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We would be excited to help you explore that option. Please reach out to [email protected] to receive information on programs that may provide additional downpayment assistance and homeownership training programs. If you are interested in purchasing, we urge you to start the process immediately. The goal should be to be pre-qualified for a home loan by no later than April 30, 2025.

The Tenant Protection Vouchers that are being issued cannot be used for mortgage payments. However, if you are able to purchase your home or another home, you will receive downpayment assistance in lieu of rental assistance in the amount of $7,200. This will be paid as soon as your have entered into a purchase and sale agreement and the home has passed a home inspection.

Schedule an interview with your relocation team as soon as possible. The better we understand your obstacles to searching for housing, the better equipped we will be to help you overcome those obstacles.

You will need to contact your property manager or resident services manager to be on a payment plan prior to receiving your Tenant Protection Voucher.

No. You must rent within the limits that HUD has deemed reasonable so that you will not be rent burdened.

We have been very successful in finding replacement housing 90 days. While, it will take cooperation and work on your part to find housing. We do not think that you will require an extension. These will only be granted due to medical needs or in the case where you have secured replacement housing but it is waiting for inspection. Everyone must be vacated before December 31, 2025.

You are able to port your voucher to another jurisdiction anywhere in the country. That process takes time and you need to have the ability to travel to that municipality to complete the voucher process there. That travel is not reimbursed by relocation. If you are interested in porting your voucher, please reach out to your relocation team immediately.

It is against Fair Housing Laws in the State of Oregon for a landlord to deny your application based on your source of payment. If you otherwise meet their rental criteria, they must accept Section 8.

Applicants will be required to upload rent amounts collected and owed for all units from April 1, 2020 through the date of application. Tenant name and contact information is only required for current tenants with past-due rents. This information will be used to determine payment amounts and to track declaration notices. Applicants will also need to upload to the system tenant signed Declaration of Financial Hardship for Eviction Protection forms for current tenants that owe on past rent. Tenants may also sign and submit these forms through the portal itself. Landlords do not need Declaration of Financial Hardship for Eviction Protection forms for all tenants that owe rental debt, but grant funds will only be awarded for these tenants. Applicants will also be required to agree to various terms and conditions within the application portal designed, amongst other things, to reduce fraud and abuse.

A reasonable accommodation is a change which can be made to allow a person with a disability to have an equal opportunity to take advantage of DHS housing or programs. Any accommodation considered by the DHS cannot result in an undue financial or administrative burden or create a fundamental change in a program.

For example, in the public housing program, it might be reasonable to install an access ramp for someone in a wheelchair, put grab bars in the bathroom for someone with a mobility impairment, or put in a fire alarm that flashes for someone who has a hearing impairment. It might also be reasonable to allow a person with a mental disability to have rent payments made by a third party.

It would not be reasonable to prevent children from using the playground because the noise bothers someone or to provide a resident with a housekeeper at DHS expense.

A Supportive Neighborhood Plan establishes expectations between the shelter program operator, the landlord and the local community. The plan is created collaboratively with extensive neighborhood input, and helps to establish mutual goals, safety and security expectations and address property maintenance issues. The plan also includes a code of conduct for shelter program participants and expectations around communication between the County, the shelter program operator and neighbors. Each plan is unique and is an opportunity for the local community to share their concerns and suggestions.

A disability is any condition of the body or mind (impairment) that makes it more difficult for the person with the condition to do certain activities and interact with the world around them. There are many types of disabilities, such as those that affect physical body structure or function (such as loss of limb, loss of vision, movement limitations or hearing loss) and those that impact mental function (such as impacts to thinking, remembering, learning or social relationships).

People with disabilities can be affected in very different ways. Some disabilities may be hidden or not easy to see. If a family is requesting an accommodation for a disability that is not obvious or otherwise known, Housing staff will verify that the condition meets the regulatory definition of disability.

The Landlord Compensation Fund (LCF) is a rent assistance program funded by the State of Oregon and operated by Oregon Housing and Community Services (OHCS). The program enables landlords to apply for money to cover past due rents of current tenants that have been unable to pay their full rent since the governor established the Eviction Moratorium in response to COVID-19. If approved for funding, a landlord would receive 80% of any eligible tenant past due rent and would be required to forgive the remaining 20%.

