‘A very dire situation.’ Mecklenburg hits all-time high for rent relief applications.
Mecklenburg’s rent relief program received roughly 4,800 applications in the last two weeks
— a sign housing instability remains significant more than two years into the pandemic.
Demand has even exceeded last year’s previous spikes that followed the end of the federal eviction moratorium last year, according to DreamKey Partners, the nonprofit administering federal funds locally.
“There are parts of us that believe that the pandemic is going in the right direction and that maybe people are becoming more stabilized,” said Erin Barbee, DreamKey Partners’ chief strategy officer. “But these numbers prove we are still in a very dire situation for people experiencing hardship as a result of COVID.”
The assistance program for rent, mortgage, utilities and hotel bills — recently renamed RAMPCharMeck — had reopened March 1 with another $22 million in combined federal funds allocated to the state, city of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County.
Applications closed Tuesday, as part of the program’s typical two weeks open, two weeks closed cycle to allow staff to process applications.
Part of this most recent swell, Barbee said, is pent-up demand since the program had been paused since January due to dwindling funds.
Barbee said she expects applications to reopen April 1.
Before this month the previous application peak was February 2021, with some 4,400 applications. That’s when the program reopened with a new round of federal funds through the American Rescue Plan after a similar pause when CARES Act money ran out.
The newest funding is not expected to last more than a couple months, and the nonprofit is working to identify funding to build a sustainable program for those who fall behind on rent long after federal pandemic funds are gone.
How to get rent help
Eligible applicants for RAMPCharMeck must have a pandemic-related income loss, illness or other financial hardship and a household income no higher than 80% of the area median income. That’s about $47,000 for a single person or $67,000 for a family of four.
Applicants must demonstrate risk of homeless or housing instability. Those with an eviction notice and scheduled court date are given highest priority, followed by those with the lowest incomes.
Help with new and existing applications is available now at the Mecklenburg County courthouse through a partnership of DreamKey, Crisis Assistance Ministry and Legal Aid of North Carolina, even while the application portal is closed.
Barbee encouraged all tenants with an eviction notice to attend their court date to determine if they qualify for help.
Visit rampcharmeck.com for more information.
This story was originally published March 16, 2022 at 10:34 AM.
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