Housing Specialists- Take Me Home, West Virginia

​​​​The Take Me Home (TMH) Transition Program is a program of the West Virginia Bureau for Medical S​ervices (BMS) and Metro Area Agency on Aging.. The purpose of TMH is to identify qualifying residents of long-term care facilities who wish to return to their own homes and apartments in the community and provide them with supports and services they need to do so. The TMH Transition Program is supported by West Virginia's Money Follows the Person (MFP) Rebalancing Demonstration Grant.

Reporting to the Take Me Home (TMH) Housing Coordinator, Housing Specialists will be geographically located throughout the state. Each Housing Specialist will primarily be responsible for securing apartments for participants and maintaining relationships with landlords and property management companies to ensure continued participation in housing TMH participants.

Responsibilities of the Housing Specialist include working closely with the Take Me Home, West Virginia Transition Coordinator to schedule, coordinate, and facilitate housing opportunities for TMH participants through housing outreach activities that promote housing stability and community integration for program participants. To succeed in this role, the Housing Specialist should have considerable knowledge of affordable housing, HUD, USDA, LIHTC, and PHAs; Tenant/Landlord laws, Evictions, and housing related issues and services, as well as excellent time management and communication skills.

Housing Specialist duties include but are not limited to:

• Work closely with Transition Coordinators, conduct housing assessments/inspections, assist with move-ins, applications and lease signings, which may include facilitating signing and submission of documents on behalf of participants prior to transition and generally act as a liaison between property owners, program participants and the Housing Coordinator, Transition Coordinator, and TMH Office Staff.
• Housing Specialists will create and maintain a list of local housing providers, including private landlords, property owners and management companies, public housing authorities and any other subsidized housing providers in their geographic area with special emphasis on seeking out accessible housing. In addition, Specialists will work to identify opportunities to expand the supply of affordable, accessible housing in their communities.
• Provides housing lists for TMH participants of community housing vacancies, identifies potential barriers to housing, and develops strategies to overcome these barriers to return to the community.
• Present vouchers to landlords/property managers and negotiate various aspects of leasing such as security deposits, utility bills and monthly lease amounts. Attend housing orientation with/on behalf of program participants as needed.
• Prepare materials or provide training to educate prospective landlords of Take Me Home (TMH) Transition Program and maintain good public relations with landlords and developers in the community.
• Apply knowledge of residential lease contracts to educate clients of their rights and responsibilities. Provide mediation and advocacy with landlords on the client’s behalf to develop a workable plan to obtain and or maintain housing.
• Facilitate professional housing accessibility and safety assessment, wherever possible, of housing and housing accessibility needs through OT/PT at facility, disability advocacy staff, or other professional assessment providers.
• Work with contractors to ensure timely modification of housing to meet participant needs, including finding available contractors, discussing program documentation requirements, facilitating a work schedule and ensuring follow-up shows completed work in compliance with contract.
• Attend and participate in all scheduled transition meetings with TCs, State Team meetings, educational and training sessions to develop knowledge and skills related to housing individuals from long-term facility-based care to the community.
• Complying with all procedures and documentation requirements outlined in the TMH procedures manual.
• Meet annual transition and housing benchmarks as established by BMS/TMH.
• Assume other responsibilities as assigned.

Desirable Education and Experience:

• Bachelor’s Degree in human services preferred or a minimum of two years related experience.
• Must have knowledge of affordable housing, HUD, USDA, LIHTC, and PHAs, fair market rents, ADA compliance, and fair housing laws.
• Must live in West Virginia, possess a valid West Virginia driver’s license, and have access to a reliable car.
• Must be able to work in both an office environment and in the field with minimal oversight.

Location: Western–Kanawha, Putnam, Mason, Wayne, Cabell, Lincoln, Boone Logan, Mingo.

Travel Required: 90%

Job Type: Full-time

Pay: $37,500.00 per year

Benefits:

• Dental insurance
• Health insurance
• Paid time off
• Vision insurance

Schedule:

• 8 hour shift
• Monday to Friday

Work Location: Remote

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