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Catholic charities is no longer administrating the rental assistance program. Effective as of Monday, January 10th, 2022, Community Action of the Lehigh Valley (CALV) will be accepting applications and administrating the Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP).
RENT: Residents may qualify for up to 12 months of rent assistance – to cover past, current and/or future monthly rent payments. UTILITIES: Assistance payments will be made for arrearages only (past due amounts), but can include electric, natural gas, water, sewer and trash. https://www.communityactionlv.org/erap
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Dial 2-1-1 for Community Health and Human Services Info. Pennsylvania 2-1-1 EAST is a free, confidential, non-emergency, comprehensive information and referral service that connects users with the health and human services they need, available in Berks, Carbon, Lancaster, Lebanon, Lehigh, Northampton, and Schuylkill counties. www.pa211east.org or call 2-1-1 or 855-567-5341 Pennsylvania 2-1-1 NORTHEAST covers Bradford, Clinton, Columbia, Lackawanna, Luzerne, Lycoming, Monroe, Montour, Northumberland, Pike, Snyder, Sullivan, Susquehanna, Tioga, Union, Wayne, and Wyoming Counties. www.helpline-nepa.info or call 2-1-1 or 888-829-1341 2-1-1 is not intended for emergency use. If you have an emergency dial 9-1-1. For Police, Fire or Ambulance in an emergency dial 911 Legal Concerns Discrimination Allentown Human Relations Commission . . . . . . 610-437-7743 PA Human Relations Commission . . . . . . . . . . . 717-787-4410 www.phrc.pa.gov City of Bethlehem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-865-7015 Dept. of Housing and Urban Development . . . . . 215-656-0500 HUD Housing Discrimination Hotline . . . . . . . . . . 800-669-9777 HUD File A Complaint Online: www.hud.gov/program_offices/fair_housing_equal_opp/online-complaint Housing Equality Center of Pennsylvania . . . . . . 267-419-8918 www.equalhousing.org/ Fair Housing Rights Center of Southeastern PA . 866-419-8918 www.fairhousingrights.org Housing Discrimination (in the Lehigh Valley only), NPLS Fair Housing Helpline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-317-5322 Lawyer Referral North Penn Legal Services, Intake for Applicants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 877-953-4250 Apply Online . . . . . . . . . . . . www.northpennlegal.org/get-help North Penn Legal Services, Bethlehem Office . . . 610-317-8757 Bar Association of Lehigh County . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-433-7094 Northampton County Bar Association . . . . . . . . 610-258-6333 Pennsylvania Attorney General . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 800-441-2555 www.attorneygeneral.gov/get-help Bureau of Consumer Protection Harrisburg . . . . 717-787-7109 State and Local Consumer Agencies in Pennsylvania: www.usa.gov/state-consumer/pennsylvania Law Enforcement & Crisis Intervention Allentown Police (non-emergency) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-437-7751 Bethlehem Police (non-emergency) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-865-7178 Easton Police (non-emergency) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-250-2282 Lehigh County Government Center . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-330-2200 Crisis (Human Services) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-782-3127 Northampton County Government Center . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-559-3000 Emergency Services (Human Services) . . . . . . . . 610-829-4801 State Police Belfast . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-759-6106 Bethlehem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-861-2026 Fogelsville . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-395-1438 Health & Safety Code Enforcement Allentown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-437-7695 Bethlehem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-865-7091 Easton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-250-6724 Health Bureaus Allentown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-437-7760 Bethlehem . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-865-7083, 610-865-7084 (TDD) Easton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-250-6729 PA Dept. of Health Lehigh County . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-821-6770 Northampton County . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-250-1825 Financial Concerns Assistance Catholic Charities; Allentown Dioceses . . . . . . . . 610-435-1541 Easton Area Neighborhood Center . . . . . . . . . . . 610-253-4253 Dept. of Human Services (DHS) . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-800-692-7462 Hispanic American Organization . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-435-5334 Lehigh County Aging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-782-3034 Lehigh County Assistance Office . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-821-6509 Lehigh County Conference of Churches . . . . . . . 610-433-6421 Lehigh Valley Center for Independent Living . . . . 610-770-9781 Northeast Ministry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-691-3355 Northampton County Assistance Office . . . . . . . 610-250-1700 Northampton County Intake . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-559-3270 ProJeCt of Easton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-258-4361 Salvation Army (Bethlehem) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-867-4681 Financial Counseling American Credit Counseling Institute (ACCI) . . . . 