Cherry Hill Mayor Susan Shin Angulo and the township council announced a new Rental and Mortgage Assistance Program that aims to ease the financial burdens on qualifying residents who have struggled to keep up housing payments during the pandemic.
Per Township Director of Communications Michele Caffrey, funding for the venture is expected to come from just over $600,000 of the township’s federal Community Development Block Grant CARES Act Funds. The program was approved by council via a resolution last December and announced on April 30.
Assistance is available to township renters and homeowners who have seen a substantial reduction in income due to the pandemic and who also qualify as low or moderate income, defined as households at or below 80 percent of the Area Median Income.
A breakdown of qualifications can be found on the township’s website specifically dedicated to the program at: http://www.cherryhill-nj.com/DocumentCenter/View/10511/Cherry-Hill-Twp-CDBG-CV-Rental-and-Mortgage-Assistance-Guidelines.
Approved applicants will be eligible for up to three months of assistance, either for current payments or past due payments, retroactive to March 1, 2020. Applications will be reviewed by the township, in coordination with Triad Associates, a New Jersey grant consultant agency in Vineland that can also provide technical assistance to residents in completing the grant application.
“Each application should take a week or so to process,” Caffrey explained. “Triad has found that in other townships with similar housing assistance programs it (the agency) helps manage, applications are often incomplete, so there is usually some back and forth with residents to get the application completed.
Once an application is approved through Triad, the township will issue a check only to the resident’s landlord or mortgage company. According to Caffrey, there should be no difference in the timing of check disbursement, regardless of whether an applicant pays rent or a mortgage.
“As vaccination rates increase and we emerge from the pandemic, we must not forget that many of our residents are still facing financial distress due to the pandemic and struggling to catch up on crucial expenses like housing,” Angulo noted.
Electronic applications for assistance are expected to be posted on the Cherry Hill Township site at http://www.cherryhill-nj.com/COVIDHousingAssistance, and expected to be live on May 15.
Residents will have to document the loss or reduction of income, demonstrate that COVID has impacted annual income and provide statements that rent or mortgage payments are in arrears. The latter may include past due notices, emails from the landlord (and/or agent), a rent ledger from the landlord or other applicable documents as available.
Caffrey added that the township may be able to extend the program past the initial three months if applications stop arriving while funds are still available. If that happens, the township would notify all applicants that they could apply for an additional three months, provided they complete the certification process again.
“This program helps residents in need, as well as providing greater financial stability for our local economy,” noted Council President David Fleisher. “Council is proud to support this win win initiative for our community.”
For a full listing of required documents, eligibility information and program details, please visit: http://www.cherryhill-nj.com/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=1479.
