Emergency help with rent in Orlando

Orlando rental assistance programs vary in effectiveness and budget. Some have high qualifications for aid, such as evidence of a hardship or extreme low income. Others are very willing to help out in small amounts just by completing a short application.

The first stop is social services. Orange County offers a Crisis Assistance Program which is administered by their Citizen Resource and Outreach Office. This program provides direct payments towards living costs when a crisis has occurred that is causing substantial hardship to a resident of the county.

Assistance can be made in the form of a check made out to the landlord. This is done in situations where the rent payments have fallen behind and there is a potential for an eviction. Other aid can be paid to electric, gas and water utility companies to prevent disconnection of service.

A good candidate for this program would be a household that has experienced a recent hardship and is likely to face potential homelessness if they receive no help. This family would be unable to borrow the money from friends or family. Despite all of the required signs of weakness, the program also requires that an applicant be able to permanently recover from a crisis situation if their aid request is approved. If a single aid payment will help the family recover, then it may be possible to authorize an appropriation to the family to meet the short-term budget shortfall.

The Citizen Resource and Outreach Office is located at 2100 East Michigan Street in Orlando. An appointment is required prior to visiting the office. Residents may call 407-836-6500 to schedule an appointment with a caseworker.

Catholic Charities of Central Florida also provides direct aid to poor families that are in trouble with an eviction. We reviewed this religious charity in early 2014 to document their activities.

A call to 888-658-2828 is welcome to see what types of assistance can be provided by Catholic Charities. Clients should contact social services through Orange County prior to contacting this organization, since it is intended to provide help to those who are turned away by public assistance programs.

Transitional housing programs can help if an eviction is imminent. These residential services tend to be free or may feature seriously discounted rent. It can be just the solution that a family needs when it can take a couple of months or more to recover from a hardship before finally moving on to permanent rental housing.

The Wayne Densch Center in Eatonville offers a transitional living program for families that have small children. The maximum rent charge is $100 per week, though that can be reduced for extreme emergencies. Adults capable of working must be employed to gain access. Residents may call 407-599-3900 to request an appointment with a case worker.

Requests for Help

(Request received from Ward in Orlando, Florida) My spouse has had two major surgeries this year, and the most recent one was on November 12, 2014.

I have been on FMLA to help her recuperate and as it is known, you are not paid while on FMLA.  It was our hope to have her well enough for me to return to work after a week of her recovery, but due to complications of the surgery, that time line has been blown severely.

We are in desperate need of aid to avoid being evicted.  We have received the 3 day notice and know we are on borrowed time.

I have tried to apply for loans to no avail.  We both have good jobs, and once I return back to work, we can pay back the loan fairly quickly.  However, we have not found anyone that will give us the chance to get back on our feet.

Please help!

Grateful for anything you can do,

Ward

Dear Ward,

Your family’s medical challenges have indeed caused problems with your ability to pay living expenses. This is the type of hardship that could qualify you for aid.

Your qualifications will depend on your household income. Some organizations will look at just the last month while others will screen applicants based on income for the year. I realize that this may come as a surprise, but you are actually less likely to qualify for many aid programs if you represent a dual income household. It defies logic that you could be penalized because you both work, but this is the reality of how many aid programs must limit the applications they approve.

I recommend talking with social services first to get registered with them and to set an appointment with a social worker. Unfortunately an appointment may be difficult to schedule in the next two days.

If your wife needs additional time to recover from surgery, it might be a sign that a transitional housing program can help. There is one such program offered by Catholic Charities, though it is intended for single mothers with small children. The Wayne Densch Center could be a reasonable option, though you would need to act quickly since intake can take up to three days.

Not every program will be able to help you, but they should be able to assist with some needs and provide referrals to better matched programs that can actively help your family. I know that it is scary facing such action in the near term and just before the holidays also. Sometimes if we have a little faith then good things will happen. I know that you will get through this. Make the call today and get the process started.