COVID-19 Letter to Housing Choice Voucher Program LANDLORDS
OPEN LETTER TO HCV LANDLORDS/OWNERS
April 7, 2020
Dear Housing Choice Voucher Landlords,
We hope this letter finds you and your loved ones safe and healthy. The past few weeks have, undoubtedly, been some of the most life-changing weeks we've seen in modern times. The looming threat of the COVID-19 coronavirus has taken this country, and our state, by storm. We are hoping and praying that the extreme social distancing will prove effective to slow the spread of this illness and that we'll all soon be back to normal.
At this time, our offices remain closed due to the Shelter-in-Place and Stay-At-Home orders. We are responding to emergency inspections and conducting vacant unit move-in inspections. As always, please call 803.251.2747 and leave us a message or email us at COVID19@columbiahousingsc.org.
As April 1st has passed, you should have received your Housing Assistance Payment for the month of April. We know how important having a safe place to call home is for our Housing Choice Voucher Program participants and we want to do everything we can to help maintain stable housing for them during this time. Listed below is some information that may be helpful.
OUR PAYMENT TO OWNERS/LANDLORDS
- We will continue to pay our portion of the housing assistance payment as scheduled.
TENANT RENT TO LANDLORDS
- We have sent reminders to residents that rent is still due on the 1st of the month.
- We have waived our operational policies, making it easier for families to have their portion of the rent reduced if they have lost income related to the COVID-19 pandemic. During the COVID-19 crisis, we allow residents to self-certify and waive the verification requirement. Public Housing residents and Housing Choice Voucher participants may now more easily report loss of income through one of the following methods:
- Complete a fillable form.
Housing Choice Voucher Program Participants
OR
- Send an e-mail to covid19@columbiahousingsc.org
OR
- Call tel: 803.251.2747 and verbally report the loss of income.
We will process any income changes that may impact their rent portion and our housing assistance payment amounts within five (5) business days. The changes in tenant rent and housing assistance payments will be effective on the first day of the month following the reported income change.
- We have asked your tenant to notify you immediately if they or a member of their household have experienced a loss of income due to the COVID-19 pandemic and to notify you that they have submitted documentation to Columbia Housing to process their rent reduction.
This is a rapidly changing time for everyone, tenants and landlords alike. We will continue to monitor the economic landscape in the coming weeks and months. Thank you for being a valued landlord and we look forward to getting through these tough times together. As always, please don't hesitate to reach out if you have any questions.
Sincerely,
Ivory N. Mathews
Interim Executive Director
