AP: Tennessee to draw $458M federal aid for housing rent relief

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee housing officials say the state will receive about $458 million in federal COVID-19 money for rent relief.

The Tennessee Housing Development Agency says it is setting up a web portal and call center and preparing staff to review and process thousands of payments to landlords and utility providers.

The agency says it anticipates that it will take at least eight weeks to be able to give out the money. Additional federal guidance is expected later this month.

Those interested can sign up on the Tennessee Housing Development Agency website for notification when the application portal opens. The web address is https://thda.org/help-for-renters-section-8/covid-19-rent-relief.

The agency says Knox County, Nashville, Memphis and Shelby County are running their own programs so their applications will go through local entities, not the Tennessee Housing Development Agency.