That’s the headline that the AHFC released this week after the application period for rent and mortgage relief ended on June 26.
Over 8,000 applications, representing over 20,000 Alaskans, were submitted to the housing relief program, a $10 million pot of money made available through the federal CARES Act in response to COVID-19 hardship.
Based on initial information from the applications, these households have lost over $20,000 in income since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Their average housing payment is $1400; the average rent is $1100.
Applicants could apply for up to $1200 in mortgage or rent relief.
I spoke with Stacy Barnes from the AHFC, who talked about what this means for Kodiak.
“The Kodiak island borough submitted 114 applications for the program. Based on the average household size that we’re seeing across the state of 2.74 individuals that means that there will be 351 individuals in Kodiak who we expect to be able to serve with the housing relief funds. And the community itself will benefit from $136,800.”
This money couldn’t come soon enough, as many government programs and protections that have supported people struggling to maintain their income in the midst of the pandemic have ended or are soon coming to an end. For instance, the state’s suspension of evictions and foreclosures ended June 30, and the federal $600 weekly unemployment payments will end later in July.
However, there are no additional housing relief programs just yet.
Barnes: “There’s nothing that’s on the immediate horizon, however we know that Congress is talking about another relief package, and we’re monitoring closely to see what it might look like.”
In the meantime, Alaska households do have other options.
Barnes: “I think another thing that’s really important for Alaskans to remember if they are behind on their mortgage is that should absolutely be talking to their mortgage servicer about their financial hardship. Forbearance is still an option, and even though that foreclosure/eviction moratorium ended in the state June 30, national investors and Alaska Housing (Finance Corporation) as well have suspended evictions at least through the end of August. So there are other protections out there other than that state law.”
Applicants were notified this week that they could receive housing relief, but still need to provide verification of their loss of income. If you applied for mortgage and rent relief, you can track your application’s progress at AlaskaHousingRelief.org.