Colorado has created a new $20 million program to help renters impacted by the novel coronavirus pandemic.
The Property Owner Preservation, or POP, program, announced Friday by Gov. Jared Polis and the Department of Local Affairs, is a result of House Bill 1410 for COVID-related housing assistance. Funding for the program comes from the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, signed in March by President Donald Trump in response to the impacts of the pandemic.
“This has been an incredibly challenging time for many Coloradans,” Polis stated in a news release. “I want to thank the legislators who worked on this bill and applaud them for their efforts. This fund will help Coloradans who have been financially impacted by the pandemic and need rent assistance. This pandemic is far from over, and we will continue working to do everything we can to help provide some relief to those who have been significantly impacted. We are all in this together and we will get through this together.”
This bill allocates $19.65 million to the Housing Development Grant Fund to provide rental and mortgage assistance to Coloradans facing financial hardship due to the pandemic, as well as guidance on how to access other housing services, according to the release.
More information about the POP program, including how to qualify for assistance, can be found here.
“While the majority of renters and homeowners have continued to make rental and mortgage payments, there are thousands of households that have been unable to do so due to the economic impacts of COVID-19,” Rick M. Garcia, executive director of the Colorado Department of Local Affairs, stated in the release. “The POP program will allow for landlords to apply for assistance on behalf of tenants and help with Colorado’s housing stability.”
Longmont’s Community & Resources Division is seeing a steep rise in those seeking ways to stay in their homes, with housing retention cases up 60% since the onset of the pandemic, according to Manager Carmen Palacios-Ramirez.
The city is working with other organizations, such as Boulder County Housing and the OUR Center, to identify resources to help those at risk of losing their homes, Palacios-Ramirez stated in an email.
The city’s website also lists resources to help those facing housing concerns in the midst of the pandemic, including the Boulder County Housing Help Line at 303-441-1206 and guidance from the Boulder County District Attorney’s Office on questions frequently asked by tenants and landlords.
The city’s posting urges tenants to not just stop paying but to work with their landlords on a payment schedule to bring them current again, and landlords to work with tenants. It also lists contacts for mediation including Longmont Mediation Services at 303-774-4384 and Boulder County Legal Services at 303-449-7575.
The announcement of the POP program comes just days after the release of a National Low Income Housing Coalition report that found minimum wage workers in Colorado, including Longmont, must work more than 80 hours a week to be able to afford a fair market rate two-bedroom apartment.
“Even before COVID hit, Coloradans struggled to find affordable housing. But now with so many out of work and federal assistance dwindling, people are utterly desperate for relief,” Sen. Julie Gonzales, D-Denver, stated in the state news release. “That’s why this new program is so critically important. By giving property owners and renters access to immediate support, we will be protecting thousands from losing their homes and granting families some much-needed breathing room.”
