October 12, 2021 by Ashley Norris
Lone Star Legal Aid is Available to Assist Texans with Applying for Rental and Utility Assistance
The Covid-19 Pandemic has contributed to financial hardship, like job loss, lost wages, unforeseen medical expenses, evictions, and foreclosures, leaving many Americans in need of assistance. With the CDC Eviction Moratorium no longer in effect, protections for those evicted have been lifted, and millions are now facing homelessness. Homelessness is not synonymous with being unsheltered. Many people will move in with family or friends, or sleep in their vehicle. However, in terms of livelihood and Covid safety, none of these options are viable long-term.
While a recent Washington Post article claims the feared eviction ‘tsunami’ has not yet happened, housing experts have had boots on the ground since the onset of the pandemic, fighting to keep tenants housed. Our Eviction Right to Counsel Initiative has participated in numerous ways, providing educational outreach on social media, CDC and Emergency Rental Assistance Clinics, and collaborating with local and state housing and community development officials. They have continued to be present at eviction dockets and shown diligent commitment to the significant media exposure of our clients’ plights.
We are available to assist Texas residents, specifically those renting in our 74 county service area, with the help of the Texas Rent Relief Program. You may be eligible for financial assistance, such as the following:
- Past due rent and utilities for all months you owed back to March 13, 2020, AND
- Current month and up to 2 more future months of rent and utility assistance, AND
- Past due utilities for all months you owed back to March 13, 2020.
Lone Star Legal Aid is available to guide you through the application process for the Texas Rent Relief Program. We are also available to assist active-duty service members, veterans, veteran dependents, and surviving spouses facing eviction, and can even help apply for financial assistance to cover rent, utilities, and home energy costs.
Click here to apply via our general intake form.
Lone Star Legal Aid is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit law firm focused on advocacy for low-income and underserved populations. Lone Star Legal Aid serves the millions of people at 125% of federal poverty guidelines that reside in 72 counties in the eastern and Gulf Coast regions of Texas, and 4 counties of southwest Arkansas. Lone Star Legal Aid focuses its resources on maintaining, enhancing, and protecting income and economic stability; preserving housing; improving outcomes for children; establishing and sustaining family safety and stability, health and well‐being; and assisting populations with special vulnerabilities, like those with disabilities, or who are elderly, homeless, or have limited English language skills. To learn more about Lone Star Legal Aid, visit our website at https://www.lonestarlegal.org.
Media contact: media@lonestarlegal.org
