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Applicants Resident Services Section 8 Voucher Participants Landlords Forms Housing

Local Ranking Preferences

LOCAL RANKING PREFERENCES FOR HOUSING CHOICE VOUCHERS (HCV) AND PROJECT-BASED VOUCHERS (PBV)
PROJECT-BASED RENTAL ASSISTANCE (PBRA)

TERMINATED FOR INSUFFICIENT FUNDING (50 points): Terminated for insufficient funding status will be given to an applicant that has been terminated from the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program due to insufficient program funding.

VERIFICATION OF HCV FUNDING TERMINATION: HASBARCO will verify this preference using HASBARCO's termination records.

RESIDENT OF COUNTY (25 points): County Residency status will be given to an applicant with legal residence in Santa Barbara County, who works in, or who has been notified that they have been hired to work in Santa Barbara County.

VERIFICATION OF COUNTY RESIDENCY: HASBARCO will verify this preference through review of an applicant's lease or rental agreement or acceptable document reflecting county residency. In cases of qualifying due to working within the jurisdiction, HASBARCO will verify this preference through review of documentation that verifies employment within the county. In cases of qualifying due to having been hired to work within the jurisdiction, a hire letter or other documentation reflecting the employee start date and the location of employment will be required to verify the preference.

INVOLUNTARY DISPLACEMENT (12 points): Preferences will be provided to an individual or family who is being, or will be, involuntarily displaced due to HUD action, by private action, to avoid reprisals due to providing information to a law enforcement agency, by government action, or due to disaster, such as fire or flood.

VERIFICATION OF INVOLUNTARY DISPLACEMENT IS ESTABLISHED BY THE FOLLOWING:
Certification of displacement due to HUD action will be provided by HUD and/or the Housing Authority.
Certification of displacement due to private action from an owner or owner's agent that you had to, or will have to, vacate a unit by a certain date because of an owner action, other than non-payment of rent AND a copy of your current Rental/Lease Agreement.
Certification of displacement to avoid reprisals must be provided by the District Attorney.
Certification of displacement by government action from a unit or agency of government, that you have been or will be displaced by government action, or due to un-inhabitability due to a natural disaster, such as fire or flood.

HEALTH AND SAFETY (12 points): A preference will be provided to existing HASBARCO program participants in programs other than HCV who require a unit transfer for reasons of health and safety, and where no appropriate unit within their current program is available.

VERIFICATION OF HEALTH AND SAFETY: HASBARCO will verify this preference through review of documentation provided through an appropriate source, or through VAWA documentation requirements.

TBRA (6 points): A preference will be given to families who are within 24 months of exhausting their current HOME Tenant Based Rental Assistance (TBRA).

VERIFICATION OF TBRA: HASBARCO will verify this preference using HASBARCO's own records.

VETERANS (5 points): Veteran preference will be given to applicants whose Head of Household or Spouse has served in active duty in the United States Armed Forces for a minimum of six (6) continuous months, and if separated from military service, received other than dishonorable discharge. The veteran's preference will also be given to a widow of a veteran (as defined above).

VERIFICATION OF VETERAN'S STATUS would be submittal of a copy of the veteran's DD214.

WORKING FAMILY (Includes families where head AND spouse/co-head are elderly or disabled) (4 points): A working preference will be provided to an applicant whose head of household, spouse, or co-head is employed. Employed is defined as working an average of 20 hours a week for the past 6 months. An applicant where the head and spouse (or co-head) or sole member is a person age 62 or older, or is a person with disabilities, must also be given the benefit of this preference. An applicant where the head (or spouse/co-head) is attending school full-time (as defined by the educational institution) will also be given the benefit of this preference.

VERIFICATION OF WORKING FAMILY: HASBARCO will verify this preference through third party verification forms. When providing the preference to the elderly/disabled, HASBARCO will verify the age of the elderly or the disabled status.

HOMELESS (3 points): A homeless preference will be given to homeless families. For purposes of this preference, the term "homeless" generally means - (1) An individual or family who lacks a fixed, regular and adequate nighttime residence: (2) An individual or family with a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not designed for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings; including a car, park, abandoned building, bus or train station, airport, or camping ground; (3) An individual or family living in a supervised publicly or privately operated shelter designated to provide temporary living arrangements (including hotels and motels paid for by Federal, State, or local government programs for low-income individuals or by charitable organizations, congregate shelters, and transitional housing); or (4) An individual who resided in a shelter or place not meant for human habitation and who is exiting an institution where he or she temporarily resided.

