371
FW 4, Challenging Quarters Rental Rates
371
FW 4, Challenging Quarters Rental Rates
4.2 Incorrect Classification.
A. The Service notifies the tenant of his/her initial rent and any subsequent rent changes by providing a package of forms that includes a printout of the quarters inventory data. The printout shows itemized rent adjustments based on inventory data. The Service also provides a Rent Computation Schedule, Form DI 1880, that includes itemized administrative adjustments and appliance, furniture, and utility charges and credits.
B. If a tenant has reason to believe that any of the inventory data affecting the rent or adjustments, charges, and credits related thereto are incorrect, he/she may ask the station manager to correct the matter and send the correction to the Regional Quarters Officer (RQO). The RQO shall make a determination using the floor plans often available in the Regional realty or engineering files.
(1) If an inaccuracy is confirmed that affects the rent, the RQO shall recompute the rent based on the revised inventory data.
(2) If the error has occurred because the floor plans are not current or available the RQO shall obtain floor plans from the station and recompute the rent.
(3) If the recomputation results in a lower rental rate, the difference is refunded back to the last rent notice that included inventory data.
(4) If the recomputation results in a higher rental rate, the tenant immediately begins paying the higher rate.
C. In accordance with paragraph 1.5D the RQO reviews Requests for Reconsideration of rental rates and makes the final determination of facts relating to inventory or comparable rental data for the Service.
4.3 Regional Survey Base Rent Significantly Exceeds Comparable Local Rents. All Department of the Interior and most other Federal civilian housing units (quarters) have their base rent set by an Interdepartmental Regional Survey process. This process consists of gathering information for comparable rentals in four housing categories (i.e., single family houses, apartments, mobile homes, and trailer pads) in established communities closest to concentrations of quarters in the survey area and statistically analyzing them to derive rent formulas.
A. If a tenant believes that the rental rates in the survey area are significantly higher (10 percent or more) than the local rates of housing comparable to his/her unit, he/she may file a written Request for Reconsideration regarding his/her rent. This request must be accompanied by the rates for at least three comparable rental units that are documented on Form DI 1873, Private Rental Survey, and that have been gathered from the nearest established community. The written request and other required documentation is sent directly to the RQO.
B. The RQO will compute the Regional survey rent for the comparable housing. If the Regional survey rental rates for the comparables submitted by the tenant are significantly higher than the actual rents of the comparables, the RQO will arrange to have other private comparables collected from the nearest established community.
C. Comparable rental rates should be independently collected by either Regional Realty personnel, contract real estate agents, or appraisers. Any comparable rental rates originally collected by a tenant must be reverified.
D. New comparables will also have their Regional survey rent computed and compared to their actual rent. If these comparables confirm that the rents in the nearest established community are significantly lower than the Regional survey rents, the DI 1873's and analyses of comparables must be sent to the National Quarters Officer (NQO). If the NQO concurs in the conclusion, he/she sends the comparables and analyses to the Departmental Quarters Manager (DQM), along with a recommendation for a negative location adjustment for that housing class using that established community.
E. If the DQM agrees that a negative location adjustment is warranted, he/she informs the Service of the adjustment.
F. If the DQM reaffirms the existing rental rates, he/she informs the NQO of the decision and of the employee's right to appeal this decision. The NQO ensures that the employee receives written notice of his/her appeal rights and of the procedures for initiating such an appeal.
G. In accordance with 400 17.4 a written appeal must be sent within 30 days of the receipt of a decision to the Office of Hearings and Appeals, 4015 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA 22203.