Team Leader for the Division of Tenant & Owner Resources

NYC Department of Housing Preservation & Development; New York (NY); On-site; USD 45,000 - 75,000; Full time

Job summary

An established municipal agency is seeking a Community Associate to support the administration of vital rental subsidy programs. In this role, you will be instrumental in ensuring that low-income families receive the assistance they need for safe and affordable housing. You will work closely with clients and landlords, managing applications and compliance while providing exceptional customer service. This position offers a unique opportunity to make a meaningful impact in the community, fostering equitable housing access and stability. If you are passionate about public service and have a strong background in community engagement, this role is perfect for you.

Qualifications

• 3 years of experience in community work or related activities.
• High school graduation or equivalent required.

Responsibilities

• Screen applications and determine eligibility for rental subsidies.
• Manage staff productivity and ensure compliance with guidelines.
• Provide training and support for Case Managers.

Skills

Communication Skills

Customer Service

Computer Proficiency

Bilingual

Section 8 Experience

Education

High School Diploma or Equivalent

Experience in Community Work

Tools

Elite Section 8 Database

Job description

The New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) is the nation’s largest municipal housing preservation and development agency. Its mission is to promote quality and affordability in the city's housing, and diversity and strength in the city’s neighborhoods because every New Yorker deserves a safe, affordable place to live in a neighborhood they love.

HPD is entrusted with fulfilling these objectives through the goals and strategies of Housing Our Neighbors: A Blueprint for Housing and Homelessness, Mayor Adams’ comprehensive housing framework. HPD is committed to reducing administrative and regulatory barriers and make investments to tackle New York City’s complex housing crisis, by addressing homelessness and housing instability, promoting economic stability and mobility, increasing homeownership opportunities, improving health and safety, and increasing opportunities for equitable growth.

The Office of Housing Access and Stability ( “HAS”) consists of the divisions of Housing Opportunity, Tenant and Owner Resources, Housing Stability, Budget and Program Operations, and Program Policy and Innovation. The mission of the office is to ensure fair, efficient, and transparent access to affordable housing. The Office provides subsidies, placement services, and tools that connect New Yorkers to affordable housing and ensures vulnerable households in subsidized housing have the support they need to be safely housed. Housing Access is committed to expanding housing choices, affirmatively furthering fair housing, and stabilizing the financial health of buildings. ________________________________________

Your Team:

At HPD, rent subsidy programs are administered by the Division of Tenant & Owner Resources (DTOR). HPD’s rental subsidies, including Section 8 or the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program, provide funding to eligible low-income families for rental assistance toward decent, safe, and affordable housing in a neighborhood of their choice. Families pay approximately 30% of their income toward rent, and the NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) pays the difference, directly to the owner. The unit must have a rent that is determined reasonable and affordable by HPD and must meet federal Housing Quality Standards (HQS) to be approved. Your Impact:

HPD's Division of Tenant & Owner Resources (DTOR) is responsible for the administration of rental subsidy programs that include Housing Choice Voucher (HCV), Project Based Voucher (PBV), Moderate Rehab Section 8, Moderate Rehab Single Room Occupancy (SRO), and Continuum of Care (CoC)-Shelter Plus Care (SPC) and NYC 15/15. Through these programs, HPD serves over 40,000 households and 9,000 landlords in all five boroughs. DTOR is responsible for the initial application screening; confirming eligibility requirements; briefing applicants; and issuing vouchers. DTOR also monitors tenant and landlord compliance of their obligations under each program and continues to administer the ongoing subsidies throughout their participation. These continued activities include processing annual and interim recertifications to update family income/assets, household composition, and rent amounts; tenant moves and transfers; approved rent increases; Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) abatements and reinstatements to enforce Housing Quality Standard (HQS) inspection results; and providing customer service to stakeholders through our Client Services office, call center and the DTR Portal.

All Team Leaders in the Division of Tenant and Owner Resources are expected to perform similar duties and responsibilities. Team Leaders are responsible for monitoring, tracking and delegating work to a team of Case Managers or Specialists assigned to his/her team. Team Leaders are mentors and provide training in accordance with the applicable program rules and regulations. Team Leaders work with Case Managers to ensure that necessary and important services are performed to assist and expedite vouchers to HPD clients. These services may consist of meeting with groups either in-house or attending workshops or community events. They are also expected to participate in tenant activity programs in projects to coordinate functions with the goal of improving tenant-management relations and to improve and encourage participation related to the subsidy program. Additionally, Team Leaders will perform similar duties and responsibilities to ensure participant cases are accurately screened and reviewed for completeness and in compliance with Federal HUD Rules and Regulations.

Your Role:

- Responsible for the initial application screening, eligibility determination, contract preparation, client briefings, rent calculations, file preparation, interim reexaminations, annual recertification’s, client transfers, data entry of required information into the Elite Section 8 Database, and general communication with clients and landlords via telephone, e-mail, mail, and in-person meetings.
- Review cases, develop unit goals and objectives, monitor staff productivity, interfacing with landlords and clients.
- Manage and ensure that staff members are working within federal regulatory and local policy guidelines.
- Team Leaders will be cross trained in all the areas of rental subsidy administration.
- Team Leaders are required to take various mandatory trainings.
- May be assigned to related tasks as programmatically needed.
- Team Leaders will provide input and assist Coordinators with Performance Evaluations

Preferred skills

- Excellent Communication Skills
- Strong Customer Service Focus
- Computer Proficiency
- Bilingual a Plus
- Section 8 or other Rental Subsidy experience a Plus

COMMUNITY ASSOCIATE - 56057

Minimum Qualifications

Qualification Requirements
1. High school graduation or equivalent and three years of experience in community work or community centered activities in an area related to duties described above; or
2. Education and/or experience which is equivalent to "1" above.

Public Service Loan Forgiveness

As a prospective employee of the City of New York, you may be eligible for federal loan forgiveness programs and state repayment assistance programs. For more information, please visit the U.S. Department of Education’s website at https://studentaid.gov/pslf/.

Residency Requirement

New York City residency is generally required within 90 days of appointment. However, City Employees in certain titles who have worked for the City for 2 continuous years may also be eligible to reside in Nassau, Suffolk, Putnam, Westchester, Rockland, or Orange County. To determine if the residency requirement applies to you, please discuss with the agency representative at the time of interview.

Additional Information

The City of New York is an inclusive equal opportunity employer committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce and providing a work environment that is free from discrimination and harassment based upon any legally protected status or protected characteristic, including but not limited to an individual's sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, veteran status, gender identity, or pregnancy.