Agenda - 12-02-2002-8p - Laserfiche WebLink

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Orange County Section Eight Housing Voucher Choice Program Status Report -November 2002 The Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program is a federally funded rental assistance program administered by public housing authorities (PHAs) or other government agencies. The programs' primary purpose is to provide rental assistance to low-income families with affordable decent, safe, and sanitary housing. Tenants' take the voucher/certificate and uses it to rent homes in the private market. The programs were authorized by the U.S. Housing Act of 1937 Section 8 (b) (1) and Section 8 (o), hence the name "Section 8". Families interested in the program apply to a local housing authority or other government agency for a Section 8 tenant-based voucher- a voucher that "stays" with the tenant. A family is ineligible for the program if more than 40 percent of its income has to be used to pay rent in the first year. Currently, Section 8 helps more than 1.4 million households in the United States by paying private landlords the difference between what the household can afford and the rent for the unit. In Orange County, the program is administered by the Orange County Housing and Community Development Department. The administering housing authority or government agency is also responsible for inspecting the selected housing unit to make sure it complies with the Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) Housing Quality Standards and ensuring that the rent charged is reasonable for the local housing market. The following information provides summary information regarding the current status of the Section 8 Program in Orange County. Funding_Capacity The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development provides funding for the Section 8 Program. The approved Section 8 budget for Fiscal Year 2002-2003 is $3,727,944 or $310,662 per year. This budget authority is projected to fund approximately 623 units. However, due to increasing rental rates and the bedroom composition of our participants our actual costs are beginning to exceed the budget authority, thereby, necessitating a need to request amendment funds from HUD. The necessary funds have been granted to date in order to allow us to meet our expenses, however, a pending Congressional Bill, if passed, may radically change HUD's budgeting practices. Current Program Characteristics ~ Approximately 269 property owners lease property to 623 on average. ~ The majority of the rental units are in the Carrboro/Chapel Hill area (Southern Orange County). ~ Racial family composition: approx.60%Rfrican-American; 37% Caucasian; 3% Other. ~ Most non-elderly heads of households are working families. ~ Most families lease two-bedroom units. ~ Current waiting list totals 1,020 families and was closed to new applicants in October 2001.