Augusta-Richmond County commission approves over $6M in rental assistance

AUGUSTA, Ga. – Augusta-Richmond County Commissioners are set to approve more than $6 million in rental assistance during today’s commission meeting.

“This past year, many families have found themselves fighting pandemic related hardships on many fronts,” said Mayor Hardie Davis, Jr. “As we work hard to return to normal, part of our mission is easing the burden on families as best we can. That is why I am grateful for this latest round of emergency rental assistance funding for Augusta residents.”

The funding will be paid out to residents throughout the county who may be at risk of eviction due to the economic hardship as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“This grant will actually fund a new program separate from the HUD-funded, rental assistance already coming out of Housing & Community Development,” explained Odie Donald II, Administrator, Augusta – Richmond County. “The ERA grant allows us to be much more flexible with awards and expand support for our residents.”

According to the Housing and Community Development for the city of Augusta, funding will assist local rental households at 80% or below the Area Median Income.

“This grant will actually fund a new program separate from the HUD-funded, rental assistance already coming out of Housing & Community Development,” explained Odie Donald II, Administrator, Augusta – Richmond County. “The ERA grant allows us to be much more flexible with awards and expand support for our residents.”

Fox 54’s spoke to Housing and Community Planning Development Supervisor Daniel Evans to find out how to qualify for some of this money. “The hope for this program both nationally and locally is that is helps provide that stability to persons who have suffered through economic lost, unemployment or other issues related to the global public health emergency to help them again maintain and get through the current tough situation that they’re in and hopefully returning to a more normal environment where they can maintain stability on their own,” Evans said.

Starting next week, you’ll be able to sign up online to see if you qualify. For a point of reference, a one-person household with an income at or below thirty-six thousand nine-hundred dollars qualifies, and then it escalates about 5 grand per family member from there. This money is primarily for those who haven’t been able to make rent since march – but Evans says it’s to help people who could struggle to make ends meet in the future too.

“There is some capacity within the program that we will be implementing to help folks with a very short term of assistance – what they call perspective rent or rent going forward so long as that household or family or whatever the case may be does not have any rental arrearage or past due accounts, we’ll be able to provide some assistance going forward once we’ve assured they’re stable from a past due perspective,”  he said.