Las Vegas city program offers help with overdue rent, mortgage

The city of Las Vegas has a plan to help qualifying residents who are facing financial hardship due to the coronavirus pandemic and are behind on housing bills: Cover up to three months of delinquent rent or mortgage.

Under the city’s Housing Assistance Program, which operates on a first-come, first-served basis and is contingent on available federal coronavirus relief funds, the city said it will make the payments directly to an eligible program participant’s landlord or mortgage company.

The program does not apply to anyone already receiving a rental assistance subsidy or living in public housing. And the city said the rent and mortgage payments must be “reasonable.”

“The Housing Assistance Program will assist eligible residents who are in danger of becoming homeless or of being evicted due to financial hardship from COVID-19,” Deputy Community Services Director Arcelia Barajas said in a statement. “The program is designed to help individuals and families remain safely housed.”

The city publicized the program Wednesday as a statewide moratorium in effect since late March on residential evictions and foreclosures for nonpayment of rent and mortgage is set to expire Sept. 1. Gov. Steve Sisolak, who directed that resulting late fees or penalties cannot be charged retroactively, has urged landlords and tenants to work out repayment plans between them.

The city’s program requires that individuals pre-apply. It is limited to applicants at least 18 years old and is limited to one pre-application per household. The city will review the pre-application to determine whether the individual’s household meets program eligibility requirements and, if it does, the applicant must then fill out and submit an application for program approval.

Pre-applications must be turned in by July 31.

Qualifying residents must live within city limits, have a delinquency notice from their landlord or mortgage company, lack the assets or savings to pay their housing bills and possess documentation to show financial hardship due to the pandemic and to detail future financial management, according to the city.

Financial hardship includes loss of income and reduced hours at work.

Eligible participants must also meet household income limits based on the number of people living in the home. For instance, it is capped at $63,000 in gross annual income for a one-person family and $118,000 for an eight-person home.

Visit https://www.lasvegasnevada.gov/Residents/Housing-Assistance-Program to fill out a pre-application, to get more information about eligibility requirements, find answers to frequently asked questions and learn what documents an applicant must have on hand.

For in-person assistance, questions or more information about the program in general, call 702-229-5935 or email CLVrent@lasvegasnevada.gov.

Contact Shea Johnson at sjohnson@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0272. Follow @Shea_LVRJ on Twitter.