Federal programs & compliance
URA (Uniform Relocation Act)
Federal acquisition and relocation protections — notices, advisory services, moving costs and replacement-housing payments on federally assisted projects.
Definition
The Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Policies Act of 1970 (42 U.S.C. ch. 61) sets nationwide rules for projects using federal financial assistance that acquire real property or displace people. Acquisitions require appraisal-based just-compensation procedures; displaced occupants are owed advance notices, relocation advisory services, moving-cost payments, and replacement-housing payments — for residential tenants, rental assistance computed over a 42-month period.
The government-wide regulations sit at 49 C.F.R. Part 24; HUD programs (HOME, CDBG, HTF, project-based assistance) apply them through HUD Handbook 1378, and Section 104(d) adds one-for-one replacement of demolished low/mod units on CDBG and HOME projects.
Why it matters in an underwrite
URA attaches the moment federal money touches an occupied acquisition, rehab or demolition — and it is both a budget line and a sequencing constraint. Relocation payments scale with local rent gaps and tenant counts, so an occupied building in a high-rent market can carry a substantial relocation budget; and procedural missteps (late notices, negotiating without required disclosures) create liability and can jeopardize the federal funding itself. Hire a relocation consultant and build the tenant-by-tenant plan before committing funds.
Sources & related guides
See also
See the term in the law itself
Read the controlling text in the Code Library, or ask the AI how it applies to your project.
Last reviewed 2026-07-29. General information, not legal advice.