DeKalb County launches program Dec. 4 to help homeless, provide rent assistance

DEKALB COUNTY, GA— DeKalb County CEO Michael Thurmond announced the launch of a $13 million program aimed at reducing homelessness and preventing evictions. The DeKalb County Integrated Community Care Initiative will distribute funding to nine nonprofit organizations to provide housing for unhoused persons and rental and utility assistance for those facing eviction. The program kicks off Dec. 4.

“By providing housing for the unhoused and rental assistance for the housing insecure, this program’s two-pronged approach continues DeKalb’s commitment to counter the housing affordability crisis in our county,” said Thurmond. “DeKalb County is investing millions to get and keep families in affordable homes.”

The participating nonprofit agencies and their services are listed below: 

• Assistance for rent, utilities, housing instability, unsafe, unhealthy living conditions

• • New Life Community Ministries, $2.8 million 
  • Urban League of Greater Atlanta, $2.8 million
  • Latin American Association, $2.3 million 
  • New American Pathways, $1 million 
  • Jewish Family Career Services of Atlanta, $1 million
  • Africa’s Children Fund, $1 million 
  • Society of St. Vincent de Paul, $1 million

• Housing stability services (legal services related to evictions)
  • Atlanta Legal Aid Society, $600,000 
  • DeKalb Pro Bono, $200,000 

CEO Thurmond’s program to help provide housing stability for DeKalb residents experiencing financial hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic was unanimously approved by the Board of Commissioners in August 2024. The initiative is being funded by the U.S. Treasury’s Emergency Rental Assistance program.

“This public-private initiative focuses on stabilizing our fellow DeKalb residents by partnering with nine nonprofit organizations that are already compassionately committed to providing housing assistance and wrap around services,” said Allen Mitchell, director of the DeKalb County Community Development Department. 

Households are eligible for assistance if they meet the following criteria:

• Financial hardship: One or more individuals within the household must have qualified for unemployment benefits or experienced a reduction in household income, incurred significant costs, or experienced other financial hardship during or due to the pandemic. Priority is given to households with one or more members who have been unemployed for at least 90 days.
• Homelessness or risk of homelessness or housing instability: The household must demonstrate homelessness or a risk of homelessness or housing instability. This can include:

o   Past due utility, rent notice, or eviction notice.

o   Unsafe or unhealthy living conditions, such as overcrowding.

o   Any other evidence of risk, as determined by DeKalb County.

• Income requirements: The household must be a low-income family, as defined by the HUD income limits for 2024. Priority is given to households with less than 50 percent of the area median income.

Program participants will be provided with case management services to facilitate housing stability. 

To apply, residents can contact the DeKalb Integrated Community Care Initiative hotline at 404-371-NEED (6333) for program guidance. 

The DeKalb County Integrated Community Care Initiative hotline is available Monday-Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Calls received after 6 p.m. and on weekends will be returned the next business day.

Before applying for funding, potential applicants are encouraged to call the hotline to confirm eligibility. Applicants must have the necessary paperwork, such as proof of income, documentation of financial hardship, lease agreements, and identification documents, etc. 

The DeKalb County Integrated Community Care Initiative expires on June 30, 2025.

For more information, call 404-371-NEED (6333) or email NEED@dekalbcountyga.gov.

Beginning in 2021 and ending in February 2024, the DeKalb Tenant-Landlord Assistance Coalition provided $55 million in federal emergency rental assistance for rent and utilities to landlords for more than 5,900 households impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.