How to Get Nashville Rent, Mortgage Help During the COVID-19 Crisis
A federal moratorium on evictions by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ends Dec. 31, leaving some Nashville residents struggling with rent and mortgage payments looking for help. Supplemental unemployment benefits under the CARES Act are also being phased out this month.
After welcoming a new baby, losing her job and welcoming her 10-year-old brother, Callie Clark and her fiancé were struggling to make ends meet. Help came just in time their family of six was watching months of rent arrears and possible eviction.
Clark, 28, said she had worked since she was 16 and this was the first time she had to deal with unemployment, rent assistance and the threat of eviction.
“You don’t expect all of this to happen at the start of a pandemic, but when it does, you just need a little bit of resources,” Clark said. “I hope this story comes out and lets everyone in a situation like me know that there are resources.”
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Here are four options for those who need housing assistance in Nashville.
The Metro Action Commission
The City of Nashville is offering assistance to residents behind on their rent or mortgage due to loss of income during the coronavirus pandemic.
The Metro Action Commission has opened applications for a recovery program that provides three to six months of emergency assistance to people facing eviction or foreclosure, according to a city news release. Applicants must be Davidson County residents and in good standing by March, the statement said. They should also not be accepted in any other reimbursement program.
For more information on who is eligible for assistance and how to apply, go to nashville.gov/mac.
Nashville Dispute Resolution Center
The Nashville Dispute Resolution Center received a grant this fall to provide rent assistance through its free mediation program for landlords and tenants.
Davidson County cases with tenants who demonstrate their current financial distress is due to the COVID-19 pandemic may be eligible for rental assistance. The NCRC will assess each case individually and, if approved, can help pay rent arrears and current rent owed to landlords.
More information can be found at nashvilleconflict.org.
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Housing Fund
The Housing Fund, a Nashville-based nonprofit, is launching a new Housing Resilience Fund, which will provide grants to help low- and middle-income families cope with tax increases and stay in their homes. lodging.
The fund was made possible by a $2.25 million donation from Amazon announced this week.
Existing homeowners at risk of losing their homes due to rising property taxes can apply for Housing Resilience Fund grants starting Dec. 14. Funding will be used for direct payments to the Metro Tax Assessor’s office or to the mortgage holder’s escrow account.
Applicants in the seven designated ZIP Codes must have lived in their home prior to January 1, 2020 and meet maximum income requirements to be eligible for funding. The aid can go up to five years.
For more information on how to qualify, visit thehousingfund.org/grant.
Affordable Housing Resources
The Nashville-based nonprofit Affordable Housing Resources is offering rent and mortgage relief options through the first quarter of 2021.
AHR’s Emergency Housing Assistance Program, in partnership with MDHA and the CARES Act, will provide up to three months of housing assistance to assist low-income individuals/households due to loss of employment and income due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It also offers mortgage relief options.
Information on rent relief can be found at ahrhousing.org/covid-19-help-for-renters. Information on mortgage relief can be found at ahrhousing.org/foreclosure-prevention.
Find journalist Rachel Wegner at rawegner@tennessean.com or on Twitter @rachelannwegner.
