the homeowner and shall discharge that duty in accordance with all applicable laws.

(a) In addition to any action by the Attorney General authorized under this chapter and any other action otherwise authorized by law, a homeowner may bring an action for damages incurred, or equitable relief, as the result of a practice prohibited by this chapter. (b) A homeowner…

(a) Any person who knowingly violates any provision of this chapter, or any rule promulgated pursuant to this chapter, shall be fined an amount not to exceed $10,000, imprisoned for not more than one year, or both. All prosecutions of this subsection shall be instituted by the At…

For the purposes of this chapter, the term: (1) “Agency” means the District of Columbia Housing Finance Agency. (2) “Agreement” means the housing allowance agreement required, pursuant to § 42-2504, to be entered into between a Participant and the District of Columbia government.…

There is established within the District of Columbia Department of Housing and Community Development a District of Columbia Government Employer-Assisted Housing Program to assist District of Columbia government employees to become homeowners in the District. The Program shall inc…

(a) An applicant shall be eligible for the Program if the applicant is: (1) A District of Columbia government employee, an employee of a District of Columbia public charter school, or a person who has accepted an offer to be a District of Columbia police officer, firefighter, eme…

(a) Each Participant in the Program shall be required to save an agreed upon amount, as set forth in this section, which shall be applied toward the down payment and closing costs for the housing unit. Each Participant shall enter into an Agreement with the Department. The Agreem…

(a) In addition to the assistance provided in § 42-2504(b), the Department shall make available to each Participant a deferred loan of up to $10,000 to provide financial assistance for the purchase of a housing unit. The deferred payment loan shall be available only if the housin…

(a) In addition to the assistance provided in §§ 42-2504 and 42-2505, a District of Columbia government employee, an employee of a District of Columbia public charter school, or a person who has accepted an offer to be a District of Columbia police officer, firefighter, emergency…

(a) The Mayor shall, pursuant to subchapter I of Chapter 5 of Title 2, issue rules within 90 days after the effective date of this chapter to implement the provisions of this chapter. (b) The rules shall include the following: (1) An application procedure for the Program; (2) A s…

There is hereby established in the District of Columbia and there is authorized, and accounted for in the General Fund as a separate revenue source allocable to provide financial assistance to low and moderate income persons, and District of Columbia Government employees particip…

There shall be deposited to the credit of the Fund such amounts as may be appropriated pursuant to this subchapter; grants and gifts from public and private sources to the Fund or to the District of Columbia for the purposes of the Fund; repayments of principal and any interest o…

The Fund shall be available without fiscal year limitation for the purpose of providing financial assistance for down payments or interim financing to recipients for the purpose of purchasing or securing housing, including single family homes, condominium units, or occupancy righ…

(a) The Mayor is authorized to promulgate rules and regulations to govern the operation of the Fund, including but not limited to, rules and regulations establishing standards for determining the eligibility and selection of applicants; procedures for applying for assistance and …

(a) An annual audit of the operations of the Fund shall be conducted by the Office of the Inspector General of the District of Columbia. (b) Not later than 6 months after the end of each fiscal year, the Mayor shall submit to the Congress of the United States and to the Council o…

For the purpose of this subchapter, the term: (1) “Closing Costs” means expenses in addition to the purchase price of the property which must be paid by the purchaser or deducted from the proceeds of the sale to the seller at time of closing. (2) “Department” means the Department…

(a) There is established in the Department of Housing and Community Development, a Home Purchase Assistance Step Up Program to provide one-time housing assistance to residents of the District of Columbia in low- to moderate-income households, who own condominiums, cooperatives, o…

(a) An applicant shall be eligible for the Home Purchase Assistance Step Up Program if the applicant: (1) Is a District of Columbia resident; (2) Is the head of the household and will occupy the property to be purchased with assistance from the program as his or her primary resid…

(a) Assistance available pursuant to this subchapter is limited to a one-time loan of up to $15,000 with a maximum 20-year amortized term. (b) The interest rate shall be 3%, unless otherwise provided by the Mayor by rulemaking. (c) The Mayor shall establish underwriting guideline…

The Mayor is authorized to promulgate rules to govern the operation of the Fund, including but not limited to, rules establishing eligibility requirements for applicants and homes and for establishing operating procedures for the program. The proposed rules shall be submitted to …

The provisions of this subchapter shall apply to the purchase of a single family home for which an earnest money contract is dated after April 1, 1999.

(a) The Mayor shall establish within the District government, or cause to be provided through one or more non-government entities pursuant to a contract or contracts with the District of Columbia, a Homeownership Counseling Program (“Program”). The Program shall provide: (1) Info…

(a) The Council of the District of Columbia hereby finds: that a decline in the number of housing units in the District of Columbia, together with the existing number of substandard dwellings, has produced a critical shortage of adequate housing for low and moderate income famili…

The following terms as used in this chapter shall have the following meanings unless a different meaning clearly appears from the context: (1) “Chapter” means this Housing Finance Agency Act. (2) “Agency” means the District of Columbia Housing Finance Agency. (3) “Board” means th…

The District of Columbia Housing Finance Agency is created as a corporate body which has a legal existence separate from the government of the District but which is an instrumentality of the government of the District created to effectuate certain public purposes.

(a) The agency shall be governed by a Board of Directors, which shall be comprised of 5 members who are residents of the District of Columbia. Two shall have experience in mortgage lending or finance, 2 shall have experience in home building, real estate, architecture, or plannin…

(a) The Board of Directors shall appoint an Executive Director who shall be an employee of the Agency, but who shall not be a member of the Board, and who shall serve at the pleasure of the Board and receive such compensation as shall be fixed by the Board. The Executive Director…

Any member, officer, or employee of the Agency who is interested either directly or indirectly, or who is an officer or employee of, or has an ownership interest in any firm or agency interested directly or indirectly in any transaction with the Agency including, but not limited …

Each member of the Board shall execute a public official bond in the penal sum of $25,000, and the Executive Director of the Agency shall execute a public official bond in the penal sum of $50,000. Each public official bond shall be conditioned upon the faithful performance of th…

The Council delegates to the Agency the authority of the Council under § 1-204.90 to issue revenue bonds, notes and other obligations to borrow money to finance or assist in the financing of undertakings authorized by this chapter. An undertaking financed or assisted by the Agenc…