New Pandemic Assistance Program Available For Eligible Renters

Press release from the City of St. Petersburg:

Apr. 09, 2021 10:25:26 AM

Financial help is available for St. Pete residents who are falling behind on rent due to the pandemic.

The City of St. Petersburg is participating in the Pinellas County Emergency Rental Assistance Program, which provides financial assistance for individuals and families who have lost their jobs or have had a significant reduction in income due to the pandemic. Eligible applicants may receive funds to cover missed rent payments and future rent payments, up to 12 months in total.

The City of St. Petersburg and Pinellas County hope to stabilize housing and provide greater peace of mind to its most vulnerable renters and their landlords.

Eligible residents can apply on the County’s COVID-19 website at www.bit.ly/pc-rent . Tenants who are overdue on rent should not wait for an eviction notice to seek help and may already be eligible for financial assistance based on the criteria below.

ELIGIBILITYEmergency Rental Assistance Program applicants must be renter households in which one or more individuals meet all of the following criteria:

• Qualifies for unemployment, experienced a significant reduction in income and/or experienced significant financial hardship due to the pandemic.
• Is behind on rent payments or at risk of missing a rent payment.
• Has a household income at or below 80% of the area median income (AMI), with priority given to households below 50% of the AMI (AMI limits available at www.bit.ly/rental-ami ). For a single-person household, 80% of the AMI is $41,350. For a household of four, 80% of the AMI is $59,050. Residents can find more details about eligibility at www.bit.ly/pc-rent .

Funds awarded to eligible applicants must be used to cover past rent payments back to March 13, 2020, first, before they receive additional rental assistance to cover future payments. Rent payments will be made directly to the landlords or property managers of successful applicants.

Homeowners in St. Pete that have been impacted by the pandemic may be eligible for financial assistance through the City of St. Petersburg’s Mortgage & Utility Payment Assistance Grant Program. More information and qualifications can be found at stpete.org/MortgageAssistance.

This press release was produced by the City of St. Petersburg. The views expressed here are the author’s own.