NORFOLK, Neb. -- According to the National Low Income Housing Coalition, 65,077 renter households in Nebraska are extremely low-income, which makes it hard for those people to afford their rent. 

In the state of Nebraska, an extremely low-income household's maximum income is $26,500. 

Although the Norfolk Housing Agency is dedicated to helping those in the northeast area to find affordable housing. 

Executive Director Gary Bretschneider said they offer a variety of sources such as the Section 8 program which provided 240 federally funded vouchers. 

The program allows them to work with landlords throughout the city to help with payments for tenants who need assistance.  

"The Section 8 voucher comes through us; we pay that direct deposit to their accounts," Bretschneider said. "So, I mean they know that's check coming and it's going to be taken care of. There is a percentage that the tenant would have to pay for, but it's minimal compared to that other large amount. So, we'll continue to stress to try to get more landlords to take advantage of it." 

Families are urged to apply if they meet the eligibility requirements as the waitlist is short, making their opportunity for assistance greater. 

The program is meant to be a step-up program, but there is no limit to those who will need it long-term. 

"Once they qualify there is no timeline, they can stay on for years if they need it," said Julie Drahota, Section 8 program manager. "But you know for those that are income based like the elderly and disabled, they have a set income, they might be on for years and as long as they meet the income guidelines in the future and continue to follow the rules of the program they can be on and there is no timeline." 

The city also provides income-based living residences which Drahota said was funded by the state. 

"We did use tax credit funding through the state, and that was something that we had to apply for, and it was a competitive process and we received those, but that was back in 2004," Drahota said. "If we went for additional housing that we wanted to build, we would have to apply for something like that, some type of state or federal funding." 

New residents and those seeking assistance should visit the Norfolk Housing Agency for lists of Section 8-approved housing, as well as income-based housing through other avenues.