minimum income rent reform vancouver housing authority moving to work demonstration 2014 mtw...
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Minimum IncomeRent ReformVancouver Housing AuthorityMoving to Work Demonstration
2014 MTW ConferenceFebruary 5, 2014
Planning for Rent Reform
•VHA formed a planning group in 2011
•We spent about six months looking at internal data and what everyone else was doing before our plan began to form
•We knew we wanted something that would save housing costs as well as motivate households toward self-sufficiency
Planning for Rent Reform
•Concerns we had to address included:
▫Local economy and lack of jobs
▫Local high cost of housing
▫Strong advocacy and tenant groups
•The data showed a couple of interesting facts about our subsidized households that led us toward a minimum rent
Households in the VHA HCV Program
El-derly
28%
Disabled39%
Other
33%
2453 HUD Housing Types
Work-Able
45%
Not Work-Able
55%
Work-Able Distribution
Work-Able Household Type
•A Work-Able Household is one that contains one or more Work-Able members
•Work-able is defined as an adult under the age of 62 who is not disabled, a dependent, or a full-time caretaker for a disabled household member
Comparison of Housing Assistance and Tenant Rent by Work-Able Household Type
Not Work-Able
Work-Able & Working
Work-Able & Not Working
$0 $100 $200 $300 $400 $500 $600 $700 $800
Average Tent Rent Average HAP
Comparison of Housing Assistance and Tenant Rent – 4 Person Households Only
Not Work-Able
Work-Able & Working
Work-Able & Not Working
$0 $100 $200 $300 $400 $500 $600 $700 $800 $900
Average Tent Rent Average HAP
Minimum Income Rent Reform
•The minimum income is $9000 annually for each Work-Able household member
▫A household with two work-able members has a minimum income of $18,000, three = $27,000
▫A Work-Able household’s assistance calculation is based on the greater of their minimum or their actual gross annual income
▫$9000 is a little less than one would earn working 20 hours per week at WA State minimum wage
Examples of how a Minimum Income would affect Participants
1. A two bedroom household with one adult, two children, and TANF of $478 per month:
▫ Annual income is $5736 . Dependent deduction is $960. Current TTP is $119. Utility Allowance is $90. Tenant rent is $29.
▫ New minimum Income is $9000. Dependent deduction is $960. New TTP is $201. Utility Allowance is $90. Tenant rent is $111.
Examples:
2. A two bedroom household with two work-able adults, two children, and earned income of $1000 per month:
▫ Annual income is $12000 . Dependent deduction is $960. Current TTP is $276. Utility Allowance is $90. Tenant rent is $186.
▫ New minimum income is $18,000. Dependent deduction is $960. New TTP is $426. Utility Allowance is $90. Tenant rent is $336.
Examples:
3. A two bedroom household with two work-able adults, two children, and earned income of $1567 per month:
▫ Annual income is $18,803 . Dependent deduction is $960. Current TTP is $446. Utility Allowance is $90. Tenant rent is $356.
▫ Minimum income is $18,000. Actual income is above minimum – no change in tenant rent.
Examples:
4. A three bedroom household with three adults, one is over age 62 and on Social Security of $900 per month, other two are work-able and report zero income:
▫ Annual income is $10,800. Elderly deduction is $700. Current TTP is $252. Utility Allowance is $106. Tenant rent is $146.
▫ New minimum income is $18,000. Elderly deduction is $700. New TTP is $432. Utility Allowance is $106. Tenant rent is $326.
Impact Analysis
No Change in Rent
Rent Increase from $1 to $100
Rent Increase from $101 to $200
Rent Increase Greater than $200
0 100 200 300 400 500 600
Projected Rent Increase for Work-Able Households
Impact Analysis
HCV Workable Households *Impacted Not Impacted
Number Percent Number Percent
HOH is Elderly 12 2.37% 36 6.75%
HOH is under age 62 and Disabled 55 10.87% 90 16.89%
HOH is female 419 82.81% 430 80.68%
HOH is only adult in household 293 57.91% 303 56.85%
Households with children 403 79.64% 448 84.05%
HOH is White 389 76.88% 394 73.92%
HOH is Black 83 16.40% 96 18.01%HOH is American Indian/Alaska Native 8 1.58% 5 0.94%
HOH is Asian 7 1.38% 22 4.13%HOH is Native Hawaiin/Pacific Islander 19 3.75% 16 3.00%
HOH is Hispanic or Latino 39 7.71% 33 6.19%
Hardship Policy
•Two different types of exemption for hardship are offered
▫First, every work-able household receives six months of exemption from the minimum income to use when they choose
▫Second, any impacted household can request an additional exemption Requests are approved by a panel made up of
two VHA representatives and one program participant
Implementation
•New MTW Activity under VHA FY 2013 Plan▫Many meetings, presentations and notices
in addition to usual Annual Plan process•In January 2013 the first of multiple
notices went out to impacted households• New web pages, phone lines, computer
changes•13 different classes on job readiness
offered •Over 500 interims raising rent based on
minimum income effective June 1, 2013
Use of the Tenant Choice Hardship
Jun-13
Jul-13 Aug-13
Sep-13
Oct-13
Nov-13
Dec-13
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Households Utilizing Six-Month ExemptionHouseholds Paying Rent Based on Minimum Income
• Households using six-month hardship is far less than anticipated
• On average only about 25% of those households facing a rent increase used their exemption
• During the first 7 months we have had an average of 137 using their exemption and 334 paying an average increase in rent of $120 per month.
Use of the VHA Approved Hardship
Hardship Panel Determi-nations
No HardshipShort-Term HardshipLong-Term Hardship
• 59 Requests as of 12/31/2013▫ 45 were determined to not
have a hardship▫ 10 had a short-term hardship▫ 4 had a long-term hardship
• 32 of the requests were made prior to implementation
• Another 12 made long before six-month exemption exhausted
• 5 households have made multiple requests
• Represents about 11% of the total households impacted
Performance Metrics and Outcomes
Dec-2012 Dec-2013 Dec-2014
Baseline Benchmar
k Outcome Benchmark
Average HAP Payment for Work-Able Households $665 $650 $617 $600
Percentage of Work-Able Households with Earned Income 50.69% 51.00% 51.09% 53.00%
Average Earned Income in Work-Able Households $15,653 $15,653 $17,289 $16,000
Imputed Cost Savings $0 $100,000 $308,231 $500,000
Number of Evictions/Terminations for Unpaid Tenant Rent 13 18 9 18
Leasing Success Rate of New Voucher Admissions 91.00% 91.00% 99.07% 91.00%
Days Required for New Voucher Admissions to Lease 47 47 37 47
Estimated Monthly Cost Savings
$250,000
$750,000
$1,250,000
$1,750,000
$2,250,000
$2,750,000
$5,000
$15,000
$25,000
$35,000
$45,000
$55,000
$65,000
An
nu
al
Impu
ted M
inim
um
In
com
e
Cost
Savi
ngs
Conclusion
•Use of hardship exemptions is far less than anticipated
•Cost savings as a result of the minimum income are above projections
•Employment among participants is rising
•There appears to be few, if any, serious negative outcomes