If you’re facing eviction, eviction assistance programs can cover back rent, utilities, legal representation, and sometimes relocation costs — but which ones you can actually use depends on where you live and how fast you move. State and local emergency grants, federal housing programs, and free legal aid are the main sources in 2026. The federal pandemic-era Emergency Rental Assistance program has closed, so the practical work is finding which local pools still have money and applying before they run dry.
Call 211 First
The fastest way to find help you actually qualify for is to call or text 211, or search 211.org by zip code. The service is run through United Way and connects you with referral specialists who know which local charities, government offices, and nonprofits currently have funding. They screen your situation before sending you anywhere, which spares you from applying to agencies that are already tapped out or that serve a different population.
State and Local Emergency Grants
The most accessible eviction-prevention money in 2026 comes from state housing departments, community action agencies, and charities like the Salvation Army and Catholic Charities. These groups manage pools of money drawn from state revenue, federal block grants, and private donations. Most offer one-time emergency grants aimed at a specific rent shortfall or utility shutoff. Amounts range from a few hundred dollars to a few thousand, depending on the program’s budget and how far behind you are.
Because funds are limited, they usually go out first-come, first-served until the quarterly or annual budget runs out. Timing matters as much as eligibility. A denial in March can turn into an approval in April if the program’s fiscal year resets. Local programs also tend to have stricter residency rules than federal ones, sometimes limiting aid to residents of a single county or city. If one agency is out of money, ask before you leave whether they can refer you to another with an open budget.
Some local programs go beyond back rent. They can cover security deposits, moving costs, and application fees for tenants who need to relocate rather than stay put. Relocation grants tend to be larger than back-rent assistance, though the amounts vary widely by jurisdiction.
Federal Programs Still Available
Housing Choice Vouchers (Section 8)
The Housing Choice Voucher program is the largest federal rental subsidy for low-income households. Your rent contribution is calculated at 30 percent of your adjusted monthly income, and the voucher covers the gap between that amount and what the landlord actually charges.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 USC 1437f – Low-Income Housing Assistance The subsidy is ongoing, not a one-time grant.
The honest reality is that waitlists are long and often closed. Waits of several years are common, and many public housing agencies stop accepting new names when their lists grow beyond what they can serve.2USAGov. Section 8 Housing If you’re being evicted next month, Section 8 will not fix that. Get on a waitlist for long-term stability, but plan on a different solution for the immediate crisis.
Emergency Solutions Grants
HUD’s Emergency Solutions Grants program funds homelessness prevention through local grantees. ESG money can pay for short-term rental assistance, utility payments, and housing stabilization services when you’re at risk of becoming homeless. Unlike the ERA program that ended in 2025, ESG is an ongoing annual appropriation. Your local continuum of care or homeless services agency administers the funds, and 211 can tell you who that is in your area.
LIHEAP for Utilities
If your crisis is a utility shutoff rather than rent, the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program covers heating, cooling, and emergency disconnection help. Payments generally go straight to the utility company. LIHEAP also funds weatherization improvements that lower future bills. Income eligibility varies by state but usually caps at 150 percent of the federal poverty guidelines or 60 percent of your state’s median income, whichever is higher.3U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. LIHEAP Income Eligibility for States and Territories
Emergency Rental Assistance Has Ended
The federal Emergency Rental Assistance program is no longer accepting applications or distributing funds.4U.S. Department of the Treasury. Emergency Rental Assistance Program The ERA2 performance period ended September 30, 2025, and grantees can no longer use those funds to assist renters. You may still see ERA mentioned on older government pages or in outdated guides. If an organization tells you they have ERA funds available, verify carefully. Some programs originally funded by ERA have transitioned to state or local money under a different name; others simply closed.
Who Qualifies
Most assistance programs use income as the primary filter. HUD sorts households into tiers based on a percentage of the Area Median Income for your location:
- Extremely low income: at or below 30 percent of AMI
- Very low income: at or below 50 percent of AMI
- Low income: at or below 80 percent of AMI
Housing Choice Vouchers generally target very low-income households, with a portion reserved for the extremely low-income tier.5HUD USER. Income Limits Local emergency grants set their own cutoffs, and some are more generous than federal ones. AMI varies dramatically by geography, so the same percentage can mean very different dollar figures depending on your metro area. Your local housing authority can tell you the exact numbers.
Beyond income, most programs want proof you’re actually at risk of losing your housing. That means an eviction notice, a past-due rent balance, or a utility shutoff warning. Some programs prioritize applicants who have already been served with a court summons over those who are simply behind but haven’t been formally noticed.
