Emergency Assistance Guidelines: Financial Support for Rent
Catholic Charities’ (CCDA) Emergency Assistance program helps people experiencing a temporary financial crisis with rent and/or utility assistance when there is a likelihood that this crisis will not repeat. We work to prevent evictions or the termination of essential utilities. Catholic Charities views an emergency as a crisis that deprives or threatens to deprive a person of basic human needs. Basic human needs include but are not limited to housing, essential utilities (i.e., gas, water, electric, oil/propane for heating).
Catholic Charities serves residents of the Diocese of Arlington regardless of their race, creed, religion, or national origin. The Counties and Cities of the Diocese include: Arlington County, City of Alexandria, City of Falls Church, City of Fredericksburg, City of Manassas, City of Manassas Park, Fairfax County, City of Fairfax, Prince William County, Spotsylvania County, Stafford County, King George County, Lancaster County, Northumberland County, Richmond County, Westmoreland County, City of Winchester, Clarke County, Culpeper, Fauquier County, Frederick County, Loudoun County, Madison County, Orange County, Page County, Rappahannock County, Shenandoah County and Warren County.
Before applying for assistance, please read all eligibility guidelines.
Eligibility
Eligible clients may receive Emergency Assistance once in a 12-month period and up to two times in a 10-year period. To be eligible, the client must be seeking late rent for an established household or past due utility (gas, water, electricity, or oil/propane with an invoice for refilling the tank) assistance. Client must be able to communicate by email and phone and attend a Zoom video appointment with the Case Coordinator. The client will receive the Emergency Assistance Guidelines, Client Rights and Responsibilities, and Consent to Exchange Information forms electronically. These forms must be signed and returned within 24 hours to begin the process. The client must also attach a copy of their current photo ID and the late or
disconnect notice for the documents to be validated. Important: The printed name on all submitted documents must match the name on the photo ID. If the required documents are not received within 24 hours, the application will be automatically closed. The client may reapply after 60 days.
We regret that we cannot help if you are living in Section 8 Housing, public housing, or subsidized housing of any type (this does not include Tax Exempt or Affordable Dwelling Unit housing). Clients receiving a county housing grant or housing voucher are not eligible for assistance. The client cannot be subleasing or renting from a relative. We are unable to assist individuals who: serve as the property manager of the property where they live; work in the leasing office of the property where they live; or are employed by their private landlord. We do not assist with mortgage payments, but we do assist with utility payments for mortgages and mobile homes.
The demand for our services is extremely high and we have limited funds, so assistance is given on a first-come first-served basis. Catholic Charities forms must be signed and returned within 24 hours, or client must wait 60 days to reapply. All requested documents must be provided within three days from initial contact, or the client may reapply for assistance after 30 days.
Note: The Case Coordinator may request additional documents not included in the list below. In addition, should the Case Coordinator determine that there are irregularities in the client documents, they may request an in-person interview with the client at the CCDA office and may request a Zoom call with the landlord.
Rental Assistance for Non-Subsidized Housing
For rental assistance: proof of income is required and must be enough to maintain the current monthly housing rent. Proof of income can include one or all of the following: all pay stubs received within the last 30 days, a current benefits statement or proof of bank statement deposits for: court-ordered child support, pension, disability, Social Security, Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Worker’s Compensation, Unemployment Compensation, and TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families). We will not accept Venmo, Cash App, Zelle, or Pay Pal statements as proof of income. An employment offer letter is not acceptable proof of income. For employers such as Uber, Spark, Lyft and/or Instacart, a statement of earnings must be provided by the employer. We will not accept screenshots of payment portals. We are unable to assist self-employed individuals, including those employed by spouse or the family business. We will accept 3 months of current bank statements with consistent EFT entries (Electronic Fund Transfers) as proof of current income which indicate that the source of payment is from employer’s business, unemployment insurance, social security etc. EFT entries from individuals will not be accepted. We will not accept cash deposits.
- Photo ID – current (not expired), government-issued, with date of birth listed, for each leaseholder.
- Current Signed Lease Agreement – written lease in client’s name to include terms of lease clearly specified (i.e., leaseholder name/address, landlord name, monthly rent amount, etc.). When there is more than one person’s name on the lease, all leaseholders must sign the Catholic Charities consent forms and provide a copy of their ID.
- Rental Ledger – provided by the property manager or Landlord showing payments made AND the current balance due. *If the balance due is above the amount to be eligible, clients should pay a portion of the bill and show pledge letters from other organizations and/or churches (on letterhead), or money orders to cover the difference. The Case Coordinator will verify pledges. Catholic Charities is the last payer on the bill.
- 14-day pay or quit, or eviction notice (unlawful detainer) in the client’s name.
- Current IRS W-9 Tax Form (Virginia W-9 is acceptable) – completed by the Landlord with signature not older than 1 year and a contact phone number and email.
- Private Landlord – Photo ID – current (not expired), government-issued for private landlords. Must show proof of property ownership such as a Deed, Mortgage Statement or Property Tax Record in their name; and they must sign a “Private Landlord Verification and Document Request” form. Case Coordinator may request a Zoom call with the landlord.
- Assistance is provided for a room or basement when the Landlord owns the property. The client cannot be subleasing or renting from a relative.
- Assistance is provided for a mobile home rental or mobile home lot rent, but the client cannot be subleasing, living with the landlord or renting from a relative.
Catholic Charities Financial Assistance Program is currently At-Capacity.
We will begin accepting new applications on Tuesday, September 1st, at 9am.
Please check back to apply at that time.
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