Last Updated: May 19, 2022
Originally Published: July 9, 2021
- The Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development’s (DHCD) Rent Relief Assistance Program stopped accepting applications for Rent Relief at 11:59 p.m. on May 15, 2022.
- Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority (RRHA) public housing families who are still behind in their rent have the option of signing up for a repayment agreement for their unpaid balance.
- RRHA will continue to check Gov2Go (DHCD) regarding the status of Rent Relief applications that have been submitted PRIOR to the deadline and update resident accounts accordingly.
- As of May 2022, RRHA had 1,875 residents with a balance of $51 or more.
Balances as of May 9, 2022
The following is a chart of overages broken down per community:
| # Families | Owe $51 – $499 | Owe $500 – $999 | Owe $1000 – $4999 | Owe $5000 & up | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Creighton | 110 | 50 | 24 | 33 | 3 |
| Hillside | 275 | 114 | 61 | 92 | 8 |
| Fairfield | 287 | 115 | 61 | 100 | 11 |
| Mosby | 300 | 99 | 51 | 128 | 22 |
| Whitcomb | 260 | 120 | 60 | 73 | 7 |
| Gilpin | 520 | 227 | 118 | 146 | 29 |
| Senior Sites | 123 | 68 | 21 | 33 | 1 |
| TOTAL | 1875 | 793 | 396 | 605 | 81 |
- From December 1, 2021 – May 15, 2022, RRHA input 2060 applications in Gov2Go (DHCD’s online application portal) for Rent Relief. (Note: This number does not include earlier applications for Rent relief submitted directly to Virginia Housing and Housing Opportunities Made Equal – HOME and Southside Community Development rent relief programs)
- In a final push to beat the deadline and assist RRHA public housing families who had not taken advantage of DHCD’s Rent Relief program, RRHA held a two weeklong Rent Relief blitz in every public housing community. These events garnered 309 applications from May 5 – 15, 2022. (See chart below of # applications submitted by site)
The number of Rent Relief applications submitted by site:
| Property | # Families |
|---|---|
| Creighton | 10 |
| Hillside | 86 |
| Fairfield | 34 |
| Mosby | 40 |
| Whitcomb | 41 |
| Gilpin | 91 |
| Senior Sites | 7 |
| TOTAL | 309 |
- Public housing households who have a pending rent relief application (whether they applied on their own or consented to RRHA applying on their behalf), are currently not being considered for lease termination based on non-payment of rent.
- If a public housing household rent relief application was denied and they have not paid the full balance owed, they will have the option to sign up for a repayment agreement as long as they have not recently defaulted on a current repayment agreement. If that household does not sign up for a repayment agreement, then RRHA will move forward with lease enforcement action.
- Signing a repayment agreement is an option for an RRHA public housing family who owes past rent, as long as they have not defaulted on a current repayment agreement.
- A family who signs a repayment agreement is considered in “good standing” and RRHA will take no legal action against them for any unpaid amount so long as they make payments in accordance with the agreement.
- If a family misses two consecutive monthly payments under a repayment agreement, or if they fall behind in paying rent or other charges that come due after signing the repayment agreement, RRHA may take action to enforce the lease and/or repayment agreement.
- Each family will have one opportunity to sign a repayment agreement and can ask for that repayment agreement at any point until the court awards RRHA possession in an unlawful detainer proceeding.
- RRHA will utilize lease enforcement action for non-payment as a last resort and will use a PHASED approach starting with those households with the largest balances.
The process for regaining possession of an RRHA unit for non-payment of rent:
Step 1: Beginning the week of May 23, 2022, RRHA will issue 30-day lease termination notices to all households that owe $5000 or more and have not applied for rent relief or signed up for a repayment agreement or have defaulted on a current repayment agreement.
Step 2: After 30 days if the account has not been brought into good standing an unlawful detainer will be issued.
Step 3: RRHA will go to court after the unlawful detainer is issued. (Court date will depend on the court’s schedule and availability – generally 21 days after UD is issued)
Step 4: Judgement and possession issued by the court. If the resident appears in court, RRHA will schedule possession 10 days after court date. (This depends on the court’s schedule and any continuance requests from either party)
PLEASE NOTE: At any time during this process up to the time that the sheriff comes to the home and serves the notice to vacate, the leaseholder can pay the amount owed, and lease enforcement action will cease.
Next Steps: Phase II of lease enforcement for the number of families owing $1,000 to $4,999 is estimated to begin in July 2022.