Thursday, March 31, is the deadline to apply for rent relief, and there could be a couple of added benefits for completing your application by then.
The state has approved additional funding for the program should federal dollars run out. And the state Legislature is considering a measure to extend eviction protections for relief applicants through June.
But you have to complete your application by midnight Thursday.
State figures show more than a half million tenants have applied for help paying off pandemic-era rent debt, and more than 223,000 have received that help.
The state is close to running out of federal support. But a bill adopted in early February boosts financial support for the program from state coffers.
Senate Bill 115 authorized the state to provide “cash-flow loans” to state and local rental assistance programs. The state will use additional federal reallocations of rent relief dollars from other states to pay off those loans, forgiving any amount not covered by those reallocations. California already has received about $200 million in additional federal funding this year.
The rent-relief program is open to low-income renters who suffered a loss of income or other financial hardship due to COVID-19. It provides funding to cover rent payments missed since April 2020.
The state banned evictions for unpaid rent from April 2020 through last Sept. 30, so long as tenants paid at least 25% of the amount owed. Additional eviction protection was provided through Thursday for tenants with rental assistance applications on file.
That additional eviction protection ends Thursday. But state lawmakers are considering a measure to extend eviction protections through June for applicants meeting Thursday’s deadline. The California Assembly already approved the measure on Monday, March 28, sending it to the state Senate.
State figures show that fewer than half of those who applied for rental assistance have been approved so far, although some applicants may not be eligible or may have filed duplicate applications.
If you applied for rent relief, we want to hear from you to see if you got your application approve or are still waiting.
Please take our short online poll and tell us about your experience with the application process: bit.ly/RentReliefPoll
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