Michigan launched a COVID Emergency Rental Assistance program making millions available for renters and landlords to avoid evictions and pandemic-related hardships.

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The Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA) unveiled a new $282 million rental assistance program to help renters avoid eviction and hardships due to the ongoing pandemic while ensuring landlords are able to collect owed rent.

In addition to the $282 million made available by MSHDA, another $340 million has been made available by the state legislature for a combined total of $622 million.

The COVID Emergency Rental Assistance (CERA) program replaces the state's Eviction Diversion Program (EDP) which was launched in July 2020 by the MSHDA. Around 16,000 Michigan households were able to avoid eviction and get caught up on rent payments due to EDP.

The newly launched CERA program can be accessed and started by either landlords or tenants who make 80% of their areas median income or less. The new program will also offer utility and internet assistance for qualifying households.

The U.S. Department of Treasury will require CERA program applicants to show hardship documentation related to the pandemic, something not previously required through EDP.

The deadline for the federal moratorium on evictions is set to expire on March 31. Many say there is a backlog of renters across the state are needing help.

You can view more on the CERA program by clicking here.

A renter application for the CERA program can be found by clicking here.

A landlord application for the CERA program can be found by clicking here.

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