Rental assistance, more commonly known as the Emergency Rental Assistance Program or ERAP is a federal program that aims to assist tenants and renters in terms of housing and utility expenses.
Founded just recently, this program focuses on households and individuals who are suffering from housing crises due to the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
ERAP aims to provide funding to families who could not afford housing expenses or are on the verge of eviction.
Emergency Rental Assistance is funded by the federal government through state or other local programs. It is available for both landlords and tenants.
If you are one of those landlords whose rental business turned a bit askew due to the pandemic or if you are one of those tenants who are struggling to maintain housing stability, ERAP can help you financially keep your state of living afloat despite the ongoing economic crisis.
If you wish to apply for an assistance program, you can inquire from the state’s local agency to be thoroughly assisted on your application.
There are two separate programs of the Emergency Rental Assistance wherein both are supervised and funded by different federal laws:
If your ERAP application is approved, you may receive the following benefits:
The payments will be given directly to your landlord and the utility resource. If it happens that the landlord or property owner cannot be located or the owner did not provide his/her contact information, the payment will be held for about 180 days which is enough time to locate the landlord, acquire necessary information from the landlord, and establish maximum participation from the landlord.
Benefits may vary depending on the state or territory. To know more specific details on the ERAP benefits it is advised to visit your state’s local ERAP agency.
To be eligible for the Emergency Rental Assistance, you should meet the following eligibility requirements:
If you wish to apply for Emergency Rental Assistance, you can inquire your state’s local agency about the options in applying or visit your state’s official website and search for the Emergency Rental Assistance or ERAP in the search box.
In applying, you should prepare the following requirements:
So long as you meet the eligibility requirements, you have a greater chance that your application will be approved.
Usually, the program sees if your income is eligible and that you are currently experiencing crises in housing stability through a written statement, eviction notice, rent amount due, or other documents showing your income and instability.
For the landlord, the program looks at your tenant’s needs and you are required to show proof that your tenant’s household is eligible for the program and meet the eligibility requirements stated earlier in this article.
To know more about the Emergency Rental Assistance Program in your area, just visit your state’s local agency that administers the program.
If it happens that your application has not been approved, you can apply for other housing benefits. To find one, visit the government Benefits official website and search for other rental or housing assistance programs.
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