Tag: housing

Federal funding announced to combat housing instability in Wyandotte County and 3rd District

U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids, D-3rd Dist., has announced that NeighborWorks America awarded $146,557 to Community Housing of Wyandotte County (CHWC) to provide counseling for households in the 3rd District of Kansas who are facing housing instability.

CHWC offers free and low-cost housing counseling, financial education, and purchase assistance for families.

This grant was awarded through the Housing Stability Counseling Program, which was created with funds from the American Rescue Plan. Rep. Davids is the only member of the Kansas delegation to vote for the American Rescue Plan.

“The pandemic put millions of people at risk of losing their homes and searching for assistance. Through the American Rescue Plan, help is here,” Rep. Davids said. “This grant will allow Community Housing of Wyandotte County to increase their capacity to counsel and support folks in our district who are facing housing instability, helping more families keep their homes and get back on their feet financially.”

“The HCSP grant award will provide much-needed support for CHWC’s critical effort to keep Kansas City, Kansas families safely housed as we work beside our neighbors navigating the ongoing impact of COVID-19 in our community. We thank Congresswoman Davids for her advocacy for housing and neighborhood development in KCK neighborhoods,” said Brennan Crawford, executive director and CEO of Community Housing of Wyandotte County.

With funding from the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, NeighborWorks America designed the Housing Stability Counseling Program (HSCP). The program aims to help eligible nonprofits and agencies provide direct housing counseling services to individuals and families facing housing instability, such as eviction, foreclosure and homelessness.

Eligible HUD-approved intermediaries, state housing finance agencies (HFAs), and NeighborWorks network organizations applied for HSCP funding in June. The 131 recipients include 84 NeighborWorks network organizations, 18 HFAs, and 29 HUD-approved intermediaries. Each of these HUD-approved housing counseling agencies are set to assist consumers with foreclosure and eviction prevention and access to federal, state and local relief programs. HSCP will provide grants to more than 600 nonprofit counseling agencies and nearly 81,000 people will receive housing stability counseling. HSCP counseling will be provided in all 50 states including the District of Columbia and the U.S. Territories of Puerto Rico and Guam.

Federal funding for this grant was authorized by the American Rescue Plan Act, which Rep. Davids voted to support earlier this year. NeighborWorks America is a national, nonpartisan nonprofit that offers grant funding, peer exchange, technical assistance, evaluation tools, and access to training as the nation’s leading trainer of housing and community development professionals.

BPU now helping with KERA rental and utility application process

Rent, utility and internet-access assistance offered

The Kansas Emergency Rental Assistance (KERA) program was launched on March 15. This state program is accepting applications to provide rent, utility, and internet-access assistance to households experiencing financial hardships due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The KERA program application deadline is May 1, 2022.

The Kansas City, Kansas, Board of Public Utilities will help in the application process by verifying if the household qualifies for assistance, will review the requirements and documents needed for renters and landlords to apply and will track their application status after the application is submitted, a BPU spokesman stated.

Customers needing assistance in the application process may call a special dedicated line at 913-573-9123 or email at [email protected] and a BPU KERA advocate will assist them in this detailed application process.

The KERA assistance covers up to 12 months of rent and rental arrears (money past due), up to three months of prospective rent at a time, even if the household does not have rental arrears, and past due residential utility and home energy (electric, gas, water, sewer and trash services), and internet costs.

The KERA program is funded through the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2021, which provided the state of Kansas nearly $200 million in rental assistance funding. The Kansas Housing Resources Corporation (KHRC) serves as the administrator of the majority of these funds through the KERA program.

Those eligible to apply include tenants who rent their home, tenants whose 2020 household income did not exceed 80% of the area’s median income, households where at least one member is experiencing documented financial hardship as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, or at least one member of the household is uncertain of where they will stay or may become homeless without housing assistance.

To apply for the program, both the tenant and their landlord must apply online via a joint application process. The landlord completes online certification and the tenant submits the online application. The landlord and tenant are then notified when the application is processed. If approved, the landlord and or/service provider receive funds directly from the Kansas Housing Resources Corporation (KHRC). The landlord and or/service provider than applies assistance to the tenant’s account.

To learn more about the Kansas Emergency Rental Assistance Program, the qualification and application process, visit the KHRC website at https://kshousingcorp.org/emergency-rental-assistance/ or call them at 785-217-2001.

