Housing Counseling Training Program

This program supports, under cooperative agreements with HUD, the delivery of a broad array of training activities for counselors from agencies participating in HUD's Housing Counseling program. The primary objectives of the program are to improve an

The purpose of this assistance is to continue investing in the creation and maintenance of a professional and effective housing counseling industry that is able to meaningfully assist consumers by providing them with information they need to make informed housing choices and maximizes the impact of Federal funding appropriated for HUD's Housing Counseling Program.

Applicants must be public or private nonprofit organizations with a least two years of experience providing housing counseling training services nationwide.

Housing Counselors from HUD-approved housing counseling agencies.

To annually provide one or more housing counseling training grants to qualified organizations. The grant will fund the training of counselors of agencies participating in HUD's Housing Counseling program.

Funding assistance is for a discrete period of time as outlined in the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO). Grantees invoice HUD on a periodic basis for housing counseling training services delivered. Payments of grant funds are subsequently made to grantees via direct deposit/electronic funds transfer (DD/EFT).

The availability of funds (HUD NOFA) is announced on HUD's website, www.hud.gov. For a copy of the NOFA, applicants can visit the HUD website (www.hud.gov).

1. Eligibility requirements and technical review. Applicants will be reviewed based on eligibility requirements stated in the NOFO. A technical sufficiency review will determine whether the applicants meet the threshold requirements set forth in this program and whether all required forms have been properly submitted. Procedures on correcting a deficient application are stated in the NOFO. 2. The merit review will evaluate the responses to each rating factor and other relevant information. Applications will be evaluated competitively and ranked against other Applicants.

Awards are reviewed, scored, and approved by the Office of Housing Counseling. All applications will be scored on a 100 point scale. Applicants must meet the minimum fundable score outlined in the NOFO. Applicants will be evaluated competitively and ranked against all other applicants that applied in the same funding category. The funding methodology outlined in the NOFO is used to calculate awards.

Grantees must submit a new application and compete through the NOFO each year.

For a period of at least 120 days, beginning 30 days after the public announcement of awards under this NOFO, HUD will provide a debriefing related to their application to requesting applicants. A request for debriefing must be made in writing or by email by the authorized official whose signature appears on the SF-424 or by his or her successor in office and be submitted to the HUD point of contact. Information provided during a debriefing may include the final score the applicant received for each rating factor, final evaluator comments for each rating factor, and the final assessment indicating the basis upon which funding was approved or denied.