Steve Bohannon, a local landlord, said he has only received one letter from BMHA in the past month that notified landlords that initial payments will be by check and not direct deposit.
“No one has said anything,” he said. “They haven’t given me anything, no paperwork at all.”
Bohannon said other than the change in payment method, “they have not put out anything about what changes there will be.”
While things may continue as it is currently, Bohannon and other landlords want to know how inspections are to be done, how to handle contracts, and other administrative matters.
Bohannon said he hopes in a month or so, BMHA could hold a information session for the landlords about their operations and administrative policies as well as field questions.
In addition, he was curious if BMHA would open a satellite office in Middletown to assist landlords. His concern was that some tenants may not have transportation and cannot get to the BMHA office, which is located on Ohio 4 between Middletown and Hamilton.
“Tenants don’t have that accessibility,” he said.
Bohannon also does not know if BMHA would re-issue the 300 vouchers that MPHA chose to hold in an attempt to reduce Section 8 housing through attrition.
“We need to be on the same page in the playbook,” he said. “Show us the playbook and tell us what the rules are.”
BMHA will be managing about 1,100 active vouchers that are currently being used.
BMHA Executive Director Phyllis Hitte could not be reached for comment and no one else was available Friday as the BMHA offices were closed.
BMHA issued a press release in mid-October saying that it would be the point of contact for tenants and landlords starting Nov. 1 and that the transfer should have little disruption in services.
Middletown City Manager Doug Adkins told City Council that he spent most of the past week wrapping up the final details with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development offices in Washington, D.C. and in Cleveland to finalize the MPHA closure.
Adkins said as of Nov. 1, both agencies will have daily control of the housing vouchers, landlord and tenant issues, payments and daily operations. He said there will be a few items to resolve between HUD and MPHA after the transfer date. Adkins said the final MPHA 2014 financial reporting and the transfer of the hard, paper files to both housing authorities will take a couple of months.
The Warren County Metropolitan Housing Authority will have about 350 vouchers from the portion of the city that is in the Robin Springs development in Warren County. Kamela Jones, housing choice voucher manager, said the transfer has gone well.
“We have dealt with Robin Springs already, and we’re familiar with their management,” Jones said. “So far, we haven’t come across any problems and everyone is cooperating with each other.”
She said HUD has been upfront with information to WMHA, and Nelson and Associates, which was MPHA’s contracted manager, has done “a great job” in getting correspondence on the new people. Jones said the agency also has added two more employees, an inspector and a housing coordinator.
About the Author
