H.R. 5527, The Mark-to-Market Extension Act of 2006

• This item is from the 109th Congress (2005-2006) and is no longer current. Comments, voting, and wiki editing have been disabled, and the cost/savings estimate has been frozen.

H.R. 5527 would extend the Multifamily Assisted Housing Restructuring and Affordability Act of 1997 (MAHRA) for five years beyond its current expiration date of September 30, 2006. That law authorizes the so-called mark-to-market approach for renewing Section 8 Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) contracts and for the restructuring of certain mortgages insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA). Under the mark-to-market approach, HAP contracts are renewed at market rents for FHA-insured projects that currently receive above-market rents and, if necessary, the mortgages for those projects are written down to levels that could be supported by the lower rents. In addition, the bill would extend debt restructuring eligibility to properties damaged by disasters and expand the program's authority to set rents above 120 percent of the fair market rent.