§2051 General Authority

Summary

The Secretary can promise to repay all or part of certain loans that meet the rules in this subchapter. No more than 15 loans can be guaranteed in total, and no more than five of those can be guaranteed during the 3-year period that starts on the date this subchapter was enacted. Each guarantee must be at least large enough to let the loan be sold in a commercial market. The total amount of loans guaranteed cannot exceed $100,000,000. The Secretary must approve a loan before it closes. The Secretary must hire a qualified nonprofit or other experienced group for advice on underwriting transitional housing and the loan terms needed under section 2052. For that purpose, a nonprofit is an organization described in paragraph (3) or (4) of subsection (c) of section 501 of the Internal Revenue Code and exempt under subsection (a) of that section. The Secretary may start the program before writing formal regulations and may guarantee loans even if prior appropriations would normally be required. Projects funded by these loans may accept unpaid volunteer work from any eligible entity defined in section 2011(d) for construction, alteration, or repair.