Resident Management

Resident Management Defined

Resident management refers to the financial and operational management of low-income housing, including public and subsidized housing, by a nonprofit organization composed of residents. The resident management movement began in the 1960s as a result of rent strikes at Pruitt-Igoe, a St. Louis, Missouri, public housing project most famous for its 1972 demolition. Among other issues, residents of Pruitt-Igoe were dissatisfied with the public housing authority's grossly negligent management practices. In 1969, the eighth Circuit Court of Appeals approved a consent decree that mandated the establishment of a public housing tenant affairs board consisting of members from project-based tenant management corporations (TMCs). The purpose of [Page 602]the tenant affairs board was to give public housing residents more of a voice in the management of low-income housing communities and in the arbitration of disputes occurring within these communities.

Tenant Management Corporations (TMCs) Defined

TMCs are nonprofit corporations that have entered into contracts with public housing authorities (PHAs) to manage public housing communities. The management functions of TMCs include but are not restricted to tenant selection, rent collection, and the authorization of building maintenance. TMCs must obtain fidelity bonding and insurance or equivalent protection as mandated by the secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the PHA. TMCs enter into contractual relationships with the local PHAs to establish the mutual obligations of both the TMC and the PHA in the management of subsidized and public housing by residents.

Early Support for TMCs by Nonprofit Organizations

As a result of these early efforts, the Ford Foundation, in cooperation with the federal government, sponsored a national demonstration project to promote resident management in public housing agencies across the United States. The Ford Foundation gave a $130,000 grant to train resident managers in St. Louis subsequent to the consent decree in the Pruitt-Igoe case. These resident managers took responsibility for the management of buildings or blocks within low-income housing developments. These efforts were further developed by the National Center for Neighborhood Enterprise in the 1980s. The NCNE provided technical assistance and training to new and existing resident management groups.

Congressional Support for Resident Management by TMCs

In 1990, Congress amended the National Housing Act, solidifying the role of TMCs in resident management. As part of this initiative, Congress authorized HUD to provide technical assistance funds to local PHAs for the creation of TMCs. The TMC movement was thus the centerpiece of HUD Secretary Jack Kemp's privatization agenda.

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