Region 4 Housing Assistance Programs
Region 4 Behavioral Health System administers 3 Housing Assistance Programs:
Mental Health (MH), Transitional Aged Youth (TAY), & Substance Use Disorder (SUD).
*These programs are not an emergency form of assistance.
The purpose of the Region 4 Housing Assistance Programs are to help eligible service participants obtain safe and decent housing at an affordable cost. The housing assistance funds serve as a “bridge” to other housing sources, such as the Federal Housing Choice Voucher Programs (commonly referred to as "Section 8") or living in independent housing without rental assistance. The Region 4 Housing Assistance Programs will use the Federal Housing Choice Voucher Program as a model for program development with the intent that the transition from one program to the other will go as effortlessly as possible.
The Region 4 Housing Assistance Programs follow the Tenant-Based Rental Assistance Model. This means that the funds are designed to help individual households afford housing costs. The eligible participant receives assistance to cover Housing Related costs (such as rent, utility costs, security deposits, and/or utility deposits). The service participant chooses his/her own housing unit. The housing unit must meet Housing Quality Standards (HQS).
The service participant needs to clearly document that he/she has exhausted all other resources first. If it is clear that no other options are available, then the following other related one-time costs may be approved: reasonable moving expenses, needed furniture (such as couch, bed, table and chairs), items needed to make the service participants’ apartment suitable for living (such as bedding, dishes, silverware, and pots and pans), and general kitchen supplies.
Minimum Requirements & How to Apply
Eligibility criteria for the program:
- An adult (18+) with serious mental illness as defined by Neb. Rev. Stat. 71-812(3) or a substance use disorder or co-occurring disorders as defined by the current DSM and which has resulted in functional impairment that substantially interferes with or limits one or more major life functions;
- Receiving and participating in approved behavioral health service(s) funded by DHHS;
- Meets residency requirements;
- Meets priority population criteria;
- Has documented efforts to fully exhaust options available for rental assistance through local housing authorities and/or other entities; and
- Has an Individual Service/Treatment Plan (ISP) that includes the identified goal of independent living and stable income (if the person is considered zero income).
Minimum requirements in order to process an application include:
- Completed application; Region 4 Housing Assistance Application
- Citizen Attestation Form;
- Authorization for Release of Information;
- Electronic Communication Consent and Acknowledgement; and
- Income verification for all adults (paystubs/Social Security Benefits Letter/Certificate of Zero Income).
- Additional documents may be required to process the application depending on the applicant’s situation. These documents are marked with an asterisk (*) in the application.
- Behavioral Health Service Provider submits completed application and supporting documentation to: Kalli Nygren, Executive Assistant – Email: knygren@region4bhs.org or Fax: 402-316-1781.
*If application is missing information when submitted, the applicant and/or behavioral health service provider will be notified of information needed to complete the application. If requested information is not received within 30 days, the application will be automatically closed.
Authorized Providers and their Coverage Area
- Behavioral Health Specialists-Norfolk and surrounding area: 402-370-3140
- Liberty Centre Services CPP-Norfolk and surrounding area: 402-370-4204
- Goodwill Industries-Columbus and surrounding area: 402-942-9007
- Heartland Counseling-South Sioux City and surrounding area: 402-494-3337
- Heartland Counseling-O’Neill and surrounding area: 402-336-2800
- Due to receiving preference on the MH wait list, several long-term inpatient facilities & MH hospitals also have the ability to complete Region 4 housing applications, such as Faith Regional Health Services, The Link, and The Well.
Benefits for Landlords
- Tenants have at least one contact persons in case of emergencies, including a 24 hour contact number.
- Most community support workers meet with the tenant weekly. Most of those visits are conducted in the home.
- Rental assistance payments are paid directly to the landlord.
- If the tenant qualifies for utility assistance, those bills are paid directly by the Region.
- Region 4 supports and helps mediate grievances between the landlord/property owners and the tenant.
For additional information regarding the Region 4 Housing Assistance Programs, please contact:
Matthew Nykodym
(402) 316-1780
mnykodym@region4bhs.org
or
Kalli Nygren
(402) 316-1777
knygren@region4bhs.org