888-468-8847 Neighborhood Housing of the LV . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-437-4571 Money Management, Inc. Whitehall office . . . . . . 610-821-4011 Money Management (toll free) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 866-530-9565 Energy Assistance Electric CACLV (PPL & Bill)........................ 610-691-5620 Easton Area Neighborhood Center . . . . . . . . . . . 610-253-4253 (UGI Customers Only) Lehigh County Energy Assistance . . . . . . . . . . . 866-410-2093 (LIHEAP Program) Northampton County Energy Assistance . . . . . . 866-410-2093 (LIHEAP Program) Gas Lehigh County Energy Assistance . . . . . . . . . . . 866-857-7095 Northampton County Energy Assistance . . . . . . 610-250-1785 Salvation Army (UGI Operation Share) . . . . . . . . 610-432-0129 Allentown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-432-0129 Bethlehem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-867-4681 Easton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-258-9531 Housing: Emergency Shelter Allentown Rescue Mission (Adult males) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-740-5500 Salvation Army (Women/Children) . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-432-0129 Turning Point (Domestic Violence) . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-437-3369 Bethlehem Victory House (Adult males) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-691-3373 Turning Point (Domestic Violence) . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-437-3369 Easton ProJeCt Assist (Vouchers) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-258-4361 Safe Harbor (Men or Women) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-258-5540 Salvation Army (Vouchers) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-258-9531 Third St. Alliance (Women & Children) . . . . . . . . . 610-258-6271 Turning Point (Domestic Violence) . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-437-3369 Transitional Housing Allentown Rescue Mission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-740-5500 6th St. Shelter/ Turner St. Apts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-435-1490 Bethlehem New Bethany Ministries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-691-5602 Easton Third St. Alliance (Women & Children) . . . . . . . . . 610-258-6271 Easton Area Neighborhood Center/Roofover . . . 610-253-4253 Ferry St. Apts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-253-3980 Housing Authorities Allentown . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-439-8678, 610-439-1568 TT only Bethlehem . . . . . . . . . . . 610-865-8300, 610-865-8333 TT only Easton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-258-0806, 610-559-7670 TT only Lehigh County . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-967-5552 Northampton County . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-759-8488 General Information & Financial Assistance American Red Cross, LV Chapter . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-865-4400 Catholic Charities; Allentown Dioceses . . . . . . . . 610-435-1541 CACLV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-691-5620 Easton Area Neighborhood Center . . . . . . . . . . . 610-253-4253 Habitat for Humanity, LV Chapter . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-776-7737 Hispanic American Organization . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-435-5334 Journey Foundation (Cancer patients financial assistance) . . . . . . . . 216-570-2439 Lehigh Valley Coalition on Affordable Housing . . . 610-691-5620 Lehigh County Office of Aging & Adult Services . 610-782-3034 Lehigh Valley Center for Independent Living . . . . 610-770-9781 Neighborhood Housing Services of LV . . . . . . . . 610-437-4571 New Bethany Ministries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-691-5602 Northampton County Area Agency on Aging . . . 610-829-4540 Pathways . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-439-8653 Salvation Army-Allentown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-432-0129 Valley Housing Development Corp . . . . . . . . . . . 610-433-2312 Information Services Libraries Allentown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-820-2400 Bethlehem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-867-3761 Easton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-258-2917 Municipalities Information Allentown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-437-7511 Bethlehem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-865-7000 Easton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-250-6610 Lehigh County . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-782-3038 Northampton County . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-559-3000 Public Transportation Lanta/Metro 610-776-7433 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-432-8505 TT only Metro Plus 610-432-3200 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-432-8580 TT only Weatherization CACLV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-691-5620 First Energy WARM Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 800-207-9276 PPL WRAP Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 888-232-6302 UGI WARM Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 800-844-9276 Statutes
