Title 42 — The Public Health and WelfareRelease 119-73not60
§1585 Acquisition of Housing Sites
Title 42 › Chapter 9— HOUSING OF PERSONS ENGAGED IN NATIONAL DEFENSE › Subchapter VII— DISPOSAL OF WAR AND VETERANS’ HOUSING › § 1585
Summary
The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development may keep, rent, or take full ownership of land the federal government got for national defense, war housing, or veterans’ housing. The Secretary can buy or condemn full ownership ("fee simple") or smaller interests when needed to protect the government's investment, keep buildings in good shape, or when fixing the land would cost as much as buying it. In cities where there were more than 10,000 temporary housing units on March 1, 1953 (or two adjacent cities with one over 10,000), the Secretary may buy up to 425 acres in the area where about 1,500 of those temporary units were unoccupied on that date if the Secretary finds it will help replace temporary housing with permanent neighborhoods, the city agrees and asks for the purchase, and the city promises no city official or employee will have a financial interest. The Secretary may sell any land so bought within five years to the city or a local agency if the city promises to develop it mostly for homes and pays fair market value. The buyer must pay at least one third in cash at closing, pay the rest within one year, and any unpaid balance carries 4% interest per year and must be secured by a first mortgage. The Secretary can also sell the land under other authorities at any time and must dispose of land not sold within five years as quickly as is in the public interest. No payments in lieu of taxes are allowed for tax years starting after HUD acquires the title. If HUD holds an interest in such land on or after April 1, 1950, and the term is limited to the "duration of the emergency" or "duration of the war" (or similar), and the payments to the landowner give less than a 6% annual return as calculated from the lowest independent pre-acquisition appraisal plus 100% of that value, then at the owner’s request the Secretary must raise future payments so the owner receives up to that 6% yearly return. Money in the reserve account set up under section 1543 stays available to pay for these land actions, related administration costs, transfers, reclassifications of housing, and for making needed improvements or changes to small permanent houses (designed for up to four families) when required for sale or to meet local rules.
Full Legal Text
Title 42, §1585
The Public Health and Welfare — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
(a)The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development may continue by lease or condemnation any interest less than a fee simple in lands heretofore acquired by the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development for national defense or war housing or for veterans’ housing (whether of permanent or temporary character), or held by any Federal agency in connection therewith, and may acquire, by purchase or condemnation, a fee simple title to or lesser interest in any such lands if the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development determines that the acquisition of such fee simple or lesser interest is necessary to protect the Government’s investment or to maintain the improvements constructed thereon, or that the cost of fulfilling the Government’s obligation to restore the property to its original condition would equal or exceed the cost of acquiring the title thereto. In any city in which, on March 1, 1953, there were more than ten thousand temporary housing units held by the United States of America, or any two contiguous cities in one of which there were on such date more than ten thousand temporary housing units so held, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development may acquire, by purchase or condemnation, a fee simple title to any or all lands in which the Secretary holds a leasehold interest, or other interest less than a fee simple, acquired by the Federal Government for national defense or war housing or for veteran’s housing where (1) the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development finds that the acquisition by the Secretary of a fee simple title in the land will tend to expedite the orderly disposal or removal of temporary housing under the Secretary’s jurisdiction by facilitating the availability of improved sites for privately owned housing needed to replace such temporary housing, and will tend to expedite the transition of the city from a war-affected community containing, as of said date, a large number of temporary houses to a community having additional permanent, well-planned, residential neighborhoods, (2) the local governing body of the city makes a like finding and requests the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to acquire such title to the land, and (3) the city has furnished assurances satisfactory to the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development that no individual who is employed by, or is an official of, the government of the city in which the land is located, or any agency thereof, shall be permitted, directly or indirectly, to have any financial interest in the purchase or redevelopment of such land: Provided, That such acquisitions by the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development pursuant to this sentence shall be limited to not exceeding four hundred and twenty-five acres of land in the general area in which approximately one thousand five hundred units of temporary housing held by the United States of America were unoccupied on said date: And provided further, That funds for such acquisition by the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, which are authorized, pursuant to subsection (c) of this section and title II of the Independent Offices Appropriation Act, 1955, to be expended from the revolving fund established by section 1701g–5 of title 12, shall be taken into consideration, to the extent that they are needed, in making any determination pursuant to the second proviso under that section. All or any part of any land so acquired by the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development may, during the five year period following the date of its acquisition, be sold by the Secretary, through negotiated sale, to such city or any local public agency where (1) the city or local public agency has represented to the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development that it is duly authorized under State law to purchase and resell such land, that such land will be made available to private enterprise for development in accordance with local zoning and other laws, and that the aggregate of such land and any other land in the same city previously sold under the authority of this paragraph to the city or a local public agency will be developed for predominantly residential use, and (2) the city or local public agency has agreed to pay the fair market value of the land as determined by the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, after giving consideration, among other relevant information, to the cost to the Federal Government of acquiring the fee simple title and of holding the land pending sale (including estimated amounts to cover legal and overhead expenses of such acquisition and to cover interest costs to the Federal Government of monies invested in the land pending sale). Any such negotiated sale of land to the city or a local public agency shall be made upon terms which require (1) that the city or public agency shall pay in cash at least one third of the price of the land upon its conveyance and the entire price within one year after its conveyance and (2) that any portion of the entire price not paid upon such conveyance shall be represented by an indebtedness which shall bear interest on outstanding balances at a rate of 4 per centum per annum and which shall be secured by a first mortgage lien upon the land or such portion of the land as the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development deems adequate to protect the financial interest of the Federal Government. The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development may, at any time that the Secretary deems it to be in the public interest to do so, dispose, under authority of other provisions of subchapters II to VII of this chapter, of any land acquired by the Secretary pursuant to this paragraph. Any land acquired by the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development pursuant to this paragraph which has not been disposed of within five years after its acquisition shall be disposed of by the Secretary as expeditiously as possible in the public interest in accordance with other authority contained in subchapters II to VII of this chapter. Notwithstanding the provisions of section 1546 of this title or any other provisions of law, no payments in lieu of taxes shall be made for any tax year beginning subsequent to the date of the acquisition of title to the property by the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development.
