Sanford Housing Authority CEO Discusses Inherited HCV Program Challenges and Plans to Pursue Special Purpose Vouchers

Lunch & Learn Partnership Flyer for OMI Shelter and SHA

SERSHA President-Elect_ Dr. Michael C. Threatt_CEO of SHA_NC035

Rental Assistance Goal of SHA's Roadmap 2030 Five-Year Strategic Plan

SHA's CEO, Dr. Michael C. Threatt, explains how continuous Staff Professional Development and Expanding Housing Opportunities will help meet Roadmap 2030 goals.

SANFORD, NC, UNITED STATES, December 30, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The Sanford Housing Authority (SHA) is charting a bold new course to strengthen its Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) Program and expand housing opportunities for vulnerable populations, beyond its current Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing (VASH) allocation of 25 vouchers.

SHA CEO Dr. Michael C. Threatt announced plans to pursue Special Purpose Vouchers (SPVs) to align with the Rental Assistance Goal of the Roadmap 2030 five-year strategic plan. These SPVs include Shelter Plus Care (S+C), Family Unification Program (FUP), Housing Opportunities for People Living with AIDS (HOPWA), Foster Youth to Independence (FYI), Family Stability Vouchers (FSV), Mainstream Voucher Program (MVP), and Non-Elderly Disabled (NED).

The Wizard Behind the Curtain and Peeling Back An Onion
When Dr. Threatt arrived in December 2024, the agency’s condition resembled peeling back an onion; each layer revealed deeper issues. “Behind the curtain of the Wizard of Oz, there was no wizard, only hard work ahead,” he said. Within weeks, he signed a HUD Recovery Agreement for public housing operations after SHA was designated troubled under PHAS. He also learned that SHA’s LIHTC portfolio required outsourcing to a third-party property management company due to High-Risk status. Meanwhile, the HCV Program was rated a perfect 100 (High Performer) in SEMAP, which raised a red flag for him as a former HCV Program Fraud Investigator.

“How could an agency rated troubled for PHAS and LIHTC also claim a perfect HCV Program under SEMAP?” asked Dr. Threatt.

During his 180-day assessment, Dr. Threatt discovered fundamental capacity gaps: staff struggled to read EIV reports, navigate PIC, use the Two-Year Tool (TYT), submit corrections or historical adjustments, and report accurate VMS data. Additionally, informal hearings and reviews, a core applicant and participant due process right, had not been occurring, and repayment agreements were neither documented nor returned to HUD.

Independent Reviews and File Corrections
To verify and correct these issues, SHA engaged U.S. Housing Consultants in February 2025 for a comprehensive file review. The audit confirmed systemic weaknesses in income calculations, asset verification, and outdated forms.

In April 2025, SHA engaged EnCompliance Consulting to conduct a full HCV Program assessment, including file sampling, policy evaluation, and SEMAP indicator reviews. Findings revealed that scores were zero for Waiting List documentation, HQS Quality Control sampling, and HQS Enforcement practices. After analysis, SHA determined its FYE2024 SEMAP score should have been 72, not the perfect 100 submitted to HUD.

New Administrative Plan: Playbook Revised
In September 2025, SHA onboarded Chief Operating Officer (COO) Amanda Pruitt, who implemented standard operating procedures and schedules tied to SEMAP integrity. Amanda led a comprehensive full revision of SHA’s eight-year outdated Administrative Plan, which had not been updated since 2017.

The new administrative plan was adopted in November 2025. The revised plan aligns with HOTMA, NSPIRE, and current PIH guidance. It clarifies eligibility, preferences, portability, SPVs, NSPIRE enforcement and abatements, and RAD PBV/PBV owner responsibilities. It reestablishes SHA’s role in providing oversight of all HCV waiting lists, including its role in RAD PBV/PBV Contract Administration and Choice Mobility.

One of the significant regulatory challenges: the old “2017” plan contained RAD PBRA language where RAD PBV should have applied, despite SHA facilitating two RAD PBV/LIHTC conversions in 2020, $8 million for Matthews Court (senior development) and $22 million for Garden Street and Gilmore Terrace (family developments). This mismatch explained inconsistent practices and audit exposure, especially after experiencing a 2016 HUD OIG finding for its HCV Program.

Moreover, the SHA staff were not fulfilling their Contract Administrator role, and the board lacked clarity on governance responsibilities for both SHA and its nonprofit affiliate, Central Carolina Strategic Developers. External compliance gaps compounded the problem: missing waiting list management files for the PBV HAP Contract with the Harnett Training School, and no formal HUD approval for allocating HCVs to a TBRA HOPWA Program with Duke University’s Partners in Caring.

SEMAP History: Owning the Discrepancy and Fixing the System
Publicly documenting SEMAP performance was critical to restoring trust. "Based on my moral compass, we requested that HUD revise our FYE2024 score from 100 High Performer to 72 Standard Performer," Dr. Threatt said. For FYE2022, SHA scored 82 (Standard Performer); in FYE2023, 86 (Standard Performer). Currently, the preliminary FYE2025 scoring reflected a Troubled rating at 57, but after PIC system analysis, it could be revised to 82 (Standard Performer).

Knowledge, Skills, & Abilities (KSAs): Building Capacity Through Training
When Dr. Threatt arrived on the scene in December 2024, only 7 of 24 team members held affordable housing certifications. Today, that number has doubled to 14, a milestone he calls “a compliance game changer for SHA’s future.”

“Effective agencies invest in training,” said Dr. Threatt. “Certification ensures staff have the knowledge, skills, and abilities to deliver excellence in program compliance.”

SHA will host a Recertification Bootcamp in January 2026, facilitated by EnCompliance Consulting, focused on SEMAP indicators, income calculations, case management fundamentals, and file review. These efforts support Roadmap 2030’s HR Goal to ensure that staff have continuous professional development.

Community Outreach: Special Purpose Vouchers (SPVs)
On December 10, 2025, SHA hosted its first Community Lunch & Learn at Outreach Mission Inc.’s Samuel J. Wornom – SECU Community Shelter in Sanford. The event brought together community partners, service providers, and advocates for a collaborative discussion on affordable housing solutions. Highlights included navigating SHA’s new website; understanding the online application and new administrative plan chapters on waiting list preferences in SHA’s HCV Program; and best practices for partnerships between Continuums of Care (CoCs) and public housing authorities (PHAs) to create SPVs.

“Although we inherited HCV Program challenges, we plan to pursue special-purpose vouchers for DV victims, foster youth, non-elderly disabled, and those with mental health or substance abuse challenges,” said Dr. Threatt.

As President-Elect of the SouthEast Regional Section 8 Housing Association, Inc. (SERSHA), one of Dr. Threatt’s goals is to ensure HCV Programs across the Southeast maximize their allocation of SPVs.

With Roadmap 2030 as its guide, SHA is poised to achieve measurable outcomes: improve SEMAP scores, expand housing opportunities, and cultivate a culture of training and compliance.

Karoll Kuri
Sanford Housing Authority
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What is the Veteran Affairs Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH) program?

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