HUD data show that housing voucher recipients statewide last year waited nearly two years to get the rental subsidies, and researchers say it’s important to point out that many people in need of the aid do not get it.
Credit: HANDOUT
Credit: HANDOUT
Researchers and housing advocates say there’s not enough funding in the HUD program to meet the need, and long waits for vouchers often expose individuals and families to hardships like housing instability, eviction, overcrowded living situations and homelessness.
“Given the terrible shortage of affordable housing and the large and growing gap between renters’ wages and the rising cost of rent, demand for housing vouchers is enormous, as evidenced by years-long waitlists in Montgomery County and throughout the U.S.,” said Marcus Roth, communications and development director for the Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio.
Greater Dayton Premier Management (GDPM) will start accepting applications for the Housing Choice Voucher Program waiting list at 8 a.m. Monday.
GDPM, the local public housing authority for Montgomery County, manages more than 2,700 housing units across the county and administers the Housing Choice Voucher Program, also known as Section 8.
Housing vouchers help low-income families, the elderly and people with disabilities pay for safe, well-maintained housing in the private market, GDPM said.
“Housing insecurity is a significant issue affecting many communities,” said Jennifer Heapy, CEO of GDPM. “Opening the waitlist ensures that those in need have the opportunity to access this crucial assistance.”
Applications will be accepted through Friday at 11:59 p.m. The forms must be filled out online at www.gdpm.org.
This will be the first time GDPM has opened a waiting list for new applications for Section 8 rental assistance since February 2022.
Before that, the agency last accepted applications for housing vouchers in November 2018.
During the last application period, more than 4,000 families and individuals applied. GDPM has nearly 4,600 housing vouchers to use in the community.
GDPM expects to exhaust the 2022 waitlist in the next three to six months. The current waitlist still has nearly 1,700 individuals and families.
Each waiting list is completely separate from the lists of past years.
Heapy said everyone who submits an application will be placed on the waitlist, and their eligibility for the federal housing assistance will be determined when their names are pulled.
She said the majority of people on the voucher waitlist eventually will get a voucher.
But she said some applicants may be denied aid because they do not meet income qualifications, they fail a criminal background check or they owe the housing authority money.
“The most common reason a family does not receive a voucher is because they fail to respond to notices to attend a voucher class in which they receive their paperwork to start their search,” she said.
Under the program, voucher recipients search for rental units in the private housing market that meet certain federal requirements related to safety and quality.
Landlords must agree to participate in the Section 8 program. Tenants usually cover a portion of the rental costs, while GDPM pays the difference.
GDPM on average paid a monthly voucher subsidy of about $602 in December. Subsidy amounts are determined by household income, size and composition.
Voucher recipients in about 33 Ohio counties last year on average had waited longer for the subsidies than recipients in Montgomery County. Of Ohio’s 88 counties, Ottawa County had the longest wait for recipients (68 months, or nearly seven years).
HUD’s data only captures how long voucher recipients spend on waitlists. The data does not show how long applicants who have not received assistance have waited.
Most people on voucher waitlists spent much more than they can afford on rent while they wait, said Roth, with the Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio.
Nearly 708,000 renters in Ohio spend more than half their income on rent, he said, which means any mishap such as a car accident, a trip to the hospital or a reduction in work hours can put these community members at imminent risk of eviction or even homelessness.
Many people in need never get rental assistance and many housing agencies have to close their waiting lists because they have grown so long, said Erik Gartland, a research analyst with the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities who has studied wait times for housing vouchers.
Wait times for housing vouchers are so long because the program is not funded at a level that meets the need, said Sonya Acosta, a senior policy analyst with the CBPP who studied this subject, along with Gartland.
About three out of every four eligible households do not receive any rental assistance due largely to funding limitations, she said.
She said that means millions of households that do not receive rental assistance continue to pay large shares of their incomes toward rent, which leaves less money to cover other necessities and that also makes them vulnerable to any sort of economic shock.
“The best way to reduce wait times in Dayton and across the country is to provide more funding for the Housing Choice Voucher program,” she said.
Roth said rent inflation puts existing housing vouchers at risk as Congress works to reconcile fiscal year 2024 appropriations bills.
He said current spending proposals would reduce the number of available vouchers despite the enormous need.
“Ohio stands to lose 4,400 vouchers under the U.S. House’s version, so we’re asking Ohio’s Congressional delegation to support funding levels needed to renew all existing contracts for the Housing Choice Voucher program,” Roth said.
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