(b)In any case in which the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development holds, on or after April 1, 1950, an interest in land acquired by the Federal Government for national defense, war housing, or veterans’ housing and where (1) the term of such interest (as prescribed in the taking or in the lease or other instruments) is for the “duration of the emergency” or “duration of the war”, or “duration of the emergency” or “duration of the war” plus a specific period thereafter, or for some similarly prescribed term, and (2) the rental, award, or other consideration which the Federal Government is obligated to pay or furnish for such interest gives the owner of the land less than an annual return, after payment of real estate taxes, of 6 per centum of the lowest value placed on such land by an independent appraiser, hired by the Government to make such appraisal based on the value of the land before the acquisition of the Government’s interest therein, plus 100 per centum of such value, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall, upon request of the owner of the land and, notwithstanding any existing contractual or other rights or obligations, increase the amount of future payments for such interest in order to give the owner of the land a return for the Government’s use thereof not exceeding the 6 per centum annual return described in (2) of this subsection: Provided, That this subsection shall not affect any payment heretofore made or any future payment accepted by an obligee, nor shall this subsection limit the consideration which may be paid for the use of any land beyond the existing term of the Government’s interest therein.
(c)Notwithstanding any other provisions of law unless hereafter enacted expressly in limitation hereof, moneys shall be deposited in the reserve account established pursuant to subsection (a) and subsection (b) of section 1543 of this title (which account is hereby continued subject to the limitation as to amount specified in subsection (c) thereof) and all moneys deposited in such reserve account shall be and remain available for any or all of the purposes specified in said subsections (a) or (b) or in this section without regard to the time prescribed in subsection (c) of section 1543 of this title with respect to covering moneys in such account into miscellaneous receipts. Moneys in such reserve accounts shall also be available for the payment of necessary expenses (which shall be considered nonadministrative expenses) in connection with administering (1) transfers pursuant to section 1581 of this title, (2) redeterminations of the temporary or permanent character of demountable housing pursuant to section 1583 of this title, (3) changes in land tenure and revisions in the consideration payable to landowners pursuant to subsection 11 So in original. Probably should be “subsections”. (a) and (b), and (4) transfers of permanent war housing for low-rent use pursuant to section 1586 of this title. Moneys in such reserve account shall also be available for the purpose of making improvements to, or alterations of, any permanent housing or part thereof if (1) the dwelling structures therein are designed for occupancy by not more than four families and are to be sold separately and (2) such improvement or alteration is requested by the local governing body as a condition to the acceptance of the dedication of streets or utilities or is necessary for compliance with local law or regulation relating to the continued operation or occupancy of the housing by a purchaser.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Editorial Notes
References in Text
Title II of the Independent Offices Appropriation Act, 1955, referred to in subsec. (a), is title II of act June 24, 1954, ch. 359, 68 Stat. 294. Provisions of title II that authorized funds for acquisition of housing sites are not classified to the Code. Subchapters III and VI of this chapter, referred to in subsec. (a), were comprised of sections 1531 to 1536 and 1571 to 1576, respectively, of this title and have been omitted from the Code. For further details, see note set out under section 1522 of this title. section 1543 of this title, referred to in subsec. (c), was omitted from the Code.
Amendments
1955—Subsec. (a). Act Aug. 11, 1955, authorized Administrator to acquire a fee simple title to lands where he finds that such acquisition will tend to expedite the transition of the city from a war-affected community containing a large number of temporary houses to a community having additional permanent, well-planned, residential neighborhoods. 1954—Subsec. (a). Act Aug. 2, 1954, added second par. 1951—Subsec. (b). Act Sept. 1, 1951, in cl. (2), inserted “plus 100 per centum of such value”, substituted “shall” for “is authorized” and “increase” for “to increase”.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Transfer of Functions
For
Transfer of Functions
to Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, see note set out under section 1581 of this title.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
42 U.S.C. § 1585
Title 42 — The Public Health and Welfare
Last Updated
Apr 5, 2026
Release point: 119-73not60