Introducing the Rooted Renters Program

Providing cash incentives to existing landlords to help locals stay local

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Program Overview

Launching July 15, 2024, Rooted Renters provides financial incentives to Truckee property owners who offer below market rate housing to local workforce members for three years. The goal of the Program is to create long-term rental housing for the local workforce, provide existing landlords with equitable participation in the Town of Truckee’s workforce housing incentive programs, and expand the Town’s suite of housing programs through a multi-year rental solution. The Town of Truckee is offering payments based on unit size to be disbursed in increasing percentages over the course of a three year period.

Download the Rooted Renters Program Guidelines in English (PDF) or Spanish (PDF) for full program details.​

Property owners who agree to long-term rent their property for a total period of three years (36 months) are eligible for an incentive through Rooted Renters. Incentives are based on unit size, and are paid directly from the Town of Truckee to property owners among 4 payments over the three-year period.

Payments are issued when the property first enters the program (0 months) and when the property has been rented for 12, 24 and 36 cumulative months. Payments get progressively larger to incentivize property owners to maintain their long-term rental. See the following schedule:

Room Studio 1-Bed 2-Bed 3-Bed 4-Bed
0 Mo (15%) (Application Approved)
$1,350
$2,250
$3,000
$3,450
$3,600
$3,900
12 Mo (15%)
$1,350
$2,250
$3,000
$3,450
$3,600
$3,900
24 Mo (30%)
$2,700
$4,500
$6,000
$6,900
$7,200
$7,800
36 Mo (40%) (Final Payment)
$3,600
$6,000
$8,000
$9,200
$9,600
$10,400
Total Incentive
$9,000
$15,000
$20,000
$23,000
$24,000
$26,000
Property owners must rent their property to a qualified household (details below) and must rent their property at or under the the maximum rental rate. Rent maximums are set based on unit size. Owners can increase rent according to the schedule below once their property has been rented for a cumulative 12 and 24 months:

*Note, these rental maximums will apply to property owners who enter the program between July 15, 2024 through June 30, 2025 (Cohort #1). See the FAQ section on rental caps for future program participants for more info.

% Increase Room Studio 1-Bed 2-Bed 3-Bed 4-Bed
Year 1 Rent
-
$810
$1,013
$1,520
$2,026
$3,039
$4,052
Year 2 Rent
+7%
$867
$1,084
$1,626
$2,168
$3,252
$4,336
Year 3 Rent
+7%
$927
$1,160
$1,740
$2,320
$3,479
$4,639

Qualified Renter Household

To be eligible for incentives, property owners must rent their property to a qualified household. To be considered a qualified household, 50% or more of the adults over 18 must work at least 20 hours per week (averaged throughout the year), for an employer located in the geographic boundaries of the Truckee Tahoe Unified School District (TTUSD). Average annual income for all adults in the household cannot exceed $118,125.

Applying for Rooted Renters

1

Submit a Preliminary Application Form

Interested property owners should submit their property’s information at the form at the bottom of this page. Inbound interest will be handled on a first come first served basis. After submitting your Preliminary Application Form, you can expect to hear back from us within 24-48 business hours. Note – if you are a renter and you think your landlord would be a good fit for the program, please refer them to this page and have them submit a Preliminary Application Form.

2

Have an intake call

Upon reviewing your property’s information, we will reach out to schedule an intake call to go over program details. 

3

Find qualifying tenants & sign a 12 month lease

Sign a 12 month lease with a qualified household at or below the maximum rental rate (see details above); if you are already renting to a qualified household, you can apply for Rooted Renters by modifying the existing lease to extend it for an additional 12 months past July 15, 2024.

4

Work with Placemate to assemble an application packet

Once you’ve identifed tenants and signed a lease, Placemate will collect applications from your tenant group to verify they qualify for Rooted Renters. Then, Placemate will collect a signed lease, check request form and W-9 from the property owner. 

5

Lease Start and First Payment

Once the lease starts, the first 15% of the incentive will be mailed from the Town of Truckee. We will check in with property owners and tenants 45 days from the end of the lease to ensure the property will continue to be used as a qualified household’s long term rental. Placemate will help owners remain in compliance to receive payments 2, 3 and 4 following completed check ins. 

Frequently Asked Questions

To verify that your tenants qualify for Rooted Renters, you can follow the same steps we go through. By reviewing the below documents yourself, you can verify your tenants qualify before passing their names and emails onto Placemate for us to send them the online tenant application. Placemate will need employment documents and an application from each tenant (even from tenants that don’t qualify) to ensure the group as a whole qualifies for the program.