VERIFICATION OF HOMELESSNESS the individual or family must be referred to HASBARCO by an established and qualified service provider approved by HASBARCO that regularly provides services to homeless individuals and families.

LOCAL RANKING PREFERENCES FOR PUBLIC HOUSING AND PROJECT-BASED RENTAL ASSISTANCE (PBRA)

RESIDENT OF COUNTY (25 points): County Residency status will be given to an applicant with legal residence in Santa Barbara County, who works in, or who has been notified that they have been hired to work in Santa Barbara County.

VERIFICATION OF COUNTY RESIDENCY: is established by an applicant's lease or rental agreement (P.O. Boxes are not acceptable as proof of County Residency) and/or as defined under the Working Family Preference definition below.

WORKING FAMILY (4 points): Working family status will be given to an applicant whose head or co-head of household is employed (greater weight will not be given to an applicant based upon the amount of employment income); or, the head and spouse, or sole member, are age 62 or older, or receiving social security disability or supplemental security income disability benefits, or any other payments based on an individual's inability to work. Income sources include: wages, social security benefits, social security disability benefits, supplemental social security benefits, temporary disability payments, workman's compensation, educational programs designed to prepare individuals for a specific market career, and Welfare to Work (WTW).

VERIFICATION OF WORKING FAMILY: Employment verification would be copies of your latest pay stubs and/or written verification of current employment from your employer on company letterhead; statement of benefits and/or status from Agency/Institution for all other qualifying areas.

VETERAN (1 points): Veteran status will be granted to veterans, spouses of veterans, or a widow of a veteran who have enlisted or who are serving in active duty in the United States Armed Forces for a minimum of six (6) continuous months, and if separated from military service, received an Honorable Discharge.

VERIFICATION OF VETERAN'S STATUS would be submittal of a copy of the veteran's DD214.

INVOLUNTARY DISPLACEMENT: An applicant is, or will be, involuntarily displaced if the applicant has vacated or will vacate his/her housing unit as a result of one or more of the following actions:

  • DISPLACED BY A HUD PROGRAM (20 pts) - Includes displacement because of disposition of a multifamily rental housing project by HUD under Section 203 of the Housing and Community Development Amendments of 1978.
  • DISPLACED TO AVOID REPRISALS (3 pts) - Family Members provided information on criminal activities to a law enforcement agency; and based on a threat assessment, the District Attorney's Office recommends relocating the family to avoid or minimize a risk of violence against family members as a reprisal for providing such information.
  • DISPLACEMENT BY GOVERNMENT ACTION (2 pts) - Activity carried on by an agency of the United States or by any State or local governmental body or agency in connection with code enforcement; or, a public improvement or development program; or, due to uninhabitability as a result of a disaster such as a fire or flood.
  • DISPLACED BY PRIVATE ACTION (1 pt) - Action by a housing owner that results in an applicant having to vacate his or her unit, where; (1) the reason for the owner's action is beyond an applicant's ability to control or prevent; (2) The action occurs despite an applicant's having met all previously imposed conditions of occupancy; and (3) The action is other than a rent increase.

    For purposes of paragraph D., reasons for an applicant's having to vacate a housing unit include, but are not limited to, conversion of an applicant's housing unit to non-rental or non-residential use; closure of an applicant's housing unit for rehabilitation or for any other reason; notice to an applicant that he or she must vacate a unit because the owner wants the unit for the owner's personal use or family use or occupancy; sale of a housing unit in which an applicant resides under an agreement that the unit must be vacant when possession is transferred; or any other legally authorized act that results or will result in the withdrawal by the owner of the unit or structure from the rental market. Such reasons do not include the vacating of a unit by a tenant as a result of actions taken because of the tenant's refusal - (1) To comply with applicable program policies and procedures under this title with respect to the occupancy of underoccupied and over- crowded units; or, (2) To accept a transfer to another housing unit in accordance with a court decree or in accordance with such policies and procedures under a HUD-approved desegregation plan.

    VERIFICATION OF INVOLUNTARY DISPLACEMENT IS ESTABLISHED BY THE FOLLOWING:
    Certification of displacement because of HUD disposition of a multifamily project. This Certification will be provided by HUD and/or the Housing Authority.
    Certification of displacement to avoid reprisals. This Certification must be provided by the District Attorney.
    Certification from a unit or agency of government that you have been or will be displaced by government action, or due to uninhabitability due to a natural disaster (i.e., fire or flood).
    Certification from an owner or owner's agent that you had to, or will have to, vacate a unit by a certain data because of an owner action, other than non-payment of rent AND a copy of your current Rental/Lease Agreement.