The second round of Johnson County’s Landlord Incentive Pilot Program began Feb. 1, 2024 following its approval by the Board of County Commissioners on Jan. 18, 2024. The program will be available until funds are exhausted.

The pilot program provides landlords with financial incentives to rent their units to low-income tenants using federally funded housing subsidy vouchers. The Board approved $200,000 in federal funds to continue the program.

The first round of funding was available from July 1-Nov. 15, 2023, before the federal grant funds were successfully expended.

In the first round, the county recruited 23 new landlords to participate in the Housing Choice Voucher program and six returning landlords who previously left the program. A total of 41 landlords participated.

As a result, the program provided 83 families with long-term, stable housing – including families with disabled members, working families with children and families experiencing homelessness.

A survey gathered feedback from landlords who participated in the first round of the Landlord Incentive Pilot Program. The survey found that 96% of landlords indicated they offered units to the program that they would not have because of the incentive. Additionally, 90% of new landlords stated they would not have tried the program without the sign-on bonus. Find more information on the survey.

While families with vouchers are no more likely than any other tenant to damage units, the county also offers landlords reimbursement for tenant-caused damages.

Landlords who participated in the incentive program have indicated the damage reimbursement fund was important for continued partnership with the Johnson County Housing Authority. To date, the damage reimbursement fund has not received any claims for tenant damages.

 “People on our program tend to be long term renters, so that one-time initial investment to get landlord partnerships will lead to vulnerable populations having stable housing for a long period of time,” said Jessa Molina, landlord liaison for Johnson County.

Since the incentive program’s inception, the Housing Choice Voucher program has seen an increase in its utilization rate of vouchers by 4% to 89%. The goal is to continue to raise the rate to 93% by the end of the second round of funding.

“Landlords fill rental units extremely quickly in Johnson County, so working with any outside program that involves learning a new process, additional steps and paperwork may not make business sense. The incentive program is adapting our Housing Choice Voucher program to be successful in the current Johnson County rental market,” said Molina.

Are you a landlord interested in participating in the program? Johnson County Housing Authority is hosting an informational Zoom meeting on Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024 from 9:30-10:30 a.m. Access the invitation and join us to learn more!

Learn more about the Landlord Incentive Pilot Program and access the program packet. You can contact Landlord Liaison Jessa Molina at jessa.molina2@jocogov.org or 913-715-6618.