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Do you need affordable housing in Southwest Missouri?
The OACAC Housing Assistance Program helps with rental payments so that low-income residents may live in a house, apartment, or mobile home which is decent, safe, sanitary, and affordable. We serve clients across a 10-county region that includes Barry, Christian, Dade, Dallas, Greene (excluding Springfield), Lawrence, Polk, Stone, Taney, and Webster.
A message from Housing
Due to the emergency COVID-19 social distancing practices, the OACAC office is closed to the public. The Housing Department is working to maintain program services where possible. Paperwork requiring signatures will be mailed to program participants with a deadline for the signed forms to be returned to our office. We ask that applicants mail the forms to our office then check back with the Housing Counselor to ensure we have received them. Paperwork may be dropped off at the OACAC Central Office in the window drop slot, first window left of the lobby on the outside of the building. (Follow the red arrow.) Paperwork must be marked HOUSING to ensure it is directed to our department.
Annual inspections are currently being conducted as usual. Move in and transfer inspections will be conducted once the signed Request for Tenancy Approval packet has been received in our office. We plan to mail rent checks on the first working day of the month as usual. The office hours for the Housing Department are 8:00 am – 5:00 pm Monday through Thursday.
Once you receive your Housing Choice Voucher, you have 60 days to locate a rental home which passes inspection and is considered to be rent reasonable.
Please note: The program does not offer property to rent. You are responsible for finding the home of your choice.
If you abide by the terms of your lease and comply with all of your family obligations in the program, your Section 8 Voucher assistance will continue until you are financially able to pay all of your rent.
Your eligibility must be recertified each year and a home inspection will be done annually.
All applicants must be income eligible for placement on the Waiting List for assistance.
No person will be denied participation in the housing program on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, handicap, or family status.
An application may be denied for the following reasons:
That depends on a few different factors.
A program Housing Counselor will be available to help you make important decisions about your housing.
You can also learn more by checking out the following resources:
As a Housing Assistance client, you have the following responsibilities:
Restrictions on leasing to relatives:
PH-10: Tenant Notifications for Changes to Project Rules and Regulations Regulatory Authority: 24 CFR § 966.5 Description: PHAs are required by this regulation to provide 30-day notice to impacted families for changes to policies, rules and special charges to families. HUD is waiving the requirement to provide such advance notice, except advance notice must be provided for any changes related to tenant charges. Although HUD is waiving the advanced notice, PHAs must still provide adequate notification to impacted families within 30 days of making such changes. Period of Availability: The period of availability ends on July 31, 2020.
**This Notice restates the waivers and alternative requirements included previously in Notice PIH 2020-13, carries forward information on previously specified HUD actions, adds new waivers and alternative requirements, and incorporates the waivers and alternative requirements for Mainstream vouchers and the Mod Rehab Program. In addition, this Notice extends the period of availability of certain waivers, such as those related to Income Verification and Annual Examinations, until June 30, 2021.
More information and sample forms are provided in the following links. If you have any questions, please contact our office at 417-864-3444. We appreciate our partnership with participating property owners!
The need for decent, safe, sanitary and affordable housing continues to grow in our communities. If you own modestly priced rental housing in our service area and would like to participate in the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program, we welcome you. Keep in mind, the program is the Housing CHOICE Voucher Program. The family with an active voucher chooses where they wish to live. We are happy to offer a list of prospective property owners who agree to have their information provided to voucher holders who are searching for housing, but the final choice rests with the voucher holder and the property owner. Property owners are responsible for screening the prospective renter family. Once that match is made, the family will contact our office to do a final determination if the home they have chosen can be approved and if so, an inspection of the property will be scheduled.
More information and sample forms are provided in the following links. If you have any questions, please contact our office at 417-864-3444. We appreciate our partnership with participating property owners!
Click here for a copy of a sample contract.
Click here for a copy of the direct deposit authorization.
Click here for a copy of the fair housing booklet.
Click here for a copy of the VAWA notice to landlords.
Click here for a copy of the owner’s guide.
Click here to download and complete the rental survey.
Click here to learn more about how landlords are paid.
Click here for a copy of the inspection book.
You can rent a single family house, apartment, duplex, or mobile home, but it must meet Housing Quality Standards. Please look for the following criteria when searching for a place to rent:
You can apply for the Housing Assistance Program at the OACAC Neighborhood Center in the county where you live, or at the OACAC Central Office in Springfield. Click here to download the Housing Assistance Program Application. We are now serving households who applied prior to 3/22/19.
The OACAC Housing Assistance Program offers assistance to residents in the following counties: Barry, Christian, Dade, Dallas, Greene (excluding the City of Springfield), Lawrence, Polk, Stone, Taney, and Webster.
Applicants who do not live inside OACAC’s legal service area (including people living in Springfield) will be classified as non-residents of the jurisdiction for the purposes of determining where they can lease a unit.
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