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UPDATED: Approx. $190M of $200M in RI rent relief unspent. Applications open
SEE UPDATED INFORMATION, BELOW, provided by RI Housing:
The moratorium on evictions has expired. If you are facing eviction, If you are facing eviction, please contact RI Legal Services or the Center for Justice. While the President cannot extend this eviction moratorium due to a court ruling, Congress has actions it can take. You may have heard about the legislators who have been sleeping out on the Capitol steps this weekend in Washington, D.C. to motivate Congress to act. We anticipate some movement should come this week.
In Rhode Island, as in over 50% of states, there is considerable money left in the Emergency Rental Assistance Program. There is actually more money left to be given out, than has been given out. Rhode Island has a tiny amount – 4% – of the approximately $200 million it received at the beginning of 2021. Only $8.1 million has been allocated. As many as 40,000 renters in RI may be eligible in total.
See total applications to date, and other details here:
Still Available
Rhode Island’s $200 million in rent relief funds are designed to provide rental and utility relief payments to help eligible renters maintain housing stability.
The program is for renters and landlords. Both landlords and tenants may initiate an application for the program. Information from both the tenant and landlord will be required to successfully complete an application.
Who is eligible for Rent Relief?
Tenant applicants must meet all of the following criteria to be considered for rent relief:
- Your household income must meet certain income limits. Limits vary by location and household size. Click here to view Income Limits.
- You must have qualified for unemployment benefits or have experienced a reduction in household income, incurred significant costs, OR experienced other financial hardship due, directly or indirectly, to COVID-19.
- You must show you are at risk of experiencing homelessness or housing instability. This may include submitting past-due rent and utility bills or eviction notices when you apply.
What does Rent Relief RI cover?
The Emergency Rental Assistance Program can pay for rent and some utilities owed back to April 1, 2020. The program will also cover the security deposit and up to three months of upcoming rent. Utilities include electricity, water, trash, and heat. You may apply for help with paying for utilities even if you do not need help paying for rent. Applicants are eligible for up to a total of 18 months of assistance.
How much rent will Rent Relief RI cover?
There is no monthly cap on eligible rent relief. The monthly amount is determined by the rent payment agreed to in your lease and documented arrearages.
Do I have to be behind on rent to benefit from the new rental assistance program?
No. You may apply for rent relief to cover past AND/OR upcoming rent payments. You may also apply for utility assistance for any past due payments. You will be able to apply for rent back to April 1, 2020 if needed.
Other info:
You can get up to 18 months in past due and current rent. When the first 3 months are up, you will be asked to recertify and to demonstrate that you still need help and you will need to provide some income information again. If eligible, you may be approved for another three months of help with rent/utility payments.
As long as you can show a COVID-related need and meet the income requirements you do not need to be on unemployment to qualify for this program.
Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis through September 2022. If less than 60% of the funds are given out by that date, then the balance of the money risks being returned to the federal government.
If you are already receiving rental assistance, you may be eligible for a $50 stipend for internet assistance. This will be a check directly to you and should be provided automatically to tenants who are approved for assistance going forward. For applicants who have already received assistance prior to June 30, 2021, they can reach out to the RentReliefRI Call Center (855-608-8756) to request the internet stipend.
How are applicants prioritized?
RIHousing is required to prioritize serving families that meet certain criteria by using a “prioritization” system. Applications will be assigned to an auditor to begin working on based on their priority level. The higher the level, the earlier the application will be assigned and therefore the potential to be paid out earlier than those with lower priority. RIHousing is also permitted to establish other priorities, at its discretion. RIHousing is required to prioritize the following applicants:
Priority 1
Applicants with a risk of eviction AND that have an AMI at or below 50% AMI AND that have been unemployed 90 days or more will be given a priority level of 1. Risk of eviction will be defined as having a notice to vacate, where a hearing has taken place and judgment to vacate has been issued, those that have received a court date notice or received notice of a utility disconnection or a 5-day demand letter.
Priority 2
Applicants with a risk of eviction AND an AMI at or below 50% will be given a priority level of 2.
Priority 3
Applicants with an AMI at or below 50% AND that have been unemployed 90 days or more will be given a priority level of 3.
Priority 4
Applicants with an AMI at or below 50% will be given a priority level of 4.
Priority 5
Applicants with an AMI between 50-80% will be given a priority level of 5.
For the quickest processing of your application, you should have the following documents ready:
If you are a Tenant:
- Proof of residency (ex; bank statement, utility bill, driver’s license)
- Proof of income (ex; wage statements, unemployment letter, 2020 tax return)
- Signed copy of your lease agreement or documentation showing tenancy (a pattern of rent payment)
- Documentation demonstrating your rental/utility arrearage (ex; past due utility bill, eviction notice, 5 day demand letter, communication from landlord)
**Even if you do not have these documents, please call 1-855-608-8756 or reach out to our partners here for help completing the application.
To Apply: https://rihousing.rentrelief.com/content2/access/login
For Landlords:
If you are a landlord: You can help your tenant apply if they are behind on their rent. This page is meant specifically to answer your questions:
https://www.rihousing.com/wp-content/uploads/RentReliefRI_LandlordFAQ_FINAL-1.pdf
RI Housing responded to queries for more detailed information:
As of Friday morning (7/30/21):
- 7,860 accounts created
- 2,838 submitted applications
- 1,264 approved for $8,110,239 paid out
- $4,938,660 in back rent
- $2,424,436 in forward facing rent
- $743,906 in utility payments
- 595 that were denied, withdrawn, or in appeal (most of these are due to the tenant becoming inactive/unreachable)
- 930 were in final review (applications have complete documentation and are being looked at for eligibility)
- 4,211 need additional information (active outreach to determine if they still need assistance or to provide information)
- 857 in initial review (under review to see what if any information is needed)
We are close to resolving all of the completed applications and we are actively performing outreach through email, phone, text and on-the-ground partners to make sure that everyone who has created an account knows to come in and complete their application and has help to do that if they need it. We are also actively working to make sure everyone knows about the program and that everyone who is eligible for assistance applies.
How much has been received for emergency rental assistance from the pandemic? $352 million
Latest analysis on need Household Rental Debt During COVID-19: Update for August 2021 (philadelphiafed.org). Article states that as of July 30th there is about $25 million in pandemic-related unpaid rent. RentReliefRI is 1/3 of the way to meeting that need.
Other state programs during the pandemic, such as HousingHelpRI and Safe Harbor, have already expended approximately $11 million in rental assistance.