Bridget and Carlo Erna are preparing this apartment building for participation through the Housing Choice Voucher program.
Property owners, tenants say modern voucher program
helps meet need for affordable housing
COVINGTON, Ky. – When it comes to getting affordable housing on the market, Bridget and Carlo Erna don’t have time for tired old myths.
That’s why their plans for a 6-unit building they’re rehabbing on Scott Street involve getting it listed for rent as soon as possible through the Housing Choice Voucher program managed by the City of Covington.
Bridget Erna said the couple has had a positive experience renting out property through the federal housing program historically known as “Section 8” – both here in Covington as a couple and for Carlo when he lived in Boston. They found that their tenants take good care of their property and pay their rent on time.
“You hear all these horror stories about Section 8 renters, but they are by far the best tenants we have,” Bridget Erna explained.
Unfortunately, local governments continue to face challenges recruiting landlords and properties for the vouchers, which can be used throughout Kenton County.
“The Housing Choice Voucher program is important because it helps provide one of the most basic human needs – shelter,” said Brandon Holmes, Covington’s Neighborhood Services.
And the “parameters” of the program are also important, he said, because they ensure that affordable housing meets standards of quality.
Unfortunately, those realities don’t always align.
“Many individuals and families – including families that have multiple adults working – still do not have the financial means to afford safe, decent, and sanitary housing,” he said. “That’s where the Housing Choice Voucher program can assist. Renters benefit not only from paying reduced rent due to the subsidy being paid to their landlord, but they also have the opportunity to live in a home or apartment that is inspected every year to ensure their home fall within Federal Housing Quality Standards.”
Kim Phillips, the City’s Home Choice Voucher program coordinator, said many of the long-held assumptions that plague the program involve:
- Geography – The City oversees the program, but the 1,200 vouchers allocated to Kenton County can be used countywide. In fact, only about 60 percent of the vouchers are used in Covington, Phillips said.
- Paperwork – There’s less paperwork than people anticipate, and most of it is prepared by Section 8 staff, Phillips said: “We’ve had quite a few landlords tell us, ‘That’s it? That’s all there is? That’s not as bad as I thought.’ ”
- Inspections – The City does a basic inspection of rental property on the front end to make sure it meets Housing Quality Standards, but that inspection primarily addresses common-sense safety and code issues – not aesthetics, she said. If deficiencies are found, landlords are given the opportunity to fix those, or they can simply withdraw that property from the program.
- Time – The federal government requires the City to inspect any new unit within two weeks, but most inspections are completed within a few days, she said.
- Leases – The Section 8 program requires a separate lease between the City and landlord related to terms of the program, but for the most part the City stays out of leases between landlords and tenants. It does, however, make sure there’s no discrimination in renting.
- Rent – The program does not set the amount of rent and only requires that rent and any security deposits be “fair and reasonable” based on local experiences, Phillips said. Once the rent is set, Section 8 requires that families pay 30 percent of their income toward rent and housing expenses, and the government pays the rest.
- Flexibility – If a piece of property has several units, landlords can split them up and enter only one unit or a few of them in the Section 8 program.
- Enforcement – If a tenant violates the lease, the City does not stand in the way of enforcement, Phillips said. “Once the initial paperwork is completed, we’re mostly out of the picture and the landlords generally can run their business as they normally would,” she said.
- Units – While most Section 8 vouchers are used to rent apartments, they can also be used for single-family homes, duplexes, triplexes, mobile homes, condominiums, townhouses, and cottages.
- Screening – The City verifies income and does a criminal background check (although only certain convictions disqualify a tenant), Phillips said. Any other screening (such as eviction and credit history) is not only the landlord’s right but also their responsibility.
- Stigma – The biggest misconception concerns the image of the Housing Choice Voucher program itself. Some people assume that if a property is run down, it must be Section 8, and that all participants are “problem” tenants. The reality is that a lot of Section 8 rentals are in better shape than other apartments and houses, and the program offers many advantages for landlords.
To that last point, landlords aren’t the only ones impacted by misinformation. With tenants, those misconceptions often create a unfounded and unfair stigma for families who just need help putting a roof over their heads.
As a result, tenants often feel compelled both to explain that they never expected to be renting through Section 8 and to offer assurances that they’re working to get out of the program. At the same time, they also typically note that they don’t know what they would have done without the program.
“Families on Section 8 are no different than other families – financially they just need some assistance,” Phillips said.
Renters themselves echo that assessment.
For years, Diane (who asked that her last name not be used) loved her job in the science field and looked forward to a long tenure in that profession. But that career ended a few years ago when she was struck by a car and suffered a traumatic brain injury.
“I’ll tell you, I never thought I’d ever be here, but I’m so grateful for the (housing) program,” she said. “I don’t know how I’d live without it. They’re so helpful to me and I have a wonderful landlord.”
Likewise, Joseph, a single dad with two children, worked hard at his job but suffered a financial blow when the rent at his Taylor Mill home was increased during the pandemic.
“It was at the beginning of Covid,” he said. “It was the worst of the worst.”
The father said he’d never considered Section 8 housing until someone brought it up to him.
“I thought about it for a month, then thought I’d give them a call,” he said. “We ended up getting help, and the guy who helped me was really good and thorough. He really helped me and my kids.”
Joseph, who now rents a home in Crescent Springs through the program, makes a point to say that it’s his first time on Section 8 and that he’s working to get back on his feet. But then he added, “not that there’s anything wrong with Section 8.”
Certainly, for him and others, it can be the difference in having a home or being homeless.
“I could have been out on the street and maybe lost my kids. I’ve had them since 2015,” he said. “I would tell people this is a great program. It’s helped us and saved me and my kids. It’s worth giving a shot.”
Bridget Erna describes the voucher paperwork as a “simple, streamlined process.”
“Section 8 makes it so easy,” Erna said. “Once we got our first apartment ready, I called Section 8 and all I had to do was give them the address and they listed it on their website. They said, ‘People will call you, so pick a tenant, sign their voucher, and we take it from there.’ Section 8 gets the ball rolling.”
Ease of process is one piece, and guaranteed payment – at “market rent” – is another.
“If I were going to say something to encourage other property owners to participate, I think the most obvious is the guaranteed rent,” Erna said. “It’s deposited directly in your account on the first of every month, and it’s actual market rent. … We’re getting more than people get when they don’t work through Section 8.
Phillips said many landlords like the program because:
- The City’s portion of the rent is guaranteed and, as Erna confirmed, directly deposited each month.
- A tenant’s fear of losing their Section 8 voucher helps hold them accountable to lease obligations, such as prompt payment and taking care of the property
- And while landlords and tenants are technically responsible for finding each other and working out lease arrangements, the program can assist. It has an electronic inventory of available properties that it updates twice a month, seen HERE, and prospective tenants can sign up for a waiting list by pre-applying HERE, Phillips said.
“Both landlords and tenants owe it to themselves and their families to not be misled and to check out the real story of the Housing Choice Voucher Program,” she said.
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Property owners who have questions about Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers or want to participate should call (859) 292-2188.
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