Editor's Note: This story has been corrected to reflect that the application launched on Feb. 15, not Feb. 14 and that the date of prioritizing giving funds to applicants at or below 50% of their Area Median Income until has been extended to March 8. The Texan regrets these errors.
Eligible Texans can apply for rent assistance for past-due bills dating as far back as March 13, 2020, and receive assistance for three months of future rent and utility bills, a Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs spokesperson said.
The application for the first statewide rental relief program in Texas opened Feb. 15 and will continue until funds run out, said Kristina Tirloni, a spokeswoman of the department. The federal government gave over $1 billion to the Texas Rent Relief Program to assist Texans with rent, according to a press release from Gov. Greg Abbott.
Students will have to make 80% or below the Austin Metropolitan Statistical area’s median income of $97,600. For students with a household size of one, that’s less than $54,700 per year. Additionally, one or more people in their household must qualify for unemployment or show proof of income loss or financial hardship due to the pandemic. Lastly, students must provide evidence they are at risk of experiencing homelessness through an eviction notice or unpaid utility bills, according to the program’s website.
Students 18 years or older whose names appear on their lease could be eligible for the program, even if parents claim them as dependents, Tirloni said in an email.
The program will prioritize distributing funds to applicants at or below 50% of their Area Median Income until March 8, Tirloni said. Then, funds will be distributed according to the order in which applications were accepted.
Though the application can be filled out online, Tirloni said the department’s call center has also been staffed to receive a large number of calls and is equipped with translators for over 250 languages to assist applicants.
Jessica Meza, UT alumna and rent strike organizer for the United Neighborhood Defense Movement, said rental assistance programs do not do enough to address the rent crisis in Austin because residents might not have documentation proving they qualify.
Evictions in Travis County have remained low during the pandemic due to the eviction moratorium, said Marissa Latta, a housing attorney for Texas RioGrande Legal Aid. The 78705 ZIP code, which encompasses West Campus, had 40 evictions filed since the start of 2020, down 80% from the average number in the previous 5 years, according to Princeton University’s Eviction Lab.
Latta said a wave of evictions is likely to come once the city lifts the eviction moratorium, but she believes that the program will help many at-risk residents in the area.
“I think it's a welcome opportunity (for) tenants who have been doing everything they can to find rental assistance,” Latta said.
Editor's Note: This story first appeared in The Daily Texan's February 23 print edition.
