There is an initiative in Douglas County that helps prevent evictions. There are organizations that can help if you are low income and about to be homeless.
The homeless prevention services can provide cash grants and case management to help families with social problems. There needs to be a multi-faceted approach to solving the cause of homelessness, and the Douglas County agencies do their best to meet this goal.
This is the proactive approach to addressing homelessness. By providing eviction help, we can prevent homelessness before it happens. When a tenant has a pay or quit notice from their landlord or the apartment community manager, they can apply for money to help cover the amount of rent they owe. You can use this type of assistance to pay for things like water, heat, or electricity.
This is called “reactive” because the family that is struggling should seek help before they have a vacate notice from their landlord. A person who is about to be evicted often cannot be helped because it is too late. The non-profits that work to prevent evictions will still help people as much as possible.
This means that Douglas County tenants may be given support in the form of money (as noted above) as well as other forms. One way to help a tenant with an eviction is to connect them with a law firm that provides free legal services. There are lawyers in Omaha Nebraska that will review the case made by the landlord against the tenant. If the eviction is in question, then help will be given to them during the court process.
There are several other services that are offered to prevent homelessness that are often combined with social services. The Salvation Army is one of the primary organizations that helps people in the Omaha region. The program provides loans with no interest to pay rent arrears or water bills, as well as a comprehensive case management process. If a family is struggling to make ends meet and is in danger of being evicted, they can go to a social services office for help.
The disabled in the region can access homeless prevention as part of the Housing and Urban Development Shelter Plus Care program. This program provides Douglas County residents with access to housing and homeless prevention resources. This rental assistance program provides help to a wide range of people with different types of problems, including mental illness and substance abuse. The government provides money to local organizations, such as the United Way, to help with community programs. If you need counseling or psychiatric services, you can easily apply for them.
There are other organizations that can help prevent evictions, such as FEMA and ESG. This means that the amount of money someone gets from the government is based on how poor they are. The grants are used for helping those in a disaster, tenants with a vacate notice, or those that are out of heating fuel during the winter. People are only able to apply for FEMA assistance once per year, but the funds for this service can run out quickly.
When someone is homeless, Heartland Family Services and other agencies try to find them a new home. This often starts with a place to stay like a motel or emergency shelter. This often leads to permanent housing placement.
When the applicant has a source of income, they can also apply for financial aid to pay for a portion of first months rent or security deposits. This form of support can help the tenant start off on the right foot, which in turn reduces the likelihood of future evictions.
All the programs work together to improve the chances of success. The staff will meet with the tenant to provide them with in-home case management services. Stabilization is important for homeless prevention programs to be effective in the long term.
If you have lost your home or been evicted from your apartment and are now sleeping in places not meant for human habitation, you may be able to benefit from the Douglas County Homeless Street Outreach program. Volunteers help the homeless in the Omaha area by providing them with vouchers for motels, shelters, and legal support. They also provide them with basic necessities like food and winter clothing.
The number to call for referrals to agencies such as the Heartland Family Services is (402) 444-6666. People facing homelessness can request support from these agencies.