At the Housing Authority, we are committed to providing excellent customer service to our landlords! Please take our brief landlord survey and let us know how we are doing. Your feedback will assist us in serving you better.

California Rural Legal Assistance, The City of Watsonville Library, Santa Cruz County Immigration Project of the Community Action Board, and the Watsonville Law Center are hosting informational workshops beginning May 15, 2018 to address important legal issues. These workshops are bilingual and free of charge to the public. Come and learn about your rights!

The workshops will be hosted on the third Tuesday of the month for the next six months at the Watsonville City Library.

The first workshop is scheduled for May 15, 2018 Immigration; June 19, 2018 Worker Right’s; July 17, 2018 Housing; August 21, 2018 Criminal Record Clearance; September 18, 2018 Education and October 16, 2018 LGBTQ+.

The Housing Authority is in the process of relocating the Hollister office that was located at 365 4th Street. The office will remain closed until further notice. If you have any questions, please feel free to call us at (831) 637-0487.

We are pleased to announce new opportunities for people with low-incomes to access the internet. Comcast-Xfinity, AT&T and Charter have high-speed internet service programs for $10 – $15 a month.

Each company has specific qualifications.

• Comcast-Xfinity’s program is called ‘Internet Essentials’ and has a qualification that you are receiving rental assistance from the Housing Authority. You would need to provide verification.*
• AT&T’s program is called ‘Access from AT&T’ and has a qualification that a member of your household is receiving SNAP, otherwise known as CalFresh, or receiving SSI. You would need to provide that documentation.
• Charter’s program is called Spectrum Internet Assist and has qualifications that you are either a senior age 65 or older with Supplemental Security Income or a family with a child who’s eligible for free or reduced lunch. You would need to provide verification of a letter from the school or a letter on SSI and proof of age.

Please contact the company directly if you need more information or help applying:

• Comcast Xfinity: 1-(855)-847-3356
• AT&T: English 1-(855)-220-5211 or Spanish 1-(855)-220-5225
• Spectrum Internet Assist 1-(844)-525-1574

Get all the tax credits and refunds you deserve!

Why pay when you may have your income tax return filed for free? See the calendar of dates and times.

IRS free tax preparation locator tool: https://irs.treasury.gov/freetaxprep/

Assistance is available at Career Centers (Santa Cruz and Watsonville locations). Career Center Coordinators are trained on how to help someone navigate the site. Click here for more information.

The Housing Authority of the County of Santa Cruz is pleased to announce a new program to encourage landlords to rent to Section 8 tenants by offering investment protection and financial peace of mind for those willing to help address the local housing affordability crisis.

Using the Landlord Incentive Program, landlords will be eligible for reimbursement up to $2,500 should they incur certain expenses within the first year of tenancy, including damages, unpaid rent, vacancy loss, or legal fees associated with termination for lease violations or lease compliance.  The claim could cover amounts that exceed the tenant’s security deposit. Landlords can find more information here.

The program is now available countywide, and funding has been provided by the County of Santa Cruz, as well as the cities of Capitola, Santa Cruz, Scotts Valley, and Watsonville.  Claims are subject to availability of funds.

“With the establishment of this Landlord Incentive Program, there has really never been a better time to for landlords to accept families with Section 8 vouchers,” said Jenny Panetta, Executive Director of the Housing Authority of the County of Santa Cruz. “We’ve always assured landlords that tenants with rental vouchers are good tenants, and are no different from tenants in the private market.  In some ways, they’re even better.  Section 8 tenants now come with a certain degree of protection for landlords!”

For more information, check-out the brochure and landlord incentive website.

Come join the Housing Authority and other Community partners at a full week of housing events.  A complete listing of affordable Housing Week events can be found at the following link: http://santacruzcommunitycalendar.org/
To keep informed of Housing Authority news, Sign up Sign up for Housing Authority Updates!

The Housing Authority of the County of Santa Cruz provides affordable housing to thousands of low-income individuals and families in our community each year.  Through our programs, we’re not just providing housing, we’re changing lives!  Check out our Agency Report 2017 to learn more about our programs, the families we serve, and how we’re working to provide and promote affordable housing.

The Summer Meal programs are ready for another season of feeding kids in the summer, and a new site finder has launched! https://www.fns.usda.gov/summerfoodrocks

There’s no paperwork or documentation required. Simply show up!

Weekly updates are provided by US Dept. of Agriculture (USDA) through the first week of September 2017.

To find sites nearby, follow the four numbered steps shown on the website. Start with the Find Sites button located on the map. Enter an address (home, school, etc.) and then click Locate. Click on the plus-sign (+) of the scroll-bar (on the left side of the map) to get a closer view of lunch sites in this county. (The curser may be needed to move this county to the center of the webpage). Both Points on the map, and a List of the ten closest lunch sites will appear. To find out details of a nearby site, either click on the Point, or the List name; a card will pop-up with address, meal type, and hours. For directions click Open Directions on the card.