1,000 New Section 8 Vouchers For Boston: Mayor Marty Walsh

BOSTON— The city is issuing 1,000 new rental housing vouchers for chronically homeless residents and families in Boston, the mayor announced Thursday.

The vouchers are funded through the federal Housing Choice Voucher Program through the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, and mean the number of the hard-to-get vouchers go up to 13,500. The move comes in after the city announced it was upping its goal to create more housing last year as the population of the city is expected to continue to grow and housing costs continue to rise.

"These vouchers are more than a rent subsidy," said Mayor Marty Walsh. "They represent a foundation for stability, support and self-sufficiency."

People who use them, agree. Paulina Morillo who uses voucher in Dorchester said the Section 8 voucher helped secure a place for her and her children to live.

"With this new stability, I have been able to maintain a decently paying job along with childcare for my children." Morillo said in a statement. "These vouchers will do the same for many families like mine."

Through partnerships with DHD and DHCD and the network of shelter providers and service providers, voucher holders will receive housing search assistance, funds for relocation, and stabilization services for at least six months.

"These vouchers not only help homeless residents and families find permanent affordable housing, they offer them the stability they need to pursue new opportunities and better their lives," said Boston Housing Authority Administrator Bill McGonagle.

The Boston Housing Authority will issue the 1,000 new vouchers through the Coordinated Access System referral program, the Rapid Rehousing program for the recently homeless, the Moving On program a transition program for the formerly chronically homeless, and the Leading the Way Home Program.

Leading the Way Home is a form of supported housing designed to help families transition out of emergency shelters by offering 18 months of supportive services focused on stabilization and self-sufficiency, along with Section 8 rental assistance.

In addition to the tenant-based Housing Choice Vouchers, the Boston Housing Authority will offer up to 150 project-based vouchers to preserve affordability in developments subsidized through the expiring Mass Housing 13A mortgage program. 13A developments may use these vouchers to help tenants remain in their homes and prevent any risk of homelessness.

The $28 million in additional funding for vouchers this year comes after Boston Housing Authority initiated a rent survey and appealed HUD estimates for Fair Market Rent in the Boston area last fall. That survey revealed the need for a higher Fair Market Rent, which sets the payment standard housing authorities can set for voucher-subsidized rents, and determines subsidy levels for voucher holders. The last time Boston Housing Authority issued new vouchers was in late 2017.

Walsh's FY20 budget proposal includes $4 million to support the creation of approximately 50 new units of permanent supportive housing each year. It also includes a recommendation for $1 million to provide connections to employment, rental assistance and supportive services for youth. This is in addition to a $4.9 million Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program grant from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development.

The FY20 budget proposal also includes a $300,000 investment that will fund four formerly homeless individuals to work as peer navigators across Boston shelters to connect individuals currently experiencing chronic homelessness with permanent housing pathways.

Last fall, the mayor announced a plan to up the number of housing units in the area in response to population projections. Included in that plan was some 489 units set aside for Boston residents coming out of homelessness. The units considered "affordable" are mostly for people who earn 30 percent to 60 percent of the Area Medium Income. For a household of two last year, 60 percent of the AMI was $51,800. For a household of four, it's $64,700.

The Tenant-Based Housing Choice Voucher Program allows low-income families to live in apartments or homes anywhere in the city that accept the Section 8 vouchers, which subsidize a portion of their rent. The trick is finding an apartment that accepts Housing Choice vouchers in the private market. The other trick is that with a limited number of vouchers, there's a waiting list and that list is closed right now.

The Project-Based Voucher Program allows low-income families to live in specific properties within Boston with subsidized rents. Folks have to apply for specific communities and will then be placed on that community’s waiting list. And if they get in, they have to agree to pay about 30 percent of their income toward rent.