Of more than 18,000 people who were on the waitlist earlier this year, fewer than 2,000 remain. The reduction came after an update to the waitlist that required applicants to respond.
About 16,600 people lost their place on the Houston Housing Authority’s (HHA) Housing Choice Voucher waitlist after failing to update their information in May and June, leaving less than 2,000 applicants in line for a federal benefit that pays a significant portion of rent for very low-income households.
The program requires residents to allocate 30% to 40% of their income towards rent, while HHA covers the difference. The years-long waitlist for the sought-after program last opened in 2016, when about 30,000 applicants joined the line.
Out of 18,246 people who remained on the waitlist earlier this year, only 1,599 responded to the “save my spot” initiative in May and June, a spokesperson for HHA told Houston Public Media. The “save my spot” campaign required applicants to update their personal household information on a new online portal…