Program Assistant

For questions regarding this position, please contact the Recruiter listed in the Supplemental Information section.

The County of Riverside’s Housing and Workforce Solutions (HWS), Housing Authority Division is in search of a Housing Program Assistant I to join our team at the Indio office. This position may require driving throughout Riverside County, from Calimesa to Blythe.

As a Housing Program Assistant I, you'll have a dynamic role split between office and field work. In the office, you will handle clerical tasks such as answering inquiries, providing customer service related to housing matters, dispatching housing eligibility questionnaire packets, submitting service requests, performing data entry, coordinating mail distribution, handling postage, and generating reports. In the field, your primary duty will involve conducting move-in inspections to ensure compliance with minimum housing standards and documenting instances where properties fail to meet inspection criteria.

We are seeking candidates with experience in property inspection, familiarity with conducting inspections for non-profit developers, knowledge of maintenance and construction practices, proficiency in clerical duties, basic computer skills, experience in property management, or experience in a government agency.

Bilingual in Spanish is preferred but not required for this position.

The Housing and Workforce Solutions Department (HWS) is comprised of 6 Divisions:
Community Action Agency, Continuum of Care, Riverside County Housing Authority, Grants & Community Development, Workforce Development, and HWS Administration. The mission of HWS is to enhance the economic position of the county and its residents, improve the quality of life, encourage business growth, build a positive business climate, develop a trained workforce, improve existing communities, offer a variety of housing opportunities, and maintain the environment.

The Housing Authority of the County of Riverside is responsible for administering the county’s federally funded Housing Choice Voucher Program (Section
8), which includes both tenant-based vouchers and project-based vouchers, Moderate Rehabilitation Program, and Veteran Affairs Supportive Housing Program, and is also the housing successor to the former Redevelopment Agencies for the County of Riverside and City of Coachella. The purpose of these programs is to combat homelessness, provide decent and safe housing, expand the supply of affordable housing, increase home ownership opportunities for low-moderate income households and to oversee the wind down of the Former Redevelopment Agencies for the County of Riverside and City of Coachella.

• Provide a variety of clerical support including typing, filing, basic bookkeeping, recordkeeping, public reception and data entry.
• Answer incoming telephone calls; assist, screen, direct or take telephone messages for Housing Authority staff.
• Explain Housing Authority policies and procedures to clients and public; mail information to interested people regarding the public housing program.
• Receive waiting list registrations; input registrations and changes to registrations in database.
• Run credit reports and criminal background checks for applicants and participants.
• Receive, sort and distribute office mail, faxes and/or other incoming documents.
• Send, receive and screen applications to determine if they meet preferences for assistance; do withdrawals and returns to waiting list; schedule appointments for Housing Specialists.
• Conduct annual and special inspections for assisted units for the Housing Choice Voucher Program and related assisted housing programs; ensure assisted units comply with HUD requirements…