Housing Inspections Department

The Housing Inspections Department of the Housing Authority of the City of Winston-Salem provides professional inspections services for Public Housing, Affordable Housing, and the Section 8 Program. The Housing Authority programs include approximately 1,100 units of Public Housing, 600 units of Alternative Housing Properties, and 4,500 units of Section 8 Program units, which are located throughout the City of Winston-Salem and Forsyth County .

The mission of the department is to ensure that residents live in hazard-free communities in both the grounds and in the units in which they reside. It is the department's responsibility to ensure that through the inspection process, residents reside in housing that is safe, decent, sanitary and in good repair. An Administrative Specialist and six (6) trained Housing Inspectors staff the Inspections Department. This department conducts approximately 12,000 inspections per year.

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What is a HQS Inspection?

The Section 8 Program Units are inspected using the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) inspection protocol known as Housing Quality Standards (HQS). The Inspections Department is responsible for conducting four (4) types of inspections under the HQS protocol:

• Initial Inspections: which are done before occupancy of the units.
• Annual Inspections: which are done annually throughout occupancy of the units.
• Special Inspections: which are conducted based on verified complaints of unsafe living conditions from the resident(s) or owner(s) of the property.
• Quality Control Inspections: are inspections conducted on a designated number of units by Housing Authority management annually to insure uniformity and consistency of the inspections staff.

What is an UPCS inspection?

The Public Housing units inspection protocol is also a HUD mandate it is called the Uniform Physical Condition Standard (UPCS) inspection. There are 476 inspectable items on the UPCS inspection. The UPCS criteria concentrates on five (5) major areas:

1. Site: Fences, lighting, sidewalks, litter, graffiti, overgrown vegetation and etc.
2. Building Exterior: Storm and screen doors, window screens, mounted lighting, roofing, vents, handrails, porches, exterior walls and etc.
3. Building Systems: Plumbing, HVAC, electrical, call-for-aid systems
4. Common Area: All areas that the staff and residents have access to during a normal day (Daycare centers, maintenance shops, mechanical rooms, office buildings
5. Dwelling Unit: All areas on the interior of the unit (Livingroom, kitchen, bathroom, bedrooms) and all other rooms used for living.