• Fair Housing Act. 42 U.S.C. § 3601 et seq. • Landlord and Tenant Act of 1951. 68 P.S. § 250.101, et seq. • Manufactured Home Communities Rights Act, 68 P.S. § 398.1, et seq. • Pennsylvania Human Relations Act, 43 Pa.C.S.A. §951 et seq. • Pennsylvania Rent Withholding Act, 35 P.S. §1700-1, et seq. • Plain Language Consumer Contract Act, 73 P.S. § 2201, et seq. • Expedited Eviction of Drug Traffickers Act, 35 P.S. § 780-152 • Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act. 42 USC § 4851 et seq. • Utility Service Tenants Rights Act, 66 Pa. C.S.A. § 1521, et seq.; 68 P.S. § 399.1, et seq. • Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 504), 29 U.S.C. § 701 et seq. (Section related to nondiscrimination on the basis of disability in federally-funded housing is 29 U.S.C. § 794) • Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law, 73 P.S. § 201 -1-201-9. Cases • Pugh v. Holmes, 405 A.2d 897 (Pa. 1979) (established an implied warranty of habitability into residential leases). • Fair v. Negley, 390 A.2d 240 (Pa. Super. 1978) (noted that the warranty of habitability cannot be waived by a lease provision or by tenant agreement). • Pagano v. Redevelopment Authority, 376 A.2d 999, 1004 (Pa. Super. 1971) (noting that a lease can be written or oral, express or implied). • Wallace v. Pastore, 742 A.2d 1090 (Pa. Super. 1999) (noting that a landlord can be liable under UTPCPL for triple damages and attorney fees for failure to return a security deposit). • Stonehedge Square Limited Partnership v. Movie Merchants, Inc., 715 A.2d 1082 (Pa. 1998) (holding that a non-breaching landlord has no duty to mitigate by seeking a replacement tenant). • Beasley v. Freedman, 289 A.2d 1087 (Pa. Super. 1978) (noted that a breach of the implied warranty of habitability may be a basis for a tort claim for intentional infliction of emotional distress). • Allegheny Clarklift v. Woodline, 514 A.2d 606 (Pa. Super. 1986) (holding that the distraint permitted under 68 P.S. § 250.302 is unconstitutional because it violates due process). • Wofford v. Vavreck, 22 D&C 3d 444 (C.P. Crawford 1981) (holding that the self-help doctrine was a court-made procedure that is no longer applicable and the Landlord Tenant Act of 1951 provided the exclusive process for a recovery of possession of the premises for rental arrears). • Lebanon County Housing Authority v. Landeck, 967 A.2d 1009 (Pa. Super 2009) (listing elements of tenant’s reasonable accommodation request and holding tenant can request a reasonable accommodation during an appeal to the Court of Common Pleas). Date _____________________________
Landlord’s Name ___________________ Address __________________________ __________________________________ Dear _____________________________ : I/we, ____________________________________________________ am/are your tenant at ____________________________________. Our lease started on____________________. We have asked for repairs that are important for our health and safety. The repairs that are most urgent and need to be fixed right away are: ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________. We request that you fix the problem as soon as possible; not later than ______________. Sincerely, (Signature) ________________________ Date _____________________________ Name ____________________________ Address __________________________ __________________________________ Telephone_________________________ Date _____________________________
Landlord’s Name ___________________ Address __________________________ __________________________________ Dear _____________________________ : I am your tenant at _______________________________. I qualify as a disabled person according to the Fair Housing Act and the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act. I am requesting a reasonable accommodation in order to have an equal opportunity to use and enjoy my apartment. I believe the reasonable accommodation will __________________________. Housing providers are required to make “reasonable accommodations in rules, policies, practices, or services, when such accommodations may be necessary to afford [a disabled] person equal opportunity to use and enjoy a dwelling.” The Fair Housing Act, 42 U.S.C. §3604 and/or the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act, 43 P.S. §955(h)(3.2). I am requesting the following accommodation: ___________________________________. I need this accommodation because:___________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________. Please respond to my request in writing within ten (10) days. You may not inquire as to the nature or severity of my disability. Sincerely, (Signature) ________________________ Date _____________________________ Name ____________________________ Address __________________________ __________________________________ Telephone_________________________ April 23, 2019
[Mr. or Ms. and your landlord’s name and address] Ms. Julie Johnson Pleasant View Apartments 555 Roosevelt Street Anytown, PA 19999 Dear Ms. Johnson: [Say who you are] We are your tenants at the Pleasant View Apartments at 555 Roosevelt Street, Apt. 22, under a lease agreement dated April 1, 2019. [Tell what your problem is] This letter is to follow up on our April 16, 2019 letter to you asking for your immediate attention to the lack of hot water in our apartment. Since April 13, 2019 we have been unable to use the apartment because the broken hot water heater did not allow us to use the bath or wash our dishes, cooking utensils and clothing. [Say that the problem has not been fixed and the apartment is uninhabitable] You have an obligation as the landlord to provide us an apartment with hot water. By not repairing the defective hot water heater you have broken the lease. [Tell what you are going to do] Therefore, we are not going to pay the rent for the month of May, 2019 because of your failure to repair the hot water heater. We have the money for rent and request that you meet us at (name of bank) on (insert date) to sign the paperwork necessary to set up an escrow account as recommended by our lawyer. Sincerely, [Your (tenant’s) name and address] Tammy and Joe Thompson 555 Roosevelt Street, Apt 22 Anytown, PA 19999 Sample Letter/Letter to your landlord when doing repairs on your own, cost estimates and bill1/11/2022 April 1, 2019
