2022

This is the first income-based housing managed and maintained by a local housing authority that exclusively serves community college students

April 13, 2022

Community College of Philadelphia (the College) and the Philadelphia Housing Authority (PHA) today celebrated the first income-based housing managed and maintained by a local housing authority that exclusively serves community college students. This is the grand opening of the second rowhome which provides low-cost apartments for housing insecure students at the College, with a focus on students who have experience in the foster care system.

“As the largest public institution of higher education in the City of Philadelphia, we are proud to offer our most vulnerable students safe and affordable housing options,” said College President Dr. Donald “Guy” Generals. “What I love most about this partnership is that students are paired with a support coach to help them better navigate life not only at the College, but to ensure that they receive the necessary social-emotional support and safety networks of others their age. We are doing everything in our power to ease the burdens our students face and make it easier for them to continue their studies and realize their dreams.”

“The Shared Housing Partnership is an approach that dismantles some of the barriers to college completion that are unique to homeless and housing-insecure college students, and undermine their ability to succeed,” said Kelvin A. Jeremiah, President and CEO of PHA. “Financial setbacks and homelessness force many low-income students to drop out of college. This partnership provides them a foothold and a chance to transition, through education, to self-sufficiency and permanent housing. When college students succeed, everyone in our community benefits.”

The newly renovated rowhome, located at 535 North 11th Street, contains three, three-bedroom apartments – each on its own floor. Students in each apartment share a common living area, kitchen, and bathroom, and have separate bedrooms. College students
will pay rent based on 30 percent of their incomes. In no case will a student pay more than $125 a month for rent but, with their limited incomes, it will typically be much less. The median rent in the surrounding neighborhood is more than $2,000 a month.

The 11th Street location, which will be fully furnished by the College, can house up to nine students. The partnership’s first rowhome, which open last fall, is fully leased with seven students. Utilities are paid for by PHA.

In addition to having access to safe, quality and affordable housing, eligible students enter into a stability plan and are paired with a College program coordinator to aid their transition out of shared housing and into a stable, permanent residence. The College will monitor and assess the initiative’s success based on the students’ retention and graduation rates, as well as their success transitioning to permanent housing.

Students also receive special wraparound support services to ensure that they succeed at the College including: support for students with experience in the foster care system; free assistance with health insurance, food resources, cash and other subsidies; academic advising and academic-related counseling services; and assistance with scholarships and career readiness supports.

Students have also received one-time stipends from the Charles G. Berwind Foundation for household items such as pots and pans, as well as technology needs such as laptops.

About Community College of Philadelphia
Community College of Philadelphia is an open-admission, associate-degree-granting institution which provides access to higher education for all who may benefit. The College serves Philadelphia by preparing its students to be informed and concerned citizens, active participants in the cultural life of the city and enabled to meet the changing needs of business, industry and the professions. For more information, visit ccp.edu and follow us on social media @CCPedu.

March 28, 2022

The Philadelphia Housing Authority (PHA) is extending and expanding its successful Second Chance Voucher Program, which gives returning citizens a new place to live for up to two years. The program, in cooperation with the Supervision to Aid Reentry (STAR) Court, a District Court/United States Probation Office (USPO)-Eastern District of Pennsylvania initiative, allows the participant to lease rental housing in the private market.

Under the new agreement between PHA and USPO, PHA will allocate an additional 20 Housing Choice Vouchers, bringing the total allotment for this program to 30. PHA President and CEO Kelvin A. Jeremiah said he and the PHA Board of Commissioners made the decision to expand based on the encouraging results to date.

“We began the program with 10 vouchers in 2015, and so far, 20 returning citizens have successfully used the program to find homes and get their lives back on track,” Jeremiah said. “Not a single voucher holder has fallen out of compliance with PHA during their time in the program. I believe those outcomes are a testament to the impact that stable, affordable housing can make on a person’s life. It is a privilege for PHA to assist these individuals in their transition toward selfsufficiency. I want to thank USPO for their partnership on this initiative.”

The program offers an incentive to individuals on supervised release who are participating in the STAR program. After successful completion of STAR, individuals can reduce their supervision period by a year. Participation in the voucher program leads to greater stability and successful reentry. In addition, individuals are required to enroll in a financial literacy program and PHA’s Housing Opportunity Program to help them find and secure a place to live.

