[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 240 (Monday, December 15, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 74105-74107]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-29308]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

[Docket No. FR-5752-N-105]


30-Day Notice of Proposed Information Collection: Pre-Purchase 
Homeownership Counseling Demonstration and Impact Evaluation

AGENCY: Office of the Chief Information Officer, HUD.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: HUD has submitted the proposed information collection 
requirement described below to the Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB) for review, in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act. The 
purpose of this notice is to allow for an additional 30 days of public 
comment.

DATES: Comments Due Date: January 14, 2015.

[[Page 74106]]


ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments regarding 
this proposal. Comments should refer to the proposal by name and/or OMB 
Control Number and should be sent to: HUD Desk Officer, Office of 
Management and Budget, New Executive Office Building, Washington, DC 
20503; fax: 202-395-5806. Email: [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Colette Pollard, Reports Management 
Officer, QDAM, Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451 7th 
Street SW., Washington, DC 20410; email at Colette [email protected] or 
telephone 202-402-3400. Persons with hearing or speech impairments may 
access this number through TTY by calling the toll-free Federal Relay 
Service at (800) 877-8339. This is not a toll-free number. Copies of 
available documents submitted to OMB may be obtained from Ms. Pollard.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice informs the public that HUD has 
submitted to OMB a request for approval of the information collection 
described in Section A.
    The Federal Register notice that solicited public comment on the 
information collection for a period of 60 days was published on March 
10, 2014.

A. Overview of Information Collection

    Title of Information Collection: Pre-Purchase Homeownership 
Counseling Demonstration and Impact Evaluation.
    OMB Approval Number: 2528-0293.
    Type of Request: Revision.
    Form Number: None.
    Description of the need for the information and proposed use: The 
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is conducting an 
important national study of the effectiveness of pre-purchase 
homeownership counseling services. This request covers several data 
collection activities: (a) Administering an interim survey to study 
participants; (b) recruiting study participants to participate in focus 
groups and conducting the focus groups to collect qualitative data; \1\ 
(c) collecting consent from co-borrowers of study participants; \2\ (d) 
continuing to collect loan origination and servicing data from lenders 
and service tracking data from counseling agencies; and (e) continuing 
to collect updated tracking information from study participants. The 
interim survey will be administered 12 months after participants 
complete the baseline survey. The interim survey will provide the first 
comparison of study participants' characteristics from the baseline 
survey. The information collected through the focus groups will be used 
to support the implementation analysis and to collect qualitative 
information about study participants' experiences with pre-purchase 
homeownership counseling services. The collection of consent from study 
participants' co-borrowers is necessary to allow the study to collect 
data related to the characteristics and performance of study 
participants' mortgage loans. As part of OMB approval # 2528-0293, the 
study collects data from participating counseling agencies on services 
that study participants receive. The study also collects study 
participants' loan origination and service tracking data from the 
study's three participating lenders for loans that do not have a co-
borrower. Lastly, the study collects updated study participant contact 
information and other tracking data in order locate study participants 
for the interim survey and for future surveys. Maintaining contact with 
study participants over time is critical to minimizing attrition and 
ensuring high response rates to the follow-up surveys. We study seek to 
continue the collection of service tracking data, loan origination and 
servicing data, and tracking information past the # 2528-0293 
expiration date.
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    \1\ This activity has been modified from OMB Approval #2528-
0293. The study requests to conduct focus groups with study 
participants instead of individual telephone interviews.
    \2\ This activity has been modified from OMB Approval #2528-
0293. The study has revised the co-borrower consent form and 
requests approval for the revised form.
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    Respondents: i.e. affected public): Up to 6,000 study participants; 
approximately 1,800 co-borrowers; 64 counseling organizations; and, 
staff at 3 lenders. The average time per study participant (up to 6,000 
study participants) to complete the interim survey is 35 minutes. A 
total of up to 144 study participants will participate in 12 focus 
groups of 8-12 participants each. Each focus group will take 
approximately 120 minutes. Prior to the focus groups, the study team 
will contact eligible study participants in three cities to request 
participation in a focus group and confirm eligibility information. The 
recruitment calls are estimated to take approximately 5 minutes per 
person. The study's enrollment projections suggest that the three 
largest study sites will include approximately 720 eligible study 
participants, although recruitment will end sooner if the available 
focus group slots are filled. The collection of co-borrower consent 
involves including the co-borrower consent form in the study's regular 
tracking letters, along with a request for the co-borrower to review, 
sign, and return the written consent form. For co-borrowers who do not 
return the written form, the study will also be able to collect consent 
verbally at the time of the interim survey and during phone calls with 
the co-borrower. The study estimates that approximately 1,800 study 
participants will have co-borrowers. The co-borrowers' review of the 
co-borrower consent information and completion of the consent process 
is estimated to require approximately 5 minutes per co-borrower. The 
average time per client for counseling agencies to document the 
services provided to study participants is 10 minutes, with responses 
required for both the educational component and for the counseling 
services. The average time for lenders to prepare study participants' 
loan origination and performance data for the study team is 60 minutes. 
The study team will ask for this data at 6 points during the next 3 
years from each lender. The study mails study tracking letters 2-3 
times per year. The average time for study participants' review of the 
letters and return of the tracking form is 5 minutes. The total burden 
for the study is 9,666 hours: 8,348 hours for study participants, 150 
hours for co-borrowers, 1,150 hours for counseling agencies, and 18 
hours for lenders.

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                                                                                                Burden
                                                          Number of    Frequency   Responses    minutes      Total      Annual      Hourly      Annual
                 Information collection                  respondents      of       per annum      per       burden      burden     cost per      cost
                                                                       response                response      hours       hours     response
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Interim Survey.........................................        6,000           1           1          35       3,500       3,500         $35    $210,000
Focus group recruitment calls..........................          720           1           1           5          60          60          25       1,500
Focus groups...........................................          144           1           1         120         288         288          25       7,200
Co-borrower consent form...............................        1,800           1           1           5         150         150          25       3,750

[[Page 74107]]

 
Loan origination and performance data: Lenders.........            3           6           2          60          18           6          35         630
Service tracking information: Housing counseling               3,450           2           1          10       1,150       1,150          25      28,750
 agencies..............................................
Tracking Letter........................................        6,000           9           3           5       4,500       1,500           5     270,000
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    Total..............................................       18,117          21          10  ..........       9,666       6,654  ..........     521,830
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B. Solicitation of Public Comment

    This notice is soliciting comments from members of the public and 
affected parties concerning the collection of information described in 
Section A on the following:
    (1) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for 
the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including 
whether the information will have practical utility;
    (2) The accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the 
proposed collection of information;
    (3) Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and
    (4) Ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on 
those who are to respond; including through the use of appropriate 
automated collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses.
    HUD encourages interested parties to submit comment in response to 
these questions.

    C. Authority: Section 3507 of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 
1995, 44 U.S.C. Chapter 35.

    Date: December 9, 2014
Colette Pollard,
Department Reports Management Officer, Office of the Chief Information 
Officer.
[FR Doc. 2014-29308 Filed 12-12-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4210-67-P