Eviction Prevention Eviction prevention is intended to assist households in maintaining permanent rental housing. Service strategies are focused on addressing the immediate housing crisis and can be integrated with other mainstream resources to address more long-term needs. This program is designed to assist households who are at imminent risk of homelessness including those are sharing the housing of other individuals due to loss of housing or economic hardship (doubled up). Eviction diversion is an eviction prevention strategy that prevents homelessness for people seeking shelter by helping them identify immediate alternative housing arrangements and connecting them with services and financial assistance to help them return to permanent housing. Diversion programs can reduce the number of households becoming homeless, the demand for shelter beds and the size of program waiting lists. Eviction prevention services include: - Assessment: Work collaboratively with households to identify strengths, resources, barriers and needs in the context of their local environment - Conflict Mediation: Provide proactive engagement and mediation services with landlords - Connection: Obtain for the household necessary mainstream services, benefits, treatment, legal services and supports - Coordination: Bring together all the service providers in order to integrate services and help ensure consistency of service plans - Follow-up: Maintain contact with the household after completion of services to track stability and provide additional services, if needed - Housing Counseling: Provide services to the person, including budget counseling and tenant education - Outreach and Engagement: Connect with households not currently accessing services - Personal and Legal Advocacy: Intercede on behalf of the household to help ensure access to timely and appropriate resources Housing Navigation Housing navigators help households find rental housing opportunities, complete the application process, as well as help conduct landlord outreach and engagement. The role of the housing navigator is to minimize the number of days of homeless by assisting the household in obtaining rental housing as quickly as possible. Activities of housing navigation services may include: - Assisting households in completing housing applications - Assisting households in communication to a potential landlord any housing barriers - Assisting households in obtaining application fees, if needed - Assisting survivors of domestic abuse or human trafficking with housing-related services - Consistent communication with landlords to maintain a positive relationship and mitigate any issues that may arise - Expediting the move-in timeline when feasible, between the date of acceptance and lease signing - Following up with households to track stability and provide additional services after exiting the program as requested by the household - Landlord recruitment, including outreach to an organization's network of existing landlords - Providing tenant education on landlord and tenant rights and responsibilities - Transporting households to housing appointments - Utilizing housing search engines to locate opportunities The program does not provide financial assistance such as rent, mortgage, utilities, or other housing related costs.