COVID-19 Housing Assistance Program

What is the COVID-19 Housing Assistance Program?

The COVID-19 Housing Assistance Program provides housing assistance payments to help prevent eviction, prevent homelessness, and maintain housing stability for eligible renters and homeowners. Local administrators will review applications from individuals and families requesting assistance, verify eligibility, and process payments for eligible expenses on behalf of households.

The COVID-19 Housing Assistance Program is no longer able to accept applications.

Minnesota Housing is in the process of setting up the new COVID-19 Emergency Rental Assistance program that will provide direct rental assistance to help individuals and families pay their rent, as well as assistance to landlords and property owners to pay their bills. To receive updates on this pending new program, please sign up for our COVID-19 Emergency Rental Assistance eNews list.

For other housing resources, visit this webpage and click on the “Resources for Renters and Homeowners” section.

Are you waiting to hear about the status of your application?

NOTE: This information is available in Spanish , Hmong and Somali.

Minnesota Housing and HousingLink recently sent emails, text messages and postcards to applicants who have pending applications to let them know their application is submitted and awaiting review.

Due to high demand, the application process is delayed and taking longer than expected for your administrator to contact you and review your application. All applications continue to be processed in the order in which they were received. Thank you for your patience.

As you wait, please log in to your account to be sure you have uploaded the most recent past due rent, mortgage bills, utility bills, etc. This can be a photo, PDF or other document of the actual overdue bill for which you are seeking assistance. This information is required to process a request for assistance. Only past due expenses dated between March 1, 2020 and December 7, 2020 are eligible. Additional expenses incurred after December 7 cannot be added to the request. You can also view your selected program administrator and application status in your account.

Click here for information from HousingLink to help you navigate the online application system.

Minnesota Housing is in the process of setting up the new COVID Emergency Rental Assistance program that will provide direct rental assistance to help individuals and families pay their rent, as well as assistance to landlords and property owners to pay their bills. To receive updates on this pending new program, please sign up for our COVID-19 Emergency Rental Assistance eNews list.

Thank you for working to add these documents to your application online and for your patience!

Frequently Asked Questions

I submitted my application. What happens next?

Online Applications

If you submitted your housing assistance application in the online system and it had a “Verification” or “Submitted” status before the December 7 application deadline, a local administrator will review it.
If your application status in the online system had an “In Progress” status before the December 7 application deadline, it has been withdrawn and will not be processed.
You can check the status of your assistance request(s) by logging into your online account and reviewing the status listed next to your assistance request. You can find additional help here or contact the HousingLink helpline at 877.314.1401.

Paper Applications

If your paper application was postmarked by December 7, and you included copies of past-due bills and income verification, a local administrator will enter your application into the online system for processing.

Due to very high demand, it may take several weeks or longer from the time an application is submitted until the local administrator contacts you to continue the process.

The length of time to process your application will vary and includes factors such as whether you need help with documentation, the completeness of the documentation, and the number of applications under consideration by the local administrator.

Please gather the following documentation now so you are ready when you are contacted by your local administrator:

Your past four weeks of income or you may self-certify your income
The actual past due bill or notice you are seeking assistance for
The name, phone number and email address for the person or business who will receive the payment if approved

You can notify your landlord or mortgage servicer that they will need to fill out a W-9 form if your application is approved. W-9 forms are not required from utility companies. The housing assistance payment cannot be made until your landlord or mortgage servicer provides the form W-9 directly to the local administrator.

I was denied COVID-19 housing assistance. Is there an appeals process?

Yes. Please see the appeals policy for more information.

I don't qualify for this program but I still need help paying my rent or mortgage. Where can I look for help?

Visit the Resources for Renters and Homeowners section of our COVID-19 webpage for a list of other resources.