Preventing and Addressing Eviction

Through Community Partnerships

• November 10, 2021

1
Welcome

Fay Gordon

Regional Administrator

Region IX Administration for Community Living

2
Opening Poll

In the last 2 months, has the number of your clients that 

are at risk of eviction or have already been evicted (select 

one):

• Increased a lot

• Increased some

• Stayed the same

• Decreased

• Not currently working with clients that dealing with eviction

• Not applicable 

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this presentation. On the Zoom module on the bottom of your 

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Affordable Housing Crisis

Before the pandemic:

• No county in the country had enough affordable housing 

for its lowest-income residents 

• Nearly half of renters pay over 30% of their income for 

rent, and one quarter pay over half of their income for rent

5
Eviction Lab Data

Prior to Covid-19

• Estimated 3.6 million eviction filings each year

• 1.5 million eviction judgments each year 

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Administration for Community Living

ACL funds and oversees networks of disability and aging 

organizations in all 50 states and in the US territories

• These networks include over 20,000 community-based 

organizations that collectively provide direct services, legal 

advocacy, and work on systems change for older adults, 

people with disabilities and their families

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ACL and Housing

Top request for assistance:

• Help with affordable, accessible housing

ACL Response: 

• Fund elder justice and civil rights advocacy programs, like 

the Protection and Advocacy Systems (P&As), Older 

Americans Act legal services, and the National Center on 

Law and Elder Rights

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California Partners

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Christian Abasto

Legal Director

Disability Rights California

Jia Min Cheng

Supervising Attorney, Housing Stability Project

Disability Rights California

Alisa Neary

Licensed Clinical Social Worker

Consultant for Housing Stability Project
The COVID pandemic is putting people at 

risk of eviction and homelessness. 

The best way to provide services to clients 

who are facing homelessness is in 

partnership with other agencies. 

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Three Key Partnerships

Social 

Services/Case 

Management

Financial 

Assistance 

Legal 

Services

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Legal Services

Use the law to preserve existing 

housing or delay eviction

• Negotiate with landlord

• Resolve legal issues

• Representation in court

• Enforce Settlement

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Legal Service Partner

• Evictions are handled differently in each jurisdiction

• Find a trusted free legal service provider to train your staff 

on the legal aspects of eviction and the free services they 

can provide to your clients

• Please screen the legal service provider to ensure they 

reliable and free. 

• Develop and maintain a relationship with the legal service 

provider to ensure warm referrals of your clients and 

assistance with legal issues

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Resources to Find a Legal Service Partner

• https://www.lsc.gov/about-lsc/what-legal-aid/get-legal-help?address

• https://www.lawhelp.org/find-help/

• https://www.ndrn.org/about/ndrn-member-agencies/

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Housing Stability Project

• Focus on Legal Service Partners because we are a statewide agency that 

needs to develop local connections

• Next stage is to hire social workers to develop partnerships with social service 

agencies and rental assistance agencies

• Client Story

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Social Services/ Case Management

Identify and address factors that contributed to 

the housing crisis in order to promote long-term 

housing stability

• Assessment 

• Case planning

• Regular meetings to monitor progress, re-evaluate 

needs, coordinate services and provide advocacy

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Financial Assistance

Preserve housing and promote housing 

stability

• Rental Arrears

• Rental Assistance

• Utility Assistance

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Find Financial Assistance

• https://www.consumerfinance.gov/coronavirus/mortgage-and-housingassistance/renter-protections/emergency-rental-assistance-for-renters/

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Benefits of Partnerships

• Holistic approach 

• Coordinated and efficient 

service delivery

• Ease of access for clients

• Resolution of multiple, 

interrelated issues

• Increased likelihood of 

client stabilization

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Tool Kit for Developing Partnerships

• Most partnerships will be informal based on similar mission, values, and goals. 

• A good way of strengthening partnerships is by entering into memorandums of 

understanding or contracts to provide joint services to your clients. 

• Strong partnerships that are memorialized in writing can also seek out funding 

to support their collaborative work. 

• Have somebody dedicated to maintaining relationship. 

• Warm-handoff are better than cold referrals so clients do not get lost.

• Co-located offices or environment are better than separate offices. 

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Texas Partners

21

Rachel B. Cohen-Miller

Supervising Attorney, Housing, Transportation, & Disaster Team

Disability Rights Texas

Casey Flancbaum

Advocate Supervisor, Housing, Transportation, & Disaster Team

Disability Rights Texas

John Hasley

Deputy Litigation Director

Legal Aid of Northwest Texas
Preventing and Addressing Evictions

– Use Accommodations

– Examples

– Generator

– What can you do?

– Legal Aid Collaboration

– Why

– How

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Accommodations

Change the rules, policies, practices, or services to 

ensure person with a disability has the same 

opportunities as others. 

Unless the disability is apparent on its face 

Generally will need a letter or note from someone 

that knows the situation explaining the need for the 

change and how it may help mitigate the 

symptoms of the person with a disability. 

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Staying Housed

Change policy of requiring consumer or client to pay now 

and wait for rental relief. 

https://www.disabilityrightstx.org/en/handout/avoid-eviction-witha-rent-accommodation-letter/

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Barriers to Housing After an Eviction

Evictions and housing related debt 

Can ask landlord to change their policy of denying housing to 

applicants that have an eviction or housing related debt if the 

eviction or debt was because of their disability. 

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What can you do?

• Generator

• Explain why your consumer/client needs the change in 

policy to ameliorate the symptoms of their disability.

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Collaboration with Local Legal Aid

• Why?

– Resources 

– Expertise

– Training

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Collaboration with Local Legal Aid

• Practicalities of Working with Legal Aid

– How to establish the relationship.

– Questions to ask: 

▪ When should I reach out to Legal Aid when a consumer has an issue? 

▪ How do they want to receive intakes.

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Reflections

Questions and Answers

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Wrap Up

• We will notify all webinar registrants when the recording, 

slides and transcripts are available on ACL.gov

• Sign up for ACL email updates

Questions? Ideas? 

Email us at hsrc@acl.hhs.gov

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