Tenant-based rental assistance.
Tenant-based rental assistance.
(1) A program participant who receives tenant-based rental assistance may select a housing unit in which to live and may move to another unit or building and continue to receive rental assistance, as long as the program participant continues to meet the program requirements.
(2) The recipient may require that all program participants live within a particular area for the period in which the rental assistance is provided.
(3) The rental assistance agreement with the owner must terminate and no further rental assistance payments under that agreement may be made if:
(1) A program participant who receives tenant-based rental assistance may select a housing unit in which to live and may move to another unit or building and continue to receive rental assistance, as long as the program participant continues to meet the program requirements.
(2) The recipient may require that all program participants live within a particular area for the period in which the rental assistance is provided.
(3) The rental assistance agreement with the owner must terminate and no further rental assistance payments under that agreement may be made if:
(i) The program participant moves out of the housing unit for which the program participant has a lease;
(ii) The lease terminates and is not renewed; or
(iii) The program participant becomes ineligible to receive ESG rental assistance.
(i) Project-based rental assistance. If the recipient or subrecipient identifies a permanent housing unit that meets ESG requirements and becomes available before a program participant is identified to lease the unit, the recipient or subrecipient may enter into a rental assistance agreement with the owner to reserve the unit and subsidize its rent in accordance with the following requirements:
(1) The rental assistance agreement may cover one or more permanent housing units in the same building. Each unit covered by the rental assistance agreement (“assisted unit”) may only be occupied by program participants, except as provided under paragraph (i)(4) of this section.
(2) The recipient or subrecipient may pay up to 100 percent of the first month's rent, provided that a program participant signs a lease and moves into the unit before the end of the month for which the first month's rent is paid. The rent paid before a program participant moves into the unit must not exceed the rent to be charged under the program participant's lease and must be included when determining that program participant's total rental assistance.
(3) The recipient or subrecipient may make monthly rental assistance payments only for each whole or partial month an assisted unit is leased to a program participant. When a program participant moves out of an assisted unit, the recipient or subrecipient may pay the next month's rent, i.e., the first month's rent for a new program participant, as provided in paragraph (i)(2) of this section.
(4) The program participant's lease must not condition the term of occupancy to the provision of rental assistance payments. If the program participant is determined ineligible or reaches the maximum number of months over which rental assistance can be provided, the recipient or subrecipient must suspend or terminate the rental assistance payments for the unit. If the payments are suspended, the individual or family may remain in the assisted unit as permitted under the lease, and the recipient or subrecipient may resume payments if the individual or family again becomes eligible and needs further rental assistance. If the payments are terminated, the rental assistance may be transferred to another available unit in the same building, provided that the other unit meets all ESG requirements.
(5) The rental assistance agreement must have an initial term of one year. When a new program participant moves into an assisted unit, the term of the rental assistance agreement may be extended to cover the initial term of the program participant's lease. If the program participant's lease is renewed, the rental assistance agreement may be renewed or extended, as needed, up to the maximum number of months for which the program participant remains eligible. However, under no circumstances may the recipient or subrecipient commit ESG funds to be expended beyond the expenditure deadline in § 576.203 or commit funds for a future ESG grant before the grant is awarded.
(j) Changes in household composition. The limits on the assistance under this section apply to the total assistance an individual receives, either as an individual or as part of a family.