Iowa’s largest city had to turn away thousands of people from applying for federal housing vouchers under the Section 8 program — and that’s just for a chance to get on a waitlist, not for the rental assistance itself.
It’s the first time Des Moines had to close its waitlist in two decades. Chris Johansen, director of neighborhood services, says the city received 7,500 applications this year. That sets a new record and is 3,000 more than last year.
“We had a lot more people from not only just locally, but from other states that applied as well,” Johansen says, “and that just tells me that the waiting list in their community are either long or they’re closed as well.”…