Los Angeles will again be accepting applications for the state’s massive rental assistance program.
Renters and landlords in the city can submit applications starting at 7 a.m. on Sept. 1, according to Urbanize.
The federally-funded program — with over $5 billion in its coffers — covers back rent accrued during the pandemic and has an income ceiling for eligibility.
The moves comes as the Supreme Court on Wednesday struck down the nationwide eviction ban.
California’s program initially covered a maximum of 80 percent of back rent accrued through the end of March, as long as a given landlord waived the remaining 20 percent of back rent. Now, the state will cover 100 percent of both back rent and unpaid utility bills.
The state will continue to administer the program, which launched in March. The state saw a flood of applications but disbursement was somewhat slow.
As of early August, the state had distributed around $243 million in rental assistance, about 22 percent of the households that requested rental assistance.
And as of earlier this week, the state has doled out $375 million in rental assistance, or 34 percent of funds requested. Around 108,700 households had complete applications for the program and 31,650 received funds.
The average assistance paid out to households was about $12,000. Nearly 69 percent of households statewide that so far have received rental assistance had an income of 30 percent of area median income, the lowest-income bracket tracked by the state.
Renters and landlords can apply for assistance through housing.ca.gov and can receive help filling out applications by calling 833-687-0967. Information is also available through hcidla.lacity.org.
[Urbanize] — Dennis Lynch