Required documents from each tenant 18 years or older:

  1. A government-issued ID
  2. Employment Documentation (any one of the following 3 options, as applicable):
    1. 2 pay stubs from 90 days of the start of the lease, OR;
    2. A signed employer or offer letter (see example here) that includes the following details:
      1. Employer name, logo, and address
      2. Name of employee
      3. Anticipated start date (if new offer) or when they started originally
      4. Number of hours (ie; full time, 40 hours week / seasonal, 20 hours week)
      5. Pay rate (hourly or salary)
      6. Location of where they are working
      7. Name, signature of manager / HR, and date signed; OR
    3. If self-employed, required documents include:
      1. A business license registered to a local address AND:
      2. If the business has been operational for more than 1 year
        1. Tax returns, OR;
      3. If the business has been operating for less than one year, is off the books, or tenant is self employed via gig work
        1. Internal P&L or
        2. Employer letter or
        3. Recent Contracts that show volume of work/pay

Each subsequent payment is sent to owners once they have rented their property to a qualified household for a cumulative 12, 24 and 36 months (see schedule above). In order to be issued a subsequent payment, Placemate must collect the following info and documentation from participating owners and their tenants at the 12 and 24 month mark:

  • Completed check ins from the qualified household and property owners
  • Confirmation that a qualified household will continue living in the house at the 12 and 24 month mark, as documented by:
    • New 12 month signed lease with the existing qualified household, OR;
    • Confirmation that the existing qualified household has stayed in a property on a month-to-month agreement, OR;
    • Confirmation that a qualified household whose makeup changed partially midway through the previous lease term is still residing in the property
  • If a qualified household has changed any adult tenant members, application documents from any new adult tenants
  • If the qualified household has completely changed from past occupants to a new qualified household, new 12 month signed lease and confirmation of move in

At the 36 month mark, Placemate will collect:

  • Completed check ins from qualified household and property owners

If at any point during the lease term, the entire existing household group moves out, they must be replaced with a new qualified household on a new 12 month lease.

If at any point during the lease term a portion of the group moves out, the tenants who moved out must be replaced such that the group as a whole remains qualified. New tenants can be added onto the original lease by drafting an addendum, subleasing from the original tenants, or the whole group may sign a new 12 month lease.

When the qualified household  group changes (partially or fully) and they move out mid lease or at the end of the lease, the property owner has 90 days to replace them with a new qualified household.

If the vacancy of a qualified household group lasts for 90 days or longer, the property owner will need to reapply for the program.  Property owner eligibility for subsequent grant payments and participation are subject to the Program Guidelines and availability of funds.

Each year, Town Council will approve a rent increase schedule for the cohort of participants entering Rooted Renters in that year.

Participants who enter the Program between July 1, 2024 through June 30, 2025 will be considered Cohort #1 and are subject to the rental increases detailed in the table above.

Participants who enter the Program between July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026 will be considered Cohort #2. Rental rates for Cohort #2 will be set by Town Council in the spring of 2025.

To sign up for the Rooted Renters program, submit a Preliminary Application Form at the bottom of this page. Prospective program participants will be reached out to in the order that they submit their Preliminary Application Forms on a first come first served basis.

Once you submit a form, Placemate will be in touch via email within 1-2 business days with next steps. Applicants will be asked to:

  • Schedule an intake call within 1 week of our response
  • Submit a full program application within 45 days of your intake call

Note, funds are limited for the Rooted Renters program; applicants who fail to adhere to the above timeline will lose their spot in line and the applicant who next submitted a Preliminary Application Form will be given an opportunity to have an intake call and get started. If you are a renter and you think your landlord would be a good fit for the program, please refer them to this page and have them submit a Preliminary Application Form.

Property owners who received grant funds through Lease to Locals are eligible to participate in Rooted Renters if they meet the following criteria:

  • The Lease to Locals lease term must have already ended, OR the lease must end within 30 days.
  • The Lease to Locals end of lease check in must be complete.
  • The property owner must have remained eligible to receive their final Lease to Locals payment – they cannot have been disqualified from the Lease to Locals program.

El Ayuntamiento de Truckee ofrece servicios de traducción para los hispanohablantes que estén interesados en todos sus programas de vivienda, incluyendo Rentando con Raíces. Si tiene preguntas sobre Rentando con Raíces o está interesado en participar como propietario o inquilino y necesita traducción al español, póngase en contacto con isaac@placemate.com con los detalles de su propiedad y sus preguntas. ¡Nosotros le ayudaremos!

Preliminary Application Form opens in
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Interested in learning more about the program?

If you are a property owner, fill out the following form to get on the program interest list. We will email the program interest list official program information as it becomes available. 

If you are a renter and you think your landlord would be a good fit for the program, please refer them to this page so they can sign up for the interest list. 

PLEASE NOTE, THIS IS NOT THE PRELIMINARY APPLICATION FORM – THE PRELIMINARY APPLICATION FORM WILL BECOME AVAILABLE JULY 15 AT 9AM PDT.

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