A housing inspection audit can identify serious failures without telling a resident where to report a leaking ceiling, missing alarm, unsafe wiring or an unresolved repair. This guide connects the September 2026 HANO audit to practical reporting routes and a printable record log. For a voucher-assisted home, notify the landlord and HANO case manager. For public housing, start with property management and use HANO’s public-housing maintenance escalation route.
Updated October 17, 2026. The audit concerns the Housing Choice Voucher program; its findings should not be treated as a condition report for every HANO property or every New Orleans rental.
What the audit found, and what HANO reported fixing
HUD’s Office of Inspector General issued Report 2026-CH-1002 on September 18, 2026. Its inspectors revisited 75 voucher units in January 2026, selected through a stratified sample from 1,963 units that had passed HANO contractor inspections between October 1 and November 26, 2025. The results below describe those audited units, not a new October inspection of the city’s rental stock. See the report’s printed pages 24–26 for sampling and projection methods.
Scroll horizontally to see all columns. Use the arrow keys when the table is focused.
| Record and date | What it establishes | What remains separate |
|---|---|---|
| OIG reinspection findings, January 2026 | 74 of 75 units had 591 deficiencies. In 70 units, 339 deficiencies predated the prior inspection. Sixty-six units had 303 life-threatening deficiencies requiring correction within 24 hours under the standards applied in the audit. | A particular home’s present condition requires its own inspection and repair records. A deficiency count is not a count of injured residents. |
| HANO management response, September 2, 2026 | HANO reported that, among 69 units with outstanding deficiencies as of May 8, 54 had been corrected, six had contract terminations and nine were in payment abatement. | This is HANO’s reported corrective action, not our independent verification of repairs. The response listed the recommendation as in progress. |
| Inspection oversight response, September 2, 2026 | HANO described an internal quality-control department, weekly contractor meetings and direct entry of inspection data into its system. | A promised procedure and a completed repair are different records. Residents should request the written result for their own unit. |
| Lead-related reporting finding | OIG found that tenants had reported 11 potential cases of elevated blood lead levels in children to the contractor without HANO knowing about the reports. | These were potential reported cases, not 11 medically confirmed poisonings established by this audit. |
A contractor-name discrepancy worth checking
HANO’s dated September 2 response identifies NMAI, LLC (Nan McKay & Associates) as assuming primary inspection operations on June 22, 2026. However, the public residents page still displayed an undated notice naming McCright & Associates when checked on October 17. Because the notices identify different contractors, ask HANO to confirm who will inspect your unit, the appointment date and the appropriate contact. Keep the response with your repair records.
Where to report a housing hazard
Scroll horizontally to see all columns. Use the arrow keys when the table is focused.
| Situation | Reporting route | Record to keep |
|---|---|---|
| Immediate danger or an injury needing emergency assistance | Seek emergency assistance, including 911 when appropriate. A routine inspection request is not an emergency response. | Incident number, time, responders and the condition observed from a safe location. |
| Housing Choice Voucher / Section 8 unit | Notify the landlord or property manager and your HANO case manager. HANO’s main number is 504-670-3300; ask for HCV inspection or case-management assistance and confirm the assigned contractor. | Your written notice, delivery confirmation, case-manager name and inspection request number. |
| Public-housing maintenance problem | Contact your property management office first. HANO’s maintenance flyer directs residents who cannot reach management to 504-670-3300, option 1. Use the property’s posted emergency-maintenance contact after hours. | Management contact, work order, promised response and any escalation. |
| Rental housing standards complaint to the city | Use 311 or NOLA 311. The Healthy Homes renter page lists [email protected] for enforcement questions. | Service-request number, submitted photographs, inspection notice and follow-up date. |
| Concern about a child’s possible lead exposure | Contact the child’s healthcare provider and follow Louisiana Department of Health guidance. Also notify the landlord and HANO through an appropriate private channel so the housing concern reaches responsible staff. | Dates of notifications and copies of relevant records; keep medical information out of public complaint narratives. |
The HANO fraud hotline serves suspected fraud or program abuse. It should not replace a repair request to the landlord, case manager or property manager. The HANO police number likewise is not a substitute for arranging a housing inspection.
Build one record that follows the problem
Download the two-page housing-hazard and repair log (PDF)
The two-page log records the condition, an incident if one occurred, notice to the responsible people, and each follow-up. Completing it does not submit a complaint. Keep your copy and submit the actual request through the appropriate channel above.
- Describe the condition concretely: the room, exact location, what happens, and when you first observed it. Distinguish your own observations from what someone else told you.
- Save original photographs and videos, with both a room view and a close view when safe. Do not disturb damaged materials or expose yourself to a hazard to obtain evidence.
- Preserve the repair request and proof of delivery. After a phone call, write down the time, person reached and response; a brief written follow-up can preserve what you requested.
- Keep inspection results, failure notices, repair appointments and reinspection results together. Ask for the condition identified, responsible party and stated correction date in writing.
- Record whether the repair actually resolved the problem. A closed ticket, a contractor visit and a successful reinspection are different events.
- If there was an injury or financial loss, retain relevant treatment records, receipts and wage records separately. A log records events; it does not diagnose illness or establish causation.
Which inspection standard and deadline apply?
The audit’s printed page 2 says HANO elected to move its voucher program to NSPIRE on February 1, 2027, and that NSPIRE did not govern the audit. HUD’s July 2026 voucher-program notice, PIH 2026-18 confirms that compliance date and explains exceptions to the extension. Do not import public-housing NSPIRE procedures into a voucher case or assume every requirement was postponed. Obtain the actual inspection notice, classification and correction deadline for your unit.
The audit’s 24-hour references describe life-threatening deficiencies under the rules applied to that audit. They are not a promise that every maintenance complaint will be repaired within 24 hours. Report urgent conditions promptly and make their seriousness clear.
Repairs, voucher payments and an injury claim are different issues
HANO’s decision to stop its housing-assistance payment to an owner is a program-enforcement action. It is not, by itself, permission for a tenant to stop paying the tenant’s share. The HCV program page lists paying the tenant share on time among participant responsibilities. Get advice about your own lease and notice before withholding rent or assuming that an abatement changes what you owe.
Louisiana Civil Code article 2688 requires a tenant to notify the lessor without delay when the property is damaged or needs repair. Article 2696 addresses the lessor’s warranty of suitability and freedom from covered defects; article 2697 includes unknown defects and explains how a tenant’s failure to notify can affect recovery. Article 2699 limits warranty waivers, including a residential waiver concerning defects that seriously affect health or safety.
An individual claim still requires analysis of the relevant defendant, legal duty, condition, causation and loss, including notice or knowledge where the particular legal theory requires it. The audit alone does not prove that a specific defect injured a particular resident, or that every contractor, owner or agency is liable. Preserve the lease, notices and unit-level evidence so those questions can be evaluated.
Authorities and reporting information
The findings above come from the OIG audit and HANO’s response. The reporting instructions draw on HANO, city and HUD guidance available October 17, 2026. Conditions at an individual unit may have changed since the audit. A resident’s remedies depend on the current condition, the housing program, the lease, and the notice provided to the responsible parties.
Related Louisiana guidance. For related housing records, see our guide to utility shutoffs when the landlord collects the payment. Our fire-safety approval and inspection guide explains how to distinguish a building’s plans, approvals, and occupancy records. Browse the full Louisiana Legal Research collection for additional topics.