Last month, 9,000 people applied for a chance to get a rent voucher through EDEN, a nonprofit that helps people find housing. Housing vouchers can help bridge the gap between the cost of rent and what someone can afford.
EDEN’s waitlist opened on Nov. 13 and closed on Nov. 15. The last time the waitlist opened was in 2019, when more than 6,000 people applied for the same number of slots.
EDEN randomly selected 350 people to move onto the waitlist. The nonprofit told Signal Cleveland it emailed everyone who applied on Nov. 30, telling them whether they made it onto the waitlist or not.
Emails to roughly 250 out of 9,000 applicants bounced back as undeliverable. EDEN is working on mailing letters to those people with an update on their application, a spokesperson said. Of those 250 emails that bounced back, eight people who made the waitlist had undeliverable email addresses, according to EDEN.
Letters are being mailed and expected to arrive by next week.
How to qualify for a housing voucher
The program has strict eligibility requirements. To qualify for a voucher, a person or member of their household must be low-income, disabled and between 18 and 61 years old.
Documentation was not required for the initial application but is required by the 350 people who were selected.
I didn’t make the waitlist, what’s next?
You should have received an email from EDEN with information about other housing programs, including their own. EDEN’s housing programs do not accept applications from people directly, but instead rely on a referral from a case manager or agency.
Don’t have a case manager?
EDEN suggests completing a “coordinated intake” by calling 216-674-6700 Monday through Friday between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. Outside of those hours, people can call 2-1-1 and ask for the on-call coordinated intake representative for more information.
I haven’t heard anything from EDEN. What should I do?
First, check your email spam or junk folders.
If you still haven’t heard anything by Dec. 15, call EDEN directly at 216-961-9690 and request a status update. Make sure to mention that you applied to the waitlist for the “Mainstream Housing Voucher” program.
