Self-help housing resources
General resources
- Funding Policy for Section 523 Grants for Fiscal Year 2019
- USDA Administration Notice AN no. 4842 – Self-Help Technical Assistance Grants High Risk Determination
- USDA Administration Notice AN No. 4840 – Supervised and Bank Accounts and Custodial Accounts Used in Conjunction with Self-Help Technical Assistance Grants
- USDA Administration Notice AN No. 4831 – Self-Help Rehabilitation Program Guidance Acquisition and Owner-Occupied Rehabilitation Projects
- USDA Administrative Notice AN No. 4828 – Self-Help Technical Assistance Grant Application Processing
- USDA Administrative Notice AN No. 4827 – Self-Help Technical Assistance Grant Extensions and Final Evaluation
- USDA Administrative Notice (AN) AN No. 4252 – Subject: Indirect Costing
- USDA Administrative Notice Feb. 14, 2013 – New Homes Constructed Under Specific Energy Efficiency Programs as a Compensating Factor
- 502/504 Applicant Video Orientation Guide
- Form RD 3550-23 Applicant Orientation Guide
- Form RD 2006-38 — Rural Development Environmental Justice and Civil Rights Impact Analysis Certification
- Form RD 400-8 — Compliance Review
- Single Family Housing Direct USDA banded income pilot—new income limits interactive map
- SH Application Instructions and Forms Links – March 2017
- Modest Housing Determination letter, Feb. 4, 2014
- Generic Building Group Membership and Labor Agreement (posted 4-6-10)
- RCAC SHARES Crib Sheet, revised 3-10
- Self-Help Housing Fact Sheet
RD regulations and guidance forms
Due to technical problems, some of the RD forms are no longer available to outside staff on the USDA website. Until the accessibility problems are resolved, you can download the forms you need for your application here or contact your local RD office. For a complete and up-to-date listing of the forms and regulations, please go to the USDA website here: http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/RegulationsAndGuidance.html.
523 Grant
- SF-424 Application for Federal Assistance (Exp. 12/31/22)
- SF-424A Budget Information Non-Construction Programs (Exp. 2/28/22)
- SF-425 Federal Financial Report
- SF-425 Instructions
- SF-270 Request for Advance or Reimbursement
- FORM AD-1047, Certification Regarding Debarment, Suspension, and Other Responsibility Matters – Primary Covered Transactions (Exp. 4/30/22)
- FORM AD-1049, Certification Regarding Drug-Free Workplace Requirements (Exp. 4/30/22)
- FORM RD 1940-1, Request for Obligation of Funds
- FORM RD 400-4, Assurance Agreement
502 Direct Loan
SH housing training guides
- SHARES Handbook – April 2022
- Orientation Handbook – 2022
- Accounting for Individual Borrower 502 Loan Accounts Handbook – 2020
- Acquisition and Owner Occupied Rehabilitation Handbook – 2020
- Board of Directors Governance Guide – 2021
- Construction Supervisors Handbook – 2019
- Feasibility Handbook – 2021
- Financial Management Handbook for Federally Funded Organizations – 2019
- Group Coordinator Handbook – 2019
- Pre-construction Meeting Handbook – 2020
- Program Director Handbook – 2019
- Section 523 Technical Assistance Grant Application Handbook – 2022
- Self-Help 502 Loan Guidebook – 2020
Free financial tools and trainings for grantee fiscal staff
Welcome to the Self-Help Financial Tool Kit! We hope that you will find these resources useful in your daily financial management responsibilities. If you have any questions or issues with content, please email Samantha Bowley, Financial Management Specialist, sbowley@rcac.org.
Uniform Guidance Hide & Seek: Each month we will pose a compliance questions. See if you can find the answer in the eCFR200.
- NOVEMBER – What are the two methods of INFORMAL procurement? What are the two methods of FORMAL procurement? What circumstances allow for NONCOMPETITIVE procurement? Click here to see the answers
- DECEMBER – What is the definition of “Equipment” per the Uniform Guidance?
Video Highlight
Upcoming trainings
There are no trainings at this time. Please check back later or view our Training Calendar.
Tools & Resources
Mutual Self-Help Orientation
An overview of the Mutual Self-Help Program. What is is, how it works and the relationships between USDA RD, RCAC and you, the grantee. Live orientation sessions are offered quarterly (see Upcoming Trainings above)
1-1 – New Staff Resources | 1-2 – New Staff Orientation PowerPoint slides
Uniform Guidance
Compliance, What You Need to Know
Next UG session: Please check back later for upcoming trainings.
eCFR200 – Uniform Administration Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards
2-1 – Uniform Guidance Table of Contents Reference
2-2 – Ready, Set, Action Plan handout
2-3 – UG Day 1 PowerPoint slides (8/23/2022)
2-4 – UG Day 2 PowerPoint slides (8/25/2022)
2-5 – Action Plan answers
2-6 – Rules and Regulations (Sing Along Video)
Indirect
Indirect is a challenging component of financial grant management.
Learn all about the mysteries of applying indirect (both provisional and final), reporting requirements and monitoring your percentage rate.
Indirect Training PowerPoint slides | Indirect Cost Allocation Spreadsheet Tool
ICR Sample Documents from a DOI ICR Calculation submission:
- 3-1 – Sample nonprofit proposal checklist
- 3-2 – Sample cover letter (Part I: Narrative and certificates)
- 3-3 – Sample excel file (Part II: Cost schedules)
ARTICLE: Cost Allocation & Applying Indirect – Judy Monteux (2018)
Bookkeeping 101
Accounting For Success | Setting Up Your 523 & 502 Books (see Upcoming trainings above).
Set up your Chart of Accounts, generate accurate reports in both 523 technical grant management and the 502 custodial account books for family builder’s loan funds. The platform used is Quickbooks, but concepts will apply to any financial software.
MSH Custodial Accounts & Supervised Bank Accounts
The guidebooks for custodial and supervised bank accounts is here!
Discover all the how-to’s of responsible financial management of the family loan funds.
8-1 – Custodial SBA Loan Account Guidebook (7/13/2022) | 8-2 – Custodial SBA Accounts PowerPoint slides (7/27/2022)
8-3 – Sample Lot 15 BTA | 8-4 – Sample Draw Request Form | 8-5 – Sample Back Up | 8-6 – Sample Reconciliation Sheet
Financial Policies & Procedures
Your financial policies and procedures are an essential component of your financial management system. Ensure that all the processes, responsible parties and clear practices are recorded, trained to and actively monitored and updated.
