Housing Search Specialist

The Franklin County Regional Housing and Redevelopment Authority (HRA) serves the housing and community development needs of the twenty-six towns of Franklin County, Massachusetts. We work with residents to successfully access a wide variety of housing resources. We also work with the municipalities of Franklin County to apply for and administer grant funding for various infrastructure and community development projects.

Position Overview: HRA operates Franklin County’s Housing Consumer Education Center (HCEC) and strives to help local residents find and retain decent, affordable housing. The Housing Search Specialist assists low-income families and individuals to obtain housing by working with landlords, service providers, case managers, and housing programs to ease barriers to housing.

Job Class: Full-Time Regular (37.5 hours per week), Non-exempt

Salary: $20-22 per hour

Supervision Received: The Housing Search Specialist works under the supervision of the Director of the Housing Consumer Education Center.

Supervision Given: None

Principal Duties:

• Work with clients to determine appropriate housing possibilities and create an individualized housing service plan including short and long-term goals associated with stable, affordable housing. Work with clients to set priorities and take steps toward reaching these goals.
• Coordinate services with service providers to arrange appointments with clients and to gather documentation necessary to housing search process.
• Work with clients to identify possible barriers to obtaining housing. Discuss criminal, credit, and eviction history. Review CORI and credit reports with all clients willing to do so. Proactively plan strategies to appeal housing denials and present mitigating factors.
• Facilitate housing search workshops as needed.
• Provide housing information and application assistance.
• Maintain communications with housing authorities, landlords, and private management companies responsible for administering affordable housing options.
• Update Program Director on project status, updates, and concerns on weekly basis.
• Assist the HCEC Director with outreach and intake for housing assistance programs targeting families who are homeless or at risk of homelessness and provide initial information and referral services to households seeking services through the HCEC.
• Gather and enter data on applicants and program participants into established databases. Maintain detailed case records that fully and accurately reflect interactions with clients.
• Maintain understanding of current rules, regulations, and policies relating to programs administered by the HCEC department and explain these rules to clients, as necessary.

General Responsibilities:

• HRA is a public agency operating for the benefit of all citizens. Personnel shall conduct themselves in a manner respectful of all clients and shall adhere to HRA's mission and goals. Personnel shall act in such a way as to create a positive image of the Agency.
• Personnel will act in a professional manner while relating to HRA staff, clients and business contacts seeking to resolve differences or complaints through appropriate agency procedures.
• All personnel are responsible for adherence to HRA personnel policies, including the prevention of conflict of interest, misuse of funds, or abuse of trust and are responsible for reporting known misconduct to an Executive officer.
• All personnel shall respect the legal and moral rights and privacy of confidential information due to all clients and are responsible for upholding HRA's affirmative action policies.

Minimum Qualifications:

• High school diploma or equivalent.
• Two years of demonstrated experience working in housing, counseling, or a related field.
• Valid driver’s license and/or daily access to reliable transportation. This position may require frequent travel across Franklin County and the North Quabbin, and occasional travel elsewhere, for meetings and workshops.
• Spanish language or American Sign Language skills a plus.

Additional Qualifications:

• Ability to communicate clearly and succinctly in English, both verbally and in writing.
• Experience successfully completing complex tasks with minimum supervision. Ability to solve problems independently.
• Good professional judgement, as demonstrated by the ability to maintain appropriate personal boundaries with clients and uphold confidentiality of client information.
• Compassion and sensitivity to the special needs of persons with low income, persons with disabilities, and senior citizens. Patience and ability to work with people in crisis calmly.
• Ability to organize and plan work in a timely manner and to handle a high volume of demanding work.
• Ability to read, understand and explain rules and regulations.
• Proficiency with standard office equipment and computer software, including but not limited to personal computers with Microsoft Office Suite programs, databases, etc.
• Ability to accurately collect and analyze data and to make simple arithmetic computations.