[Mr. or Ms. and your landlord’s name and address] Mr. John Smith Sunnydale Apartments 250 Main Street Anytown, PA 19999 Dear Mr. Smith: [Say who you are] We are tenants at Sunnydale Apartments on Maple Street, under a lease agreement dated February 1, 2019. [Say that the he has not fixed the problem] On March 20 and 22, 2019 we told you in writing that there was a very serious cockroach problem in our apartment, which makes the place unsanitary and disgusting. You even saw how bad the situation is and yet you did nothing, nor did you contact us, which is a breach of the lease [Tell what you have done and how much it will cost] On March 31, 2019, we called three local exterminators and asked for estimates of the cost to exterminate our apartment. We have enclosed copies of these estimates. On April 1, 2019 we hired RoachBusters, the lowest priced company, to come to our apartment and exterminate. The cost of this service was $50. A copy of the paid receipt is enclosed. [Say that you are subtracting this cost form the rent] This letter is notice to you that we have paid the costs of the extermination, and we are subtracting that amount from the April rent. Therefore, we are paying you $400 for this month, which equals the difference between our monthly rent and the cost of extermination. Sincerely, [Your (tenant’s) name and address] Christine and Tom Miller 250 Main Street, Apt 25 Anytown, PA 19999 March 27, 2019
[Mr. or Ms. and your landlord’s name and address] Mr. John Smith Sunnydale Apartments 250 Main Street Anytown, PA 19999 Dear Mr. Smith: [Say who you are] We are tenants at Sunnydale Apartments on Maple Street, under a lease agreement dated February 1, 2019. [Describe your problem] Since March 18, 2019 our apartment has had a very serious cockroach problem. The problem is so bad that we can’t keep much food in the apartment. Roaches even get into the refrigerator. The cockroaches are everywhere, including our beds. As a result, the apartment is disgusting to live in or sleep in. [Say that the he has not fixed the problem] We wrote to you about this problem on March 20 and asked you to take care of this problem by March 27, while we were on vacation. Despite this, you have not taken care of the problem. [Tell what you plan to do] This letter is notice to you that we plan to correct this roach problem ourselves. If you do not correct this problem by March 31, 2019, we are going to hire an exterminator to get rid of the roaches, and we will deduct the costs from our next rent payment. Thank you for your cooperation. Sincerely, [Your (tenant’s) name and address] Christine and Tom Miller 250 Main Street, Apt 25 Anytown, PA 19999 March 21, 2019
[Mr. or Ms. and your landlord’s name and address] Mr. John Smith 250 Main Street Anytown, PA 19999 Dear Mr. Smith: [Say who you are] We are your tenants at the Low Rise Apartments on Broad Street, under a lease agreement dated November 20, 2014 [Tell again what your problem is] On March 11, 2019, we wrote to you to tell you that our toilet and sewer system wasn’t working right, and asked you to fix it by March 20, 2019. We told you that waste was backing up into the sinks and the bathtub of our apartment, which made the apartment very unhealthy and unsanitary. [Say that he has not fixed the problem and say what you plan to do] Despite our letter requesting you fix this problem, you have not repaired this problem. By not fixing it, you have broken the lease. We cannot continue to live in this apartment with this terrible situation, and are therefore ending our lease agreement, and leaving the apartment as of today, March 21, 2019. Last, we request return of our security deposit of $550 which we gave you at the beginning of the lease. We are also asking for the interest which has accrued from the security deposit. The total refund due to us is $550 plus the amount of interest earned from the security deposit. Our forwarding address is: Susan and Fred Jones, 500 Pleasant Blvd. Niceplace, PA 29999 Thank you for your attention and response to this request. Sincerely, [Your (tenant’s) name and address] Susan and Fred Jones 150 Broad Street, Apt 15 Anytown, PA 19999 First request for repairs to landlord
March 11, 2019 [Mr. or Ms. and your landlord’s name and address] Mr. John Smith 250 Main Street Anytown, PA 19999 Dear Mr. Smith: [Say who you are] We are your tenants at the Low Rise Apartments on Broad Street, under a lease agreement dated November 20, 2014 [Tell what your problem is] We are having a problem with our toilet and sewer system. Every time we flush the toilet, raw sewage backs up into our sinks and the bathtub. It’s really unhealthy and unsanitary, especially since we have an 8-month-old infant. We request that you fix the problem by March 20, 2019. Sincerely, [Your (tenant’s) name and address] Susan and Fred Jones 150 Broad Street, Apt 15 Anytown, PA 19999 555-555-5555 |
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