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Rental Assistance - Rental Allowance Program (RAP) Fact Sheet |
Purpose of Program |
The purpose of the Rental Allowance Program (RAP) is to provide grants to local
governments to provide flat rent subsidies to low-income families who either
are homeless or have an emergency housing need. The goal of the program is to
enable these households to move from homelessness or temporary emergency
housing into more permanent housing and to return to self-sufficiency.
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Eligible Types of Housing |
| Eligible housing can include rooms, boarding house rooms, other single-room
occupancy arrangements, apartments, group homes, transitional housing (provided
it is not temporary emergency housing), single-family houses, and mobile homes.
Kitchen and bathroom facilities may be in common, shared, or independent. Motel
and hotel rooms without access to kitchen facilities may be permitted if not
other more cost-effective and suitable housing is available. Living facilities
may be shared with other persons, including other program recipients. Housing
may be furnished or unfurnished. |
Eligible Applicants |
Counties, Baltimore City, and Annapolis may apply directly to CDA for program
funds and may administer the processing of applications made by eligible
residents for rent subsidies. CDA may administer the program directly where no
local government is administering the program.
Low-income families may apply directly to the local administering agency for
rent subsidies.
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Eligible Residents |
Eligible residents are low-income families who are homeless, in danger of
becoming homeless, or in need of emergency housing. Incomes of assisted
households cannot exceed 30 percent of the statewide or area median income,
whichever is higher.
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Subsidy Term |
This is a rent subsidy program. Local government administering agencies sign a
contract with eligible residents to provide a monthly rental allowance payment
for up to 12 months. Local programs may also provide additional services such
as housing counseling, credit counseling, individual case management programs,
etc. to help the family maintain housing stability.
The amount of monthly rental allowance payments is based on family size and area
of the state. The payment amount may be increased or decreased by up to 10
percent in the exercise of reasonable discretion by a local jurisdiction.
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| Click here for Monthly Rental Allowance Payments by Household Size & County (pdf). |
* - Includes Annapolis City, Anne Arundel, Calvert, Charles, Frederick,
Howard, Montgomery, and Prince George's Counties.
** - Includes Baltimore City, Baltimore, Carroll, Cecil, Harford, Queen
Anne's, St. Mary's and Talbot Counties.
*** - Includes Allegany, Caroline, Dorchester, Garrett, Kent, Somerset,
Washington, Wicomico, and Worcester Counties.
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Local Government Involvement |
| County governments, Baltimore City, and Annpolis administer RAP by accepting
applications from eligible residents, coordinating the program with other
social services administered by the county, and providing staff links with CDA
to ensure program requirements are being met. RAP is usually administered by
the local social services office, the Section 8 agency (public housing
authority), or is contracted by the county to a private nonprofit organization
for administration. |
For More Information, Contact: |
Cathy Maenner
Multifamily Housing
Community Development Administration
Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development
100 Community Place
Crownsville, MD 21032-2023
maenner@mdhousing.org
410-514-7436
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