Free Legal Help and Court Mediation
Getting a lawyer in eviction court changes outcomes substantially. Represented tenants stay in their homes at significantly higher rates than tenants who face the process alone. As of 2025, five states, 19 cities, and two counties have legislatively established a Right to Counsel for tenants in eviction cases.6Eviction Lab. Disrupting the Eviction System: Tenant Right to Counsel In those jurisdictions, you typically connect with a program attorney when you appear in court, when the program contacts you, or when you reach out directly.
Even without a Right to Counsel law, legal aid societies provide free representation to low-income tenants. The Legal Services Corporation, the largest civil legal aid funder in the country, sets its income ceiling at 125 percent of the federal poverty guidelines.7Federal Register. Income Level for Individuals Eligible for Assistance Some local legal aid groups set their thresholds higher, up to 200 percent of the poverty guidelines. An eviction defense attorney will also check whether the landlord followed every required procedural step. Improper notice or a skipped step can invalidate the whole case.
Many courts also offer mediation as an alternative to a contested hearing. A neutral mediator meets with you and the landlord to try to work out a payment plan or an agreed move-out date. Research on these programs has found that roughly 77 percent of mediated eviction cases end in an agreement. Mediation can also keep an eviction judgment off your record entirely, which matters more than most tenants realize.
One caution: not every mediation agreement is automatically enforceable. Some produce a binding settlement filed with the court; others produce a non-binding memorandum that requires a separate step to become enforceable. Ask the mediator or your attorney whether the document you’re about to sign is binding before you leave the session.
Documents to Gather
Most programs ask for the same core set of documents, so pulling these together once will speed up every application you file:
- Your lease agreement, which proves your address and your monthly rent. If you’ve lost your copy, your landlord is generally required to provide one.
- Evidence of your housing crisis: a notice to quit, a court summons, a past-due rent statement, or a utility shutoff notice.
- Proof of income: recent pay stubs, tax returns, W-2s, or benefit statements from unemployment, Social Security, or TANF.
- Hardship documentation explaining why you fell behind, such as medical bills, a termination letter, or records of reduced hours.
- Government-issued ID with the name and address matching your lease. Mismatches between ID, lease, and application are one of the most common causes of processing delays.
Some programs allow the landlord to submit the rent ledger on your behalf. If your landlord is cooperative, that can shortcut the verification the agency would otherwise have to do independently.
After You Apply
Programs generally accept applications online, by mail, or in person. Online portals give you a confirmation number when you submit; save it, because it’s your proof of filing and your reference for follow-up.
A caseworker then reviews your file. Four to six weeks from a complete application is common. Incomplete applications take longer because the caseworker has to chase down missing documents. Respond to any caseworker communication as quickly as possible. Many agencies close files if you don’t respond within a set window, sometimes just a few business days, and you’d have to start over.
If you’re approved, the payment almost always goes directly to your landlord or utility company rather than to you. That’s by design; it guarantees the money covers the specific debts in your application.
If you’re denied, ask for the reason in writing. Common ones include income above the threshold, missing documentation, or the program having run out of money. A denial from one program doesn’t mean you’re ineligible everywhere, and 211 can redirect you to programs with different criteria.
Why Eviction Records Matter Beyond This Month
An eviction case that appears on your tenant screening report can follow you for up to seven years. A debt judgment owed to a landlord that later gets discharged in bankruptcy can stay for ten years.8Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. How Long Can Information, Like Eviction Actions and Lawsuits, Stay on My Tenant Screening Record Even a filing that was later dismissed or decided in your favor can show up on screening reports, because tenant screening companies pull court records without regard to outcome.
A growing number of states let tenants seal or expunge eviction records under certain conditions.8Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. How Long Can Information, Like Eviction Actions and Lawsuits, Stay on My Tenant Screening Record If your case was dismissed or resolved in your favor, check whether your state allows a petition to seal. The process varies and usually requires a formal court filing, so this is another point where a legal aid attorney is worth the call.
Taxes and Other Benefits
Rental assistance payments made on your behalf are not taxable income to you.9Internal Revenue Service. Emergency Rental Assistance Frequently Asked Questions The exclusion applies whether the money covers rent, utilities, or other housing costs, and whether it goes to your landlord or to you. You don’t report these payments on your federal return.
Receiving housing assistance also generally doesn’t reduce your other federal benefits. For people on SSI, help from programs like SNAP and Medicaid won’t reduce the SSI payment, and state programs such as rent rebates and TANF are treated similarly.10Social Security Administration. Programs to Get More Help While on SSI Ongoing subsidies like Section 8 may factor into household benefit calculations differently than a one-time emergency grant, so check with your benefits caseworker if you’re already receiving needs-based aid.