Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf and Oakland Housing Authority officials today announced new financial incentives for property owners to accept low-income families as renters and help ease the city's affordable housing crisis.
Speaking at a news conference at the OHA's headquarters in downtown Oakland, Schaaf said the incentives, which haven't previously been offered anywhere in the U.S., are "a win-win solution" for property owners and low-income tenants who participate in the federal Section 8 housing choice voucher program.
Schaaf said the new "Housing Oakland" program gives property owners who sign a contract with OHA and allow a Section 8 family to move in a $500 cash signing bonus and up to $2,500 in interest-free loans for repairs and upgrades.
She said the program provides current Section 8 property owners up to two months of paid rent after low-income tenants move out as an incentive to maintain the unit as Section 8 housing.