Housing Commission – Waitlist Information
82 Ionia Ave NW, Suite 390
Grand Rapids, MI 49503-3036
Phone: (616) 632-7400
Fax: (616) 632-7405
General Information
Kent County Housing Commission (KCHC) administers 390 Housing Choice Vouchers to provide rental assistance to extremely-low and low-income households. When a voucher becomes available due to an existing voucher holder leaving the program, the next person on the waitlist maintained by KCHC is contacted via U.S. mail and given the opportunity to complete a full application to determine their eligibility for a voucher. Being on the waitlist does not constitute eligibility for a housing choice voucher. Eligibility can only be determined at the time of application.
In August 2010, the Housing Commission opened the waitlist because HUD requires that housing commissions open their waitlist when the existing waitlist reaches the level in which those households would be served within 12-24 months. As of April 1, 2011, names are still being pulled from the 2002 waitlist. Once all of the persons on the 2002 waitlist have been served, names from the 2010 waitlist will be pulled when a voucher becomes available.
Waitlist Process
Rank on the 2010 waitlist can only be determined once all waitlist applicants are inputted into the KCHC database because persons who have a disability or veteran status are given a preference on the waitlist. The expected timeframe for having all names inputted is April 20, 2011.
After persons with a disability or veteran status, the waitlist applicants will be ranked according to time order in which their application was received on-site the day of the wait list opening and finally, persons who mailed in their applications will be ranked in random order.
Housing commission staff has continued to stress to applicants that names are only pulled from the waitlist when a Housing Choice Voucher becomes available as current voucher holders leave or are terminated from the program.
Therefore once the rank is established for the waitlist, applicants still must wait until a voucher becomes available and will be contacted by the Housing Commission at that time.
It is important to keep the KCHC informed of any change of address in order to be contacted in the future. Please provide any change of address in writing by sending your name, old address, new address to:
Kent County Housing Commission
82 Ionia NW, Ste 390
Grand Rapids, MI 49503
