Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam announced plans to direct $12 million in federal funding from the CARES Act to the state’s Rent and Mortgage Relief Program amid increasing requests for assistance.
The program aids households and landlords with rent and mortgage payments to prevent eviction or foreclosure during the pandemic, InsideNoVa.com reported.
The additional funding will enable the state’s Department of Housing and Community Development to continue the program until it will be able to transition to a community development block grant funding stream, provided through the CARES Act, too.
“We created this program because people need to stay in their homes, especially when they are dealing with job and income losses because of this public health crisis and through no fault of their own,” the Democratic governor said in a statement, InsideNoVa.com reported. “We have seen high demands for the financial assistance provided through this program, which provides how much it needs to continue. A global pandemic is the worst time for Virginia families to face losing their homes, and we know that safe and stable housing is critical to helping people stay healthy as we continue to combat this virus.”
As of Thursday, Virginia has roughly 155,000 coronavirus cases and 3,300 related deaths, according to a state health department dashboard.