THA Opening its HOP Waitlist on June 3rd, 2013
What is the HOP Program?
On June 3rd, 2013, the Tacoma Housing Authority will begin accepting applications for placement on the Housing Opportunity Program (HOP) waiting list. The HOP Program is THA’s new rental assistance program. It helps people pay their rent on housing they find on the private rental market in the City of Tacoma. In this way, it is like the Section 8 voucher program. The HOP program replaces the Section 8 voucher program for new applicants. The HOP program is different than the Section 8 program in some important ways. For example:
- For people who can work, the assistance lasts five (5) years. (There is no time limit for seniors and disabled persons)
- The HOP subsidy is a fixed amount that, in general, is determined by household size. In general, this amount will not change except in limited circumstances.
- Under the HOP program, households have more flexibility to share housing and housing expenses with others.
Who Can Apply?
- THA will only accept one application per household
- The person applying for the household must be 18 years of age or older.
- The applicant must have a valid mailing or email address.
Who is Eligible?
The HOP Program has income limits. The total gross annual income must be within these limits at move-in:
2013 Income Limits*:
* Please note that these income limits change every year and they may be different when a household’s name comes up on the waitlist.
In addition, THA will deny assistance to any houshold with a household member:
- who has ever been convicted of drug-related activity for the production or manufacture of methamphetamine;
- who is subject to a registration requirement under a state sex offender registration program THA will use a national registry to check for sex-offender status;
- who is currently engaged in, or has engaged in any of the following criminal activities, within the past five years:
- Drug-related criminal activity, defined by HUD as the illegal manufacture, sale, distribution, or use of a drug, or the possession of a drug with intent to manufacture, sell, distribute or use the drug [24 CFR 5.100].
- Violent criminal activity, defined by HUD as any criminal activity that has as one of its elements the use, attempted use, or threatened use of physical force substantial enough to cause, or be reasonably likely to cause, serious bodily injury or property damage [24 CFR 5.100].
Note that other eligibility criteria applies beyond what is included on this page. THA will determine if someone is eligible once the family reaches the top of the waiting list according to the current eligibility criteria.
When, How and Where to Apply
People can apply for the HOP program from 7:00 AM PST on Monday, June 3rd through 5:00 PM PST on Monday, June 10th, 2013. Applicants must apply online.
Applicants may use any computer connected to the internet to apply. Computers are also available at the following Tacoma locations free of charge:
- Tacoma Public Libraries:
- Main: 102 Tacoma Avenue S
- Fern Hill: 765 South 84th Street
- Kobetich: 212 Brown’s Point Blvd NE
- Moore: 215 South 56th Street
- Mottet: 3523 East G Street
- South Tacoma: 3411 S 56th Street
- Swasey: 7001 Sixth Avenue
- Wheelock: 3722 North 26th Street
- Family Investment Center: 1724 East 44th Street
- Korean Women’s Association: 123 E 96th Street
- MDC: 721 Fawcett Ave, Suite 29
- South Sound Outreach: 1106 MLK Jr Way
- Tacoma Area Coalition of Individuals with Disabilities: 6315 South 19th Street
Persons who need special assistance to apply may call THA’s main line at 253-207-4400 or TDD/TTY: 1-800-545-1833, extension 249.
What Happens Next?
THA expects thousands of applications. This will be from more households than we could ever hope to serve at the same time. For this reason, we must create a waiting list. To keep the length of the waiting list meaningful and manageable, this is what we will do: after June 10th, we will randomly select 1,000 applications from all those submitted. We will then randomly rank those 1,000 applications. We will then serve those 1,000 in that random order as our resources permit. This means that most of the applicants will not get on the waiting list. We will not be able to serve them in this round. We can only ask them to understand that the need is so great and our resources are so thin. Sometime after June 10, once we make these choices, we will send a letter or an email to every applicant. It will tell them whether or not they received a place on the waiting list of 1,000 households.
Note: receiving a place on the waiting list does not mean that you are eligible for the HOP program. We will determine eligibility once you get to the top of the waiting list.