(June 27, 2006)—RealPage, Inc., a leading provider of products and services to the multifamily industry, today announced that its on-demand tax credits software, OneSite© Leasing & Rents Affordable Tax Credits, now supports the Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) Data Transfer Standard announced by the National Affordable Housing Management Association (NAHMA) in May.
The data transfer standard is the first attempt to create a common submission standard for the housing credit industry. It was developed over a two-year period by industry stakeholders to assist state-chartered housing finance agencies (HFAs) with the exchange of information required for the LIHTC program. The data transfer standard—which is open source, voluntary and not regulated—is being adopted by property owners and management agents for the flexibility, accuracy and efficiency it provides in compliance reporting.
RealPage implemented the data transfer standard capability into OneSite Leasing & Rents Affordable Tax Credits, its fully integrated web-based system that automates compliance monitoring and reporting for tax credits properties. Now, any site in a state that uses the standard can generate compliance reports electronically. Once compliance data is input into OneSite, an easy-to-read report is formatted that allows site personnel to review and identify any missing or incorrect information.
“Adopting this new standard into our OneSite software allows our customers to streamline compliance reporting,” said Ranjeev Teelock, vice president of affordable housing for RealPage. “It lets them use one application across the entire portfolio for HFA reporting requirements—using an electronic format as opposed to manually reporting on a state-by-state basis—and it eliminates the need for dual entry of compliance data, providing them with more accurate and efficient reports.”
The new capability also helps solve some other glaring problems that have faced the industry, including the high cost to maintain multiple report formats for each of the 55 HFAs, the lack of validation in compliance reporting and the excessive time spent on inputting data. The electronic format reduces the time-consuming process of entering data into multiple systems and increases accuracy. Once the site is ready to submit the compliance data, OneSite simply uploads the data transfer standard XML file into the state agency’s system. Since OneSite is web-based, the site receives instant validation of program compliance reports prior to reporting to an HFA.
“The ability for sites to generate the LIHTC Data Transfer Standard from their site software and upload it to our system reduces the risk of submitting inaccurate data,” said, Cassandra Brown, compliance analyst for the Michigan State Housing Development Authority. “Sites will now have more time to focus on daily activities instead of being required to enter data into two compliance systems.”
According to Kris Cook, executive director of NAHMA, the greatest benefit of the new LIHTC data transfer standard is that the housing credit industry now has a common process that everyone can understand and use. “It will demonstrate to federal agencies and the U.S. Congress that the housing credit community understands the importance of a common submission standard and is willing to provide the equity and transparency that a program of this scope and importance should have,” said Cook.
RealPage is a leading provider of affordable software for the multifamily industry. It currently offers three affordable products, OneSite Leasing & Rents Tax Credits, OneSite Leasing & Rents HUD and OneSite Affordable Screening. All are part of RealPage’s OneSite on-demand property management suite that automates the entire process of leasing, renting and managing apartments, including fast and easy applicant screening, comprehensive facilities maintenance, simplified purchasing and expense controls, professional accounting and convenient online rent payment. For more information on OneSite and other RealPage products and services, please visit www.realpage.com.
About RealPage
Located in Carrollton, Texas, a suburb of Dallas, RealPage provides property management products and services to more than 20,000 apartment communities across the United States. It currently has four major product lines: OneSite© on-demand property management systems that automate property management functions while providing real-time access to important data; CrossFire© on-demand property marketing systems that automate and enhance the process of capturing and entering leads; M/PF YieldStar™ on-demand asset optimization systems that help owners and managers optimize asset values through revenue management, portfolio management and market intelligence and Velocity™ utility and billing services that help accelerate payments for rent, utility charges, late fees and small balances. For more information, please call 1-87-REALPAGE or visit www.realpage.com.