USPO, whose mission involved aiding the reentry of individuals on supervision into society, has a pool of prospective participants ready to join the program as well as the staff to manage the increased number of participants. The STAR program provides comprehensive and collaborative oversight by judges and federal prosecutors, probation officers, reentry coordinators, and defense attorneys while offering a variety of social services to program participants.

To qualify for the program, which grew out of the Second Chance for Ex-Offenders Act of 2009, returning citizens must remain in good standing with the STAR program. If after two years, an individual has not made sufficient progress to afford housing on their own, PHA has the discretion, based on circumstances, to help the person move into public housing or into the voucher program.

The agreement runs through November 2025, with options to extend to 2027.

Many PHA clients have vouchers but cannot find homes to rent

March 16, 2022

The Philadelphia Housing Authority (PHA) is now offering property owners financial incentives, a streamlined administrative process, and expanded customer service to make more private homes and apartments available for rent to residents with low incomes. Clients of PHA’s Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) Program have run into a serious problem — a lack of private market rental property owners willing to rent to them.

“PHA’s voucher holders are having a hard time finding affordable units in Philadelphia and the surrounding counties,” said PHA President and CEO Kelvin A. Jeremiah. “Almost half of our voucher holders are taking more than four months to find a suitable home. PHA recognizes the difficulty these clients are facing, and with the steps we are announcing, we feel confident we can expand the number of available units.”

The problem is twofold. The demand is high in Philadelphia’s real estate market, and there is a shortage of affordable housing for rent in the city. Second, some property owners do not like dealing with the red tape involved in working with a government-subsidized program. PHA’s new initiative tackles both issues by offering signing bonuses and speeding up the process from application to approval.

Under this program, extended through July 31st, any property owner or manager who rents to a PHA voucher holder and submits the required paperwork will receive a $300 signing bonus. Property owners who rent to a PHA Emergency Housing Voucher (EHV) holder will receive a $500 bonus. These emergency vouchers are dedicated exclusively to homeless households referred to PHA by the City of Philadelphia.

These 863 emergency vouchers come with additional funding related to retaining and supporting HCV property owners because they were paid for by the American Rescue Plan Act. This allows PHA to provide security deposit assistance equal to as much as one month of the approved PHA contract rent.

Separately, a $1,000 bonus is available to landlords who participate in HCV’s Housing Opportunity Program (HOP) and rent a unit to an HCV household in a qualified opportunity area. These are neighborhoods that generally have a lower poverty rate and access to higher performing schools and employment opportunities.

Additionally, PHA has established an Owner Assurance Fund, designed to protect property owners from unexpected damages beyond normal wear and tear. PHA will reimburse property owners who participate in the HCV program up to $2,500.00 to help cover repair expenses after subtracting any security deposit that was held for damages. This is an additional level of protection for property owners they would not normally be available.

“These incentives were created as a direct result of feedback from landlords,” Jeremiah said. “At a time when many rental property owners are struggling, PHA offers guaranteed rent, monthly income, and coverage for damage to their unit. It’s win-win, and now is an opportune time to start.”

PHA’s HCV program can pay similar rents to those collected from private market tenants. PHA uses neighborhood rents paid by private market tenants in determining rent levels. Owners who participate in the HCV Program also have a designated team of PHA employees — including an Owner Liaison — who assist with navigating through the program’s processes.

HCV tenants pay 30% of their income toward rent while PHA pays the rest directly to the owner. Each month PHA pays over $12 million to participating property owners in Philadelphia in rental assistance payments. If a tenant’s income decreases, PHA would then pay a larger portion of the rent, protecting both the household and the property owner.

The Housing Choice Voucher Program provides rental assistance to over 19,500 low-income families, elderly and disabled citizens in Philadelphia, and partners with over 5,000 private landlords. “We have thousands of quality property owners in our program serving low-income families and receiving guaranteed rent payments, yet we need many more,” Jeremiah said. “These signing bonuses represent the largest incentives PHA has offered. We knew we had to act because without homes to rent the housing vouchers really have no value.”

To learn more, attend one of the free landlord briefing sessions held virtually every Monday from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. Interested owners can learn more at www.pha.phila.gov or email us at [email protected]. You can also find us on Facebook @PHAHCVlandlord.