Loudoun Supervisors Reallocate $500,000 To Combat Rising Evictions

LOUDOUN COUNTY, VA — Evictions are spiking in Loudoun County, according to a report presented at Tuesday's meeting of the Board of Supervisors. Supervisors voted to reallocate $500,000 in American Rescue Plan Act funds to help families facing eviction in the coming months.

Supervisors voted unanimously in favor of the proposal.

The $500,000 in ARPA funds were already included in a $1.5 million for housing preservation. County staff members recommended the reallocation of funds to help more families in the short term as the winter months approach.

The proposal will also allow the county administrator to implement the program and contract a vendor. County staff members told supervisors that a vendor will be needed for the program due to staffing deficits in the county's department of housing and community development.

"We have to take care of this issue right now because we do not want families to be unhoused during these months," At-Large Chair Phyllis Randall said at Tuesday night's meeting. "However, this is the acute problem, it's not the long-term problem."

The Northern Virginia Affordable Housing Alliance reported that 1 in 82 renting households are facing eviction filings in Loudoun County. However, county officials reported that court data indicated that evictions increased "sharply" in the past three months.

"With the anecdotal evidence of increased eviction cases now having an estimated 60-day case

resolution timeline and the forthcoming hypothermia season, the County anticipates an additional spike in judgments," the report from county staff members said. "This action supports more households in averting evictions during the winter months."

In her closing statements for the motion, Randall said the current funds were a temporary solution.

"The community is really coming together to tackle these problems. And we really have to do that because this is a Band-Aid on the bigger issues," Randall said. "If we don't fix these bigger issues, we'll be back here next year at this time."

County officials said they could start contacting vendors on Wednesday. Funds could be distributed by the end of November, according to the county report.