The process after application for BPU customers: When a customer makes an application for these funds from the state of Kansas, the customer will receive a proof of prequalified application notice back from the state just identifying the application as submitted.

Applicants must notify BPU Customer Service as soon as they receive the email application notice from the state. BPU will allow the customer to receive service for 30 days or more without disconnection while it works with the state of Kansas to gain a better understanding of the KERA’s process and adjust accordingly.

If the customer’s prequalified application is rejected, the customer must also contact BPU and the utility will advise the customer on making application for other assistance they may qualify for. When BPU customers receive their application notice, they should not only call customer service at 913-573-9190 but also send their notice from the state to [email protected].

BPU customers are encouraged to stay current with their bills to avoid getting too far behind and if anyone has any BPU billing or customer service questions, they can call 913-573-9190 and a utility representative is available to assist, the BPU spokesman stated.

  • Information from BPU

Thousands of Kansans face threat of eviction as pandemic exposes housing crisis

by Noah Taborda and Shelton Brown, Kansas Reflector

Topeka — Sheena Mooney has spent the past year without a job or a safety net living in a trailer park a few miles from Washburn.

Mooney lost her job at Frito-Lay in March 2020, a job she enjoyed, fell behind on her rent and was evicted that August. She applied for unemployment but did not qualify, and her eviction was subsequently approved between May 26, 2020, when the state’s eviction moratorium expired, and Aug. 17, 2020, when Gov. Laura Kelly’s new order went into effect.

“I don’t like telling people my business, you know. This was something that needed to be heard,” Mooney said. “How did this happen? How was I able to fall through the cracks and get no help?”

Mooney is one of the thousands who have been evicted or are facing the threat of eviction during the pandemic in Kansas. She joined Kansas housing advocates on a new episode of the Kansas Reflector podcast to discuss the realities of renting amid COVID-19.

Estimates from the Kansas Housing Resources Corporation indicate more than 27,000 Kansas are currently behind on their rent, and estimates from Zillow show about 14,600 renters are at risk of eviction.

Federal and state moratoriums have provided temporary relief for those who can prove they are unable to pay rent because of COVID-19 related circumstances, but the narrow scope has left many without protection. Even during the moratorium period, evictions proceeded in some areas.

Dave Patel, who comanages the Motel 6 in Topeka with his wife, said he has seen an influx of people staying at his hotel because of lost housing.

Vince Munoz, an organizer for the tenant advocacy group Rent Zero Kansas, said without substantive change, many more will be removed from their homes with nowhere to turn.

“Even those of us who do have a little bit of stability, we’re all just kind of teetering on the edge and we really deserve to be in a place as people where we’re not just one emergency or social issue away from losing our housing,” Munoz said.

One option available to both renters and landlords looking for relief is the Kansas Emergency Rental Assistance program. The initiative led by the Kansas Housing Resources Corporation is intended to provide rent, utility and internet assistance to households experiencing hardship because of the pandemic through a joint tenant-landlord application process.

Whether it’s an unwillingness from landlords to collaborate or the slow processing pace of applications, Munoz said, the program is insufficient. Recent KHRC data shows 6,593 of 14,607 applicants have been served so far.

The U.S. Treasury last month said just 11% of the $46.5 billion approved by Congress for emergency rental assistance had been allocated. Of the $5.1 billion that was spent, $1.7 billion was doled out during July.

KHRC executives said they are processing applications in seven to 10 days.

Ryan Vincent, KHRC’s executive director, said the organization is seeking feedback to inform a new housing initiative, this time for homeowners. The Kansas Homeowner Assistance Fund, established by the American Rescue Plan Act, will aim to prevent the displacement of homeowners experiencing financial hardship associated with the COVID-19 pandemic.

“In less than a year, we’ve provided almost $50 million in emergency rental assistance to Kansas renters, landlords and service providers,” Vincent said. “We’re proud to have helped more than 15,000 Kansas households avoid eviction and remain stably housed during the pandemic, but we know our state’s housing needs don’t stop with tenants. Kansas homeowners: Help is on the way.”

Kansas Reflector stories, at kansasreflector.com, may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0.

See more at https://kansasreflector.com/2021/09/06/thousands-of-kansans-face-threat-of-eviction-as-pandemic-exposes-housing-crisis/.