Congress created the MTW program to allow housing authorities to alter HUD program rules for the Housing Choice Voucher and Public Housing programs, including policy changes and flexibility in how it spends HUD money. The purpose is to identify areas where policy adjustments and local policy changes improve outcomes.

Oregon's housing crisis has impacted Washington County. Rising housing costs have made it harder for working families to afford a decent place to live. The pandemic has worsened the situation for many residents of Washington County who have faced job losses, lack of childcare, COVID shutdowns, and other instability over the last year.

Last year, the Oregon Legislature’s Emergency Board allocated a total of $65 million for "Project Turnkey" — a program created to buy motels and hotels, underutilized during the pandemic, to serve as temporary housing for people experiencing homelessness in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and increasing wildfires.

In April 2021, Washington County was selected to receive a "Project Turnkey" grant of $6.15 million for the purchase of a 60-room Econo Lodge motel at 622 SE 10th Avenue in Hillsboro to establish a short-term respite shelter to serve as temporary housing for people experiencing homelessness and prevent the spread of COVID-19. The Washington County Board of County Commissioners has approved all funding and programming in support of the shelter program.

The state is only asking for contact information for current tenants with past due rents that may be eligible to be covered through this program. The state will ONLY use this information for this program and will not share that information with the public. For the program, the information will be used in two ways:

• After the landlord provides their application, an e-mail notification will be sent to the tenant so that you have the opportunity to log into the system to see the information that your landlord has provided about your past-due rent. If you haven’t done so already, you will have the ability to complete your Declaration of Financial Hardship for Eviction Protection directly in your landlord’s application.
• If your landlord is selected for funding, your local Public Housing Authority will be mailing you a notice that your past-due rent has been covered.

Once the initial registration process is closed, the Housing Specialist will provide housing stability supports for eligible households. This could include housing navigation services to relocate to a new 3 building with affordable housing protections, financial planning to budget for possible rent increases after Woodspring converts to market rate rentals, or assistance in accessing waitlists for rent assistance programs. The Housing Specialist will also work with households to access other financial supports that can create housing stability, such as food or supplemental income assistance programs.

There are many providers of affordable housing and support services in our community.

The Rose City Resource Guide is a good place to find information on housing and other services.

For immediate short-term help, call Community Connect at 503-640-3263 to find out how to access shelters or other emergency housing programs.

You can also call 211 (from cell phones, call 503-222-5555) to talk to someone about resources that may be available.

Under the County's organizational framework, the EMP is leading a coordinated response, focusing on the needs of individuals who are living temporarily in encampments on publicly owned property and neighboring community members, using the following strategies:

• Managing the overall operational response, including strategic communication between participating allied agencies and the general public.
• Intensive outreach to connect campers with supportive services and housing navigation assistance.
• Emergency sanitation support that includes placement of portable toilets, handwashing stations and regular garbage collection.
• A dedicated Sheriff's Office HOPE deputy that not only works directly with camp residents to help problem-solve issues but is also able to address public safety concerns that arise and provide coordination with other law enforcement agency partners and service providers.
• A centralized point of contact for community members and other stakeholders who are concerned about encampments.

Washington County contracts with experienced shelter operators to meet needs of our shelter guests. Shelter staff are trained in trauma informed care, recognizing signs & symptoms that indicate behavioral health needs, and deescalating crisis situations.

We also recognize our behavioral health services are challenged across the state with needs that outpace available resources. We partner closely with the Washington County Health & Services department and the Hawthorn Walk-In Center to align systems of care and also recognize that just addressing housing instability can have a profound impact on the behavioral health for the program participants we serve.

Landlords can apply for compensation for current tenants with past rent debt owed from between April 1, 2020 and the current date, who meet the criteria for financial hardship. Tenants must provide their landlord with a Declaration of Financial Hardship for Eviction Protection. When tenants provide this form to their landlord, they are protected from eviction through June 30th, 2021, and the landlord may use the form to request payment for rental debt owed from April 1, 2020 to present through the Landlord Compensation Fund.