by Tyler Arnold
Virginia will award $2.6 million in grants to help prevent evictions in highly needed areas, Gov. Ralph Northam announced Friday.
Funding will help build capacity and implement eviction prevention and diversion programs created to address underlying causes of eviction. Money will go to the 14 localities the state identified as having the highest eviction rates. The grants will be awarded through a new pilot program called the Virginia Eviction Reduction Pilot (VERP) Program.
“The affordable housing crisis predates the COVID-19 pandemic and we have to address the underlying causes of evictions if we want to emerge stronger and continue moving Virginia forward,” Northam said in a statement. “This pilot program will implement targeted, equitable solutions to help improve the overall resilience of our communities and strengthen local capacity to deliver eviction prevention services now and into the future.”
The COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent economic restrictions created new financial hardships for people, which contributed to residents falling behind on rent and mortgage payments.
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Tyler Arnold reports on Virginia and West Virginia for The Center Square. He previously worked for the Cause of Action Institute and has been published in Business Insider, USA TODAY College, National Review Online and the Washington Free Beacon.
Photo “Eviction Notice” by David Jackmanson. CC BY 2.0.
