Open letter to landlords

Landlords:

Let’s work together to help close the affordable housing gap

An Open Letter by David Zappasodi, senior vice president and chief operating officer for DHA

Dear North Texas Landlords and Property Owners,

We need your help.

According to a study by the National Low-Income Housing Coalition, Dallas-Fort Worth is fourth among U.S. urban areas that offer the fewest amount of low income housing units. For every 100 renters, there are only 19 low income housing units available locally.

I have the privilege of leading DHA’s Housing Choice Voucher Program which provides rental assistance to more than 54,000 people across North Texas. We have an open, active waiting list of applicants who need help finding safe, quality housing they can afford. We support more than 16,700 voucher households who need affordable housing options every month.

To be a better partner to the 5,000+ landlords we work with, we are working diligently to improve our processes to make it easier to work with DHA:

• We are continuously transforming and streamlining our platforms and processes to make it easier to conduct business with DHA. For example, many of our documentation processes can be conducted online through our Landlord Portal. 
• With our new software, partners can make an online request for an inspection and easily access information including inspection and rent payment records.
• We’ve streamlined our inspection process to be conducted within days instead of weeks.
• We’ve secured the capability to pay rents comparable to real market rates upon analysis and approval of family income.
• We’re improving the way we communicate and also our accessibility. We have launched a Real Estate Partner e-Newsletter to keep our partners informed. Our Landlord Portal helps make conducting business with DHA more efficient than ever.

Our team is fully committed to be a great business partner to you.

The working poor, the elderly, people with disabilities and children across North Texas need our help to reside in safe, decent rental housing they can afford. DHA has the housing vouchers. Together, we can make a meaningful difference in their lives.

We hope you see the importance of our mission to the community. Join us in improving the quality of life for all North Texans.