State Housing Agencies Team Up to Offer New Path for Emergency Rental Assistance

State Housing Agencies Team Up to Offer New Path for Emergency Rental Assistance

April 2021
Don Bianchi

The MA Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) announced the Subsidized Housing Emergency Rental Assistance (SHERA) Program , a collaboration with MassHousing and the Massachusetts Housing Partnership (MHP).  SHERA will allow qualified owners of income-restricted units, as well as Local Housing Authorities, to apply for help directly on behalf of all of their income-eligible residents with past-due rent. This will expedite relief to tenants in need, while also allowing RAFT-administering agencies to concentrate on applications from non-subsidized tenants in need of assistance.  More information will be forthcoming from DHCD. 

 

MACDC, and our allies, advocated that DHCD provide this new path to deliver much-needed emergency rental assistance to tenants in subsidized affordable housing so it is exciting to see it come to fruition.