Regional Long-Term Rent Assistance vouchers are helping dig people out of homelessness. They're one of the most successful tools to come out of Metro's Supportive Housing Services tax. Service providers say they go a long way in keeping people housed, including domestic violence survivors, but the need far outpaces the availability of vouchers. by Ellen Clarke Regina Waller-Darden and her colleagues received an unusual gift. A client, Velda Green, gave them a rock to remind them that she feels solid and stable.  About a year ago, Waller-Darden, a housing navigator with New Narrative, helped Green find an apartment with a Regional Long-Term Rent Assistance (RLRA) voucher. Green had been living in shelters for two years. Now Green is successful and happy in her place, with plans to renew the lease. RLRA vouchers, funded through the Metro Supportive Housing Services measure since 2021, have helped more than 2,800 people across Multnomah, Clackamas, and Washington Counties transition from homelessness into housing. The three counties implement the vouchers through their housing authorities.  RLRA vouchers have become a critical tool in helping people with limited or no income secure stable housing. With an ongoing connection to service providers that match their needs, most tenants stay housed long-term.  Waller-Darden, an experienced social worker, has helped connect people with housing through Multnomah County’s rent assistance program for over a year. Her employer, New Narrative, is a mental health service provider that helps clients find housing.  “The majority of our people with vouchers are still housed,” Waller-Darden said.  In Multnomah County, about 86 percent of households using RLRA vouchers have stayed in housing. The county says even those who exit back to shelter or the streets stay connected with the program so that service providers can try to help get them back into housing. According to Metro, when the voucher program was implemented in fiscal year 2022, it helped get nearly 690 people into housing across Clackamas, Multnomah, and Washington Counties. By FY 2024, the number of new vouchers distributed across the Metro region grew to 1,180. Metro says more than 2,850 people have now received housing through an RLRA voucher since the program began. The numbers are promising, but the current need is higher than the number of vouchers available. At the start of this year, Portland State University estimated 3,944 people are experiencing unsheltered homelessness in Multnomah County, 178 in Clackamas County, and 230 in Washington County, following the 2023 Point in Time count. There are currently 5,556 people on a waiting list for housing assistance of some kind, most of which is provided through RLRA vouchers. Guaranteed affordability  RLRA vouchers are part of a path to permanent supportive housing, or PSH. Voucher recipients pay 28.5 percent of their gross income toward housing and the voucher covers the rest. If someone’s income increases, they pay more toward rent. If the rent increases, the voucher covers more while the tenant still pays 28.5 percent of their income.  Service providers and tenants have seen the substantial impact. “I’m just happy to have my own home,” Green told the Mercury. “As long as you’re at home, you feel safe. You don’t have to worry about being out there on the streets or sleeping in a tent or on the ground.” Waller-Darden checks in once a week, and Green knows she can call New Narrative if she needs help. “We tell clients to dream big,” Waller-Darden said. “We work with a population that has been houseless and they tend to limit themselves and need reminders.” The kitchen in a new apartment at the Hazel Ying Lee complex in Southeast Portland.Of the 206 units, 30 are permanent supportive housing units.  courtney vaughn Service providers help tenants with paperwork for housing applications. Sometimes clients look at a few places before they make a decision on where to live.  Waller-Darden worked with Green to find a home that fit her needs, increasing the likelihood that she would stay housed. They found an apartment with large windows, laundry facilities, and other amenities that were important to Green, including a community she felt connected to.  “She chose a place in NE Portland, and she loves it,” Waller-Darden said. “Other tenants speak highly of her, she is a big part of the community, and the tenants know her by name.” Erika Salazar is the permanent supportive housing advocate for Volunteers of America (VOA). Salazar works with Home Forward, the housing authority for Multnomah County, to secure housing for clients.  “This program is essential for women, children, and people in general to get better opportunities,” Salazar said. “Now that people know the program better, vouchers are getting utilized more.” Salazar recently worked with Amy Calhoon, a woman who had been homeless for years. Salazar helped her with applications, intake, and the housing search. Calhoon said she had one-on-one meetings to help with the process almost every day, and working with the same housing navigator consistently made a big difference.  “Home Forward pays the rent and gives us the vouchers,” Salazar said. “From meeting my client to housing, it took from January to March, about three months.” After finding a landlord willing to rent to Calhoon, they waited while Home Forward carried out inspections and made sure the rent was at fair market price.  For people moving from unsafe conditions, like domestic violence, Salazar said this program has turned their lives around.  “In order to maintain something, there needs to be resources beyond the housing,” Calhoon said. “I have my own foundation to offer my kids now.” How RLRA vouchers work In 2020, voters in the Portland metro region approved a groundbreaking new Supportive Housing Services tax in an effort to end homelessness. The 1 percent income tax is applied to individual income above $125,000 or taxable income above $200,000 for couples filing jointly.  The 1 percent income tax also applies to large businesses with revenues of $5 million or more. The funds from the SHS tax pay for the rental vouchers, among other programs and services. There are two main considerations for putting vouchers to work. Vouchers ensure tenants pay no more than 28.5 percent of their income toward rent, regardless of fluctuations in income or rent. The voucher only applies to units within the fair market rent range. In Portland, the fair market rent is $1,650 for a studio apartment, according to Multnomah County. Rentals are subject to inspections. RLRA vouchers are prioritized by need in all three Metro counties. SHS program funding requires that 75 percent of overall program funds are devoted to services for people who are chronically homeless. The remaining 25 percent goes to people at risk of homelessness or eviction.  Homeless individuals interested in RLRA vouchers must be assessed and matched with a program that meets their needs. Frontline workers in Multnomah County get trained to conduct the assessments across a large number of organizations, a representative from Home Forward said.  With a rapidly increasing population of homeless individuals over the age of 55, the voucher program is essential to homeless seniors. Laura Golino de Lovato, the executive director of Northwest Pilot Project, has housed many clients with RLRA vouchers and hopes to continue doing so in the future. “Permanent Supportive Housing is a housing program like a three-legged stool,” Golino de Lovato said. “It includes an identified unit, a long-term (RLRA) voucher for rent and case management and other services for the client. All the legs need to be in place for [it] to work as designed.” Golino de Lovato would like to see more vouchers used to stabilize people at risk of homelessness and sees the voucher program as the most effective way to prevent homelessness in the first place. "The most significant impact of the SHS tax measure was the creation of the Regional Long-Term Rent Assistance Voucher (RLRA) that is making it possible to move more homeless people into permanent, stable housing," Golino de Lovato said. Eliminating barriers Oregon is one of the few states with a law that mandates landlords must accept local and federal vouchers as payment for rent. In addition to this, there are programs to address discriminatory practices when it comes to renting to people with vouchers. The Housing Development Center partners with Multnomah, Washington and Clackamas counties to compensate landlords for missed rent or damages incurred by renters using the vouchers. These costs are covered by the RLRA Risk Mitigation Program. This incentive works for units covered by tenant-based or project-based RLRA vouchers.  In an effort to overcome stigmas about homelessness, Multnomah County contracts with New Narrative to provide a landlord liaison. A team talks to landlords, informing them about the voucher program. Multnomah County and Portland’s Joint Office of Homeless Services (JOHS) says it leads to better communication and understanding. Measuring success in Multnomah County RLRA vouchers are one form of rent assistance for Multnomah County, and part of multiple efforts with SHS funding. It takes time to reach everyone in need. After a slow start with implementing the SHS funding during the first two years and a Corrective Action Plan with Metro in 2023, JOHS has deployed more Supporting Housing dollars in the first three quarters of FY 2024 than it did for all of FY 2023.  Multnomah County reported in April that the Joint Office is using SHS funds to increase shelter capacity, add services, and offer $2 million in immediate rent assistance. The Joint Office also added an East County liaison to focus on equity of services throughout the county.  The SHS tax brought in $336.6 million in FY 2023, far surpassing Metro’s initial estimates. The tax is slated to expire in 2030 unless voters renew it.