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September 18 2018 Mayor Pulido and City Councilmembers City of Santa Ana 20 Civic Center Plaza P.O. Bo 1988, M31 Santa Ana,CA 92701 Out of Reach 2018 -The High Cost of Housing, National Low Income Housing Coalition, p. 14, 2018. 121 Out of Reach 2018 -The High Cost of Housing, National Low Income Housing Coalition, p. 38, 2018. 131 O.C. Rents forecast to rise 9.4% by 2018. 41 City of Santa Ana General Plan Housing Element 2014-2021, p. 14, January 2014. 151 City of Santa Ana General Plan Housing Element 2014-2021, p. 12, January 2014, I51 City of Santa Ana General Plan Housing Element 2014-2021, p. 20, January 2014. PREVENTION EDUCATION ACTION RE: Consolidated Annual Performance and Evaluation Report Support Development of a Tenant Based Rental Assistance Program 450 West Fourth Street Suite 130 Latino Health Access has partnered with residents of Santa Ana and other Santa Ana, CA 92701 stakeholders with the goal of improving the conditions that impact health and wellness for Ph: 714-542-7792 the past 25 years. We strive to provide services and create opportunities for civic Fax: 714-542.4853 participation that are led by the community's priorities and needs. Over the past several latinohealthaccess.org years, we have heard and seen the urgent need for affordable housing in the city. Not having access to a stable and decent home negatively impacts both physical and emotional health. Every day we are approached by families in search of resources to help maintain their children in a stable home. Santa Ana is not alone in this crisis. Orange County is ranked among the top ten least affordable metropolitan areas in the country,111 A resident must earn at least $36.08 per hour to afford a two-bedroom apartment at a fair market rent of $1,876 a month.", This is extremely inaccessible to our community. As a result, we have witnessed the number of residents needing affordable homes continually increase along with rent costs, and the number of affordable homes being built for lower income households has not kept up with the demand. The average asking rent in Santa Ana is $1,687, which is a nine percent increase from the prior year and rents are expected to continue to increase.l3l With lower wages that are not keeping up with rising rents, many renting families continue to struggle financially to live and work in this city. Approximately 60 percent of renter households are lower income 141 and 84 percent of residents hold moderate and low-income occupations that pay less than $53,500 per year.lsl In order for rent to be affordable, no more than 30 percent of an individual's income should be used towards housing costs. Unfortunately, 57 percent of renters overpaid or spent more than 30 percent of their income for housing costs in Santa Ana. [61 It is necessary that the City create a Tenant -Based Rental Assistance program to assist Santa Ana's rent burdened residents and increase access to a stable home. A HOME Investment Partnerships Program funded Tenant -Based Rental Assistance program would provide a rental subsidy to help make up the difference between what a renter can afford to pay and the actual rent for a home. For the 2017 - 2018 fiscal year the City of Santa Ana received $1,207,942 in HOME funds. For this 2018 - 2019 fiscal year the City has received 1,783,000 in HOME funds. The City has the ability to use these funds to provide direct assistance to low-income households in paying their rent. Out of Reach 2018 -The High Cost of Housing, National Low Income Housing Coalition, p. 14, 2018. 121 Out of Reach 2018 -The High Cost of Housing, National Low Income Housing Coalition, p. 38, 2018. 131 O.C. Rents forecast to rise 9.4% by 2018. 41 City of Santa Ana General Plan Housing Element 2014-2021, p. 14, January 2014. 151 City of Santa Ana General Plan Housing Element 2014-2021, p. 12, January 2014, I51 City of Santa Ana General Plan Housing Element 2014-2021, p. 20, January 2014. PREVENTION EDUCATION ACTION