Landlord Offers Tenants $100 Reduction in Rent Arrears for Every Hour Given to Charity Work
A Florida landlord of over 500 housing units has come up with a novel way to alleviate rent arrears for the tenants by pledging to forgive $100 of overdue rent for every hour a tenant volunteers at a recognized nonprofit charity.
Staffers at the Contemporary Housing Alternatives of Florida (CHAF), providing affordable housing for low-income families across Pinellas County, grew concerned for their tenants amid the CCP virus pandemic. Around 20 percent of their tenants owed rent due to losing income since March 2020 reports Tampa Bay Times. (Courtesy of CHAF)
Local nonprofit offers rent relief to tenants who volunteer around the community
A Tampa Bay nonprofit is offering rent relief for those struggling due to the coronavirus pandemic.
and last updated 2020-12-22 11:56:50-05
PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. â A Tampa Bay nonprofit is offering rent relief for those struggling due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Contemporary Housing Alternatives of Florida, also known as CHAF, operates more than 500 affordable housing units in 14 buildings across Pinellas County.
With so many people still out of work or facing reduced hours, the nonprofit says its tenants owe roughly $400K in unpaid rent through 2020. It was a learning process every single day that you try and do the right thing, said Holly Butler, CHAFâs director of property management. You try and make the right decisions. No one had ever experienced this before.
PUBLISHED 8:12 PM ET Dec. 21, 2020 PUBLISHED December 21, 2020 @8:12 PM
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ST. PETERBSURG, Fla. Under the new COVID-19 relief package, the eviction moratorium will be extended through January. While it helps renters stay in their homes, their overdue rent is piling up. Contemporary Housing Alternatives of Florida, Inc., or CHAF, is helping its residents lower their balances. The nonprofit is forgiving $100 for every hour residents volunteer at a local organization.
What You Need To Know
Nonprofit offering $100 rent reduction per hour of volunteer work
So far, 150 hours have been completed
There is no projected end date for the program
To qualify for the concession, residents must show management their income was impacted by the pandemic.
Pinellas landlord forgives $100 in rent for every hour tenants volunteer for local charities
With many behind in rent because of the pandemic, Contemporary Housing Alternatives of Florida has a novel way to give its tenants a chance to lower their debts.
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Holly Butler, 48, director of property management for Contemporary Housing Alternatives of Florida, Inc, had an idea. What if COVID-affected tenants could get credit for delinquent rent by putting in community service hours? I wondered, How can we make lemonade out of all these lemons? I thought it might just be a kookie idea, but I pitched it, Butler explained. Now their new Back on Track program allows COVID-affected tenants to deduct $100 from their delinquent rent debt for every hour they volunteer for a recognized nonprofit charity. Butler poses at Northside Villas on Dec. 14. [ JOHN PENDYGRAFT | Times ]
David Perry
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