HOUSTON — The $159 million rental assistance fund opened Thursday, and thousands have already applied.
The City of Houston teamed up with Harris County to help Houstonians pay their current and past-due rent.
For Candace Holiday, paying rent this past year hasn’t been easy.
“I’ve been late. You know, it’s like the rent gets paid but the car note doesn’t. You know, you just kind of go back and forth on the seesaw," Holiday said.
As a restaurant manager, she was put on furlough in March, and soon after, had her son. When it was time to go back, the health and safety of her son was the priority so she tried to find a way to work from home.
“Getting hired was not as easy as I thought it was going to be," Holiday said.
Still needing help, she applied for the rental assistance at houstonharrishelp.org, a fund set up through BakerRipley and Catholic Charities to help renters with current and past-due rent.
“We can pay up to 12 months' rent, so back to the start of the pandemic and three months forward," said Bart Ferrell, COO with Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston.
The money will go directly to landlords to back pay rent, who, without having that rent, still have to meet their own financial obligations.
“Really hard trying to juggle our responsibilities to our creditors and our mortgage and the utilities and paying our staff while still being as flexible as we can with renters," said John Boriack, president of the Houston Apartment Association.
Also the president of Veritas Equity Management, Boriack said his group has five communities in Houston. Their unpaid rent amount is 10 times what it was pre-pandemic, which is why they’ve opted into the fund and are even helping their renters apply.
“This is something we’re pumping out to them and asking them to apply for, and if they’ll let us, we will even apply on their behalf and try to get that money onto their account.”
It’s a lifeline to, hopefully, help so many renters get back on their feet and out of debt.
“Maybe you have a job now, but you had some trouble in the summer or in the spring last year. This can help you catch up. This can help you get even, stay even, stay in your home. Keep your family together and keep moving forward in the community," Ferrell said.
This is not a first-come, first-serve program. You will have to qualify and submit documents for proof. All of the information can be found at https://houstonharrishelp.org/.