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Housing Authority Landlord newsletter: June 2022

Posted on July 1, 2022

brown low rise buildings

In this issue

  • Housing Choice Voucher Program waiting list opening
  • Integrated Pest Management

Housing Choice Voucher Program waiting list opening

Our Housing Authority opened the Housing Choice Voucher Program waiting list application on Monday, May 2, 2022, until Tuesday, may 31, 2022. During this 30-day period, the Housing Authority received a total of 20,756 applications. Only a maximum of 7,500 applications will be randomly selected.

Prior to the waiting list opening on May 2, 2022, our Housing Authority conducted an extensive marketing campaign to promote the waiting list opening. Prior to the waiting list opening, we conducted seven (7) in-person workshops in the community during the week of April 26, 2022. There were over 1,000 residents who attended these workshops. We continued with our extensive marketing efforts during the waiting list opening period from May 2nd to May 31st and conducted nine (9) in-person workshops and one (1) virtual workshop. Over 600 residents attended these workshops. We also hosted several train-the-trainer workshops. All workshops were conducted in English, Spanish, and Vietnamese. The locations of the workshops included community centers, elementary schools, non-profit organizations, and our two public libraries. Workshops were also held during the daytime, evenings, and weekends to accommodate our residents needs. All waiting list flyers and documents, including paper applications were available in English, Spanish, and Vietnamese.

The additional marketing and public outreach efforts included:

  • 30 social media posts and ads (including English, Spanish, and Vietnamese) that had a total reach/impressions of 693,556 people. One series of social media posts included a step-by-step guide on how to apply.
  • Added Section 8 to the mySantaAna app homepage and used push notifications.
  • Multilingual Nixle messages
  • City Manager’s newsletters
  • A press release and media outreach focused on non-English news outlets, resulting in coverage by Spanish and Vietnamese media.
  • Advertised the waiting list opening with the OC Register, La Opinion, and Nguoi Viet on April 16, April 30, and May 14, 2022.
  • City Neighborhood initiatives staff promoted the waiting list opening at City-produced events, including “The Egg-cellent Adventure” family event at Centennial Park held on April 16 and the Santa Ana Public Library’s Dia de Los Ninos, Dia de los Libros, and the KidWorks Parent Resource Fair events held on April 30.
  • At least two email blasts to all our non-profit business partners.
  • A housing resources postcard was mailed to every Santa Ana residence (over 85,000 postcards).
  • Distributed over 5,000 flyers and partnered with over 20 local agencies, including the OC Health Care Agency’s Office of Care Coordination, Orangewood Foundation, LGBTQ+ Center, and Yale Homeless Shelter, to promote and assist with the waiting list opening.
  • Laptop computers were available at the Housing Authority office on the first floor and we assisted all applicants that walked into our office.

Our marketing efforts earned the following media coverage on various major networks:

As we begin to issue vouchers to the applicants who applied for our housing assistance, we thank you for your partnership with our Housing Authority to provide housing opportunities for our assisted-families.

Integrated pest management

As we approach the summer months, common pests can cause serious health problems! Pests such as weeds, cockroaches and rodents, as well as the chemicals we use to control them, can cause and trigger allergies and asthma by contaminating our air indoors. We would like to introduce you to the Integrated Pest Management system. It’s safer and more effective for you and your tenants.

What is IPM?

Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is a method that focuses on knowing the pest in order to prevent pests from getting out of control. IPM is safer because non-chemical methods are the first line of defense. If chemicals must be used, always choose less hazardous products. Be sure to read warning labels before using any chemical products.

Click Here for More Information

New rent increase submission email

To streamline the process to request rent increases, we created an email account dedicated to only rent increase requests. To ensure that your rent increase request is processed timely and correctly, please email all of your rent increase requests to SAHARentIncrease@santa-ana.org.

Update on our essential services during the pandemic

Our staff continues working here in the office during this pandemic to process your payments in a timely manner for all of our assisted-families. Meanwhile, we have new voucher holders searching for a unit with our Emergency Housing Vouchers, Mainstream vouchers and HUD-VASH vouchers. If you currently have a vacancy or you are expecting to have a vacancy in the near future, we encourage you to list your vacant unit at www.affordablehousing.com. You may also consider signing up for our region’s landlord incentive program, Welcome Home OC. The website for more information is: www.unitedtoendhomelessness.org/welcomehome.

Did you know?

Our assisted-families can voluntarily participate in a program called the Housing Plus Program. The Housing Plus Program is a HUD program that enables families assisted through the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program to increase their earned income and reduce their dependency on welfare assistance and rental subsidies. The Santa Ana Housing Authority (SAHA) works in collaboration with the Santa Ana WORK Center and a Program Coordinating Committee (PCC) to provide coaching, guidance and case management to Housing Plus Program Participants. Our goal is that all of our non-elderly, non-disabled families voluntarily join our Housing Plus Program and use our housing assistance as a platform to attain self-sufficiency and independence from our housing assistance.

Listing your vacant units with us has never been easier!

Our agency uses a service called www.affordablehousing.com.

www.affordablehousing.com is the largest affordable housing listing service in the nation. It provides a central location where voucher holders can search for available units where the landlord is willing to screen the voucher holder for tenancy. It only takes a couple of minutes to post a free listing and you will get leads sent directly to your inbox.

To list your units, simply go to www.affordablehousing.com or click on the link above. By listing your units on www.affordablehousing.com, this does not obligate you to rent to one of our voucher holders. You are simply expanding your marketing to ensure you are able to find the most qualified tenant possible for your unit(s).

Apartment Association of Orange County

Membership in the Apartment Association of Orange County (AAOC) opens doors of opportunity as you seek to broaden your knowledge of the industry and maximize your potential as an industry professional. You will receive professional assistance that will help you achieve your professional goals.

You can own or manage a single unit or thousands of units – AAOC offers something for everybody!

AAOC will provide you with the tools you need be an even more successful rental housing owner, some of which include:

  • Access to Nationwide Credit, Eviction, and Criminal Background Checks
  • Counseling Assistance for your Rental Housing Questions and Concerns
  • Access to a Full Collection of Legal and Operational Forms
  • Educational Seminars & Certified Property Management Courses
  • Protection of your Rental Property Rights through Legislative Advocacy
  • Membership with the National Apartment Association (NAA)
  • Annual subscription to AAOC’s Apartment News magazine & NAA’s units magazine

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