VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. – An emergency rental assistance portal that opened at 9 a.m. Wednesday to Volusia County tenants reached capacity in just 36 minutes, according to the county’s Community Assistance Division.
The portal accepted 500 applications, but Community Assistance Director Carmen Hall said additional applications may be accepted at a later date to ensure that the county’s $4 million in federal grant funding is fully utilized.
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According to Hall, it will take several weeks to process and verify the applications, and the county will give word in advance if it intends to reopen the portal in the future.
Eligible households must be rental households in which one or more people living there meet and can document these criteria:
- Qualifies for unemployment or has experienced a reduction in household income, incurred significant costs, or experienced a financial hardship due to or during the COVID-19 pandemic;
- Demonstrates a risk of housing instability; and
- Has a household income at or below 80 percent of the area median.
Submitted applications will be prioritized in this order, according to the county:
- Priority 1 – Applicants who are unemployed for the 90 days prior to the application date and whose income at or below 50 percent of the area median income
- Priority 2 – Applicants whose income is at or below 50 percent of the area median income
- Priority 3 – Applicants who are unemployed for the 90 days prior to the application date and whose income is at or below 80 percent of the area median income
- Priority 4 – Applicants whose income is at or below 80 percent of the area median income
You can learn more about the Volusia County emergency rental assistance program by clicking here.