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30 <br /> disproportionately rent-burdened, and recently, rents have increased faster than wages. <br /> • Encourage development of some subsidized housing outside of Chapel Hill and Carrboro. <br /> • Educate landlords, property managers, and other housing providers about fair housing law and <br /> reasonable accommodation, especially as they pertain to persons with disabilities. <br /> • Offer educational courses on mortgage lending and building credit scores that are geared <br /> toward African American and Hispanic borrowers. <br /> • Encourage cooperation and coordination between the affordable housing advisory boards in the <br /> County. <br /> • Explore funding options for a best-practices Rapid Rehousing program to serve homeless <br /> individuals and families in Orange County. <br /> • Identify ways to protect residents of mobile home parks who may be under threat of <br /> displacement. <br /> • Consider areas to strategically up-zone to promote the development of affordable housing. <br /> AP-85 Other Actions <br /> Introduction <br /> The Orange County HOME Consortium has developed the following actions to address obstacles to <br /> meeting underserved needs, foster affordable housing, reduce lead-based hazards, reduce the number <br /> of families living in poverty, develop institutional structures, and enhance coordination between public <br /> and private housing and social service agencies. <br /> Actions planned to address obstacles to meeting underserved needs <br /> Despite efforts by the County,Towns, and other affordable housing actors and service providers,there <br /> remain significant obstacles to meeting the needs of underserved people and communities.The most <br /> recent concern is the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic impacts, particularly for renter households <br /> with lower incomes who are experiencing unprecedented job loss and housing instability. <br /> One way the HOME Consortium worked to address this situation was by allocating local Match funds for <br /> FY 2020-2021 to be used for tenant-based rental assistance through the County's Rapid Rehousing <br /> program, and, in FY 2021-2022, reallocating$114,000 in FY 2016 HOME funds for tenant-based rental <br /> assistance through the Rapid Rehousing program as well. <br /> The County also scaled up and secured significant federal and state funding(about$4 million in calendar <br /> year 2020)for emergency housing assistance, both through the local Emergency Housing Assistance <br /> program and the statewide HOPE program,to help stabilize households who are experiencing or at risk <br /> of experiencing homelessness so they could lower their exposure to COVID-19 by having a safe, non- <br /> congregate place to stay. In 2021, the County began using about$2.2 million in CDBG-CV funds secured <br /> from the state to continue this work, and as well as additional funds that were allocated to Orange <br /> Annual Action Plan 26 <br /> FY 2023-2024 <br />