The Alliance Tapped to Intercede in Cases Heading to Court, Helping Tenants and Landlords Access Rent Relief from Pandemic Fund
Local Tenants with Docket Numbers Encouraged to Apply
A new initiative is underway to help local residents who are still battling the financial effects of COVID-19. Though employers are gradually rebuilding their ranks, many people remain unemployed or underemployed, while many employed workers are still significantly behind on rent from the months when thousands of jobsites, plants, stores, and restaurants were closed because of the pandemic. The purpose of the Eviction Intervention Program is to divert eviction cases out of court, thus helping families avoid imminent homelessness and helping landlords recover overdue rent, which they can use, in turn, to pay salaries for their leasing and maintenance staffs, which ameliorates financial challenges for even more Houstonians.
The new $8 million program functions as an arm of the Houston-Harris County Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP) and has already begun for City of Houston residents; it will start soon for Harris County residents. The funding comes from the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs and the U.S. Treasury.
The program is being run by The Alliance, a well-respected nonprofit agency that helps refugees, immigrants, and underserved residents. The Alliance contacts tenants and landlords using information drawn from court filings and applications to the program. Both tenant and landlord must agree to participate.
The initiative is intended to help families currently on the brink of eviction; thus, tenants must already have a docket number (or cause number), cannot earn more than the income threshold (80% of area median income), and must prove pandemic-related financial impact. Applicants can be approved for up to six months of consecutive rent (past or future); at least one month must be for future rent.
“The City’s priority is to keep families in their homes without creating an unfair financial burden for landlords, and we’re thankful to our nonprofit partners that are making that possible, including The Alliance, which is stepping in to assist applicants at a critical moment – in eviction court,” said City of Houston Housing and Community Development Director Tom McCasland. “This program will both prevent the unnecessary expense of eviction proceedings and save vulnerable renters from the chaos and deep harm their families will suffer if evicted.”
“Harris County continues to search out available funding to provide relief to our residents during this time when so many have had their incomes disrupted,” said Harris County Community Services Director Dr. Adrienne Holloway. “We must do all we can to stabilize housing which is critical to the well-being of families and to the long-term recovery of our region from COVID-19.”
“Many in our community continue to struggle financially as a result of COVID-19. Housing stability is critical to getting residents on a path towards recovery,” said President and CEO of The Alliance Daniel Stoecker. “The Eviction Intervention Program helps residents stay in their homes and gives them a real opportunity to regain self-sufficiency.”
Tenants do not have to apply separately for this program. When they apply for rental relief at HoustonHarrisHelp.org, the application asks if they have received a notice to vacate or a court summons, and if so, it requests the docket number. Those cases are handled by the team at The Alliance that is focused solely on this program. They liaise with the court, the tenant, and the landlord, with the goal of quickly moving the case out of court, preventing eviction, and paying off the overdue rent.
Since the new program is part of the rental relief fund being jointly administered for the City of Houston and Harris County by BakerRipley and Catholic Charities, tenants who do not qualify for eviction intervention might still qualify for rental relief from the larger program; therefore, all families struggling financially because of pandemic-related wage reductions are encouraged to apply. The application portal remains open, and tens of millions of dollars in relief are still available.
More details about the rental relief program and this initiative are available at HoustonHarrisHelp.org, where people can view the eligibility requirements and FAQs, submit documents, and find other resources. In addition, a phone line is available at 832-402-7568 six days a week: Monday–Friday 9am–6pm and Saturday 10am–2pm.