Houston's $ 15 million rental aid ends in just two hours

HOUSTON – Just hours after tenant requests opened on Wednesday, the rental assistance program authorized by the city of Houston ran out of money.

The council voted last week in favor of a $ 15 million aid program with an additional $ 8 million for housing and urban development (HUD).

The owners

From Thursday, May 7 at 10 a.m., owners could use the new online portal, HoustonRentAssistance.org, created by Baker Ripley. Landlords had to sign up for the rent assistance program before their tenants could apply for the funds. The assistance program was not only for apartments but for any property with tenants. To qualify for the funds, Houston mayor Sylvester Turner said the owners must have agreed to waive all surcharges and fines for the months of April and May.

Tenants

Tenants were able to request rent assistance from 10 a.m. Wednesday. About two hours later, a tweet from the Houston Department of Housing and Community Development indicated that all of the $ 15 million in aid had been allocated.

To be eligible, tenants must have been up to date on rent before April. Applicants must have experienced financial difficulties related to the pandemic, such as job loss. They were expected to have a median income of around $ 40,000 for one person or $ 60,000 for a family of four.

"There is a great, great need"

The program was expected to help approximately 7,000 families with an average of $ 1,000 a month in rent arrears. Turner said federal money, which came from CARES, would be dispersed on a first-come, first-served basis.

"There is a great need, and what we have done is take some of the money and use it to meet the needs of certain people," said Turner. "But it is certainly not close to all the people who need help for all the people in our city."

Turner said the undocumented community in Houston would not be eligible for the program since the program was created with federal money. He said he hoped Congress would allocate additional funds specifically for rent relief.

Canika Jefferson and her three children live in an apartment in the Clear Lake area. He lost two jobs in early March and has since lived on unemployment.

"All I can do is live day to day and pray that everything will go well, but I paid them, so it's not like I don't have tried it, "said Jefferson.

Jefferson hopes she is eligible for relief.

"Right now, I'm just trying to make sure my kids can always eat instead of worrying about the rent, because they're always the first," said Jefferson.

Jefferson's property manager has said he is asking for help and will notify tenants if the apartment complex is approved.

According to the city, 17,000 tenants were trying to apply and this caused a delay in the website after it opened on Wednesday morning.

According to the HCDD, Turner advocates another federal money allocation to offer more rental assistance.