Keeping Families in their Homes
Even as the American economy continues its recovery from the devastating impact of the pandemic, millions of Americans face deep rental debt and fear evictions and the loss of basic housing security. COVID-19 has exacerbated an affordable housing crisis that predated the pandemic and that has deep disparities that threaten the strength of an economic recovery that must work for everyone.
To meet this need, the Emergency Rental Assistance program makes funding available to assist households that are unable to pay rent or utilities. Two separate programs have been established: ERA1 provides up to $25 billion under the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, which was enacted on December 27, 2020, and ERA2 provides up to $21.55 billion under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, which was enacted on March 11, 2021. The funds are provided directly to states, U.S. territories, local governments, and (in the case of ERA1) Indian tribes. Grantees use the funds to provide assistance to eligible households through existing or newly created rental assistance programs.
Find rental assistance
View an index of all emergency rental assistance programs to find assistance near you.
Recent updates
October
- Research: On October 3, 2022, Treasury and the federal Office of Evaluation Sciences released new research on Equity in the Distribution of the Emergency Rental Assistance Program.
September
- Reallocation: On September 29, 2022 Treasury released a notice regarding extensions of the deadline to obligate reallocated ERA1 funds
- Reallocation: On September 26, 2022, Treasury released the reallocation amounts for ERA1 Round 3 Reallocation.
- Guidance: On September 19, 2022 Treasury published the ERA1 Closeout Resource
- Promising practices: On September 16, 2022 Treasury published an update to promising practices for implementing culturally and linguistically competent outreach into ERA programs.
- Reallocation: On September 13, 2022 Treasury released a Notice Regarding Unobligated ERA1 Funds.
- Grantees wishing to return funds to Treasury as described in the Notice should submit the form titled “Request to Voluntarily Reallocate Excess Funds” on Treasury’s online portal. Under “Reallocation Designation,” they should select “General Reallocation.”
- Grantees may also apply for additional reallocated ERA1 funds by September 26, 2022 by submitting a Request for Reallocated Funds through the Treasury portal.
- Reallocation: On September 6, 2022, Treasury added footnote 3 to the ERA1 Reallocation Guidance.
August
- Reporting: On August 10, 2022, Treasury released the June ERA report
- Reallocation: On August 8, 2022, Treasury announced that Tribes, Tribally Designated Housing Entities, and the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands may apply for reallocated ERA1 funds through August 19, 2022 by using the ERA Portal.
July
- Reallocation: On July 29, 2022 Treasury released a notice regarding extensions of the deadline to obligate reallocated ERA1 funds.
- FAQs: On July 27, 2022, Treasury published guidance on the use of ERA2 funds for affordable rental housing, eviction prevention, and housing stability purposes after October 1, 2022.
- Reporting: On July 25, 2022, Treasury released the May ERA report
- Reallocation: On July 18, 2022, Treasury released a notice regarding ERA1 recapture for Tribal Governments.
- Reallocation: On July 5, 2022, Treasury updated the ERA Portal to allow grantees to directly input their requests for reallocated ERA2 funds via the Portal, which is accessible through ID.me or Login.gov.
- FAQs: On July 6, 2022, Treasury updated its previously issued ERA FAQs to provide updates regarding ERA1 and ERA2 programs. All eligible entities should review these FAQs, which provide important information regarding the ERA.
June
- Allocations and Payments: On June 29, 2022, Treasury posted instructions for grantees who wish to draw down additional tranche payments for ERA2 awards.
- Guidance: On June 28, 2022, Treasury updated the ERA2 Reallocation Guidance related to the Quarter 1 Assessment (see footnote #3).
- Reporting: On June 3, 2022, Treasury released the April ERA report.
- Reallocation: On June 1, 2022, Treasury added an Addendum to Reallocation Guidance for Tribal Governments
May
- Reallocation: On May 20, 2022, Treasury updated the ERA Portal to allow grantees to directly input their requests for reallocated ERA1 funds via the Portal, which is accessible through ID.me or Login.gov.
- Reallocation: Grantees requesting to have their ERA1 funds reallocated should also input their requests via the Portal.
- Promising practices: On May 10, 2022 Treasury published promising practices for implementing housing stability services into ERA programs.
- Allocation: On May 5, 2022, Treasury released a notice to units of local government that have not yet accepted any ERA2 funds or executed the ERA2 Award Terms of a May 16th deadline in order to participate in ERA2.
- Reporting: On May 2, 2022, Treasury released the March ERA report and a report on 2021 ERA1 Demographic Percentages by State .
April
- Reallocation: On April 11, 2022, Treasury updated the form for requesting voluntarily reallocated funds: Request for Reallocated Funds with Exhibit C – Voluntarily Reallocated Funds (Grantees that wish to request voluntarily reallocated ERA1 funds should now input their requests directly in the Portal).
March
- Reporting: On March 30, 2022, Treasury released the February ERA report. Treasury Announces $30 Billion in Emergency Rental Assistance Spent or Obligated with Over 4.7 Million Payments Made to Households Through February 2022.
- Reallocation: On March 30, 2022, Treasury published its ERA2 Reallocation Guidance and published a Fact Sheet Summary of the guidance.
- Reallocation: On March 30, 2022, Treasury published technical updates to the ERA1 Reallocation Guidance, along with a redlined version showing the updates to the version published on October 4, 2021.
- Program and service design: On March 23, 2022, Treasury updated its resources for online applications to include a section on protecting applicant data through data privacy and security measures, including limiting the collection of social security numbers.
- Reallocation: On March 14, 2022, Treasury released the reallocation amounts for ERA1 Round 2 Reallocation and Voluntary Reallocation
- Reporting: On March 8, 2022, Treasury released monthly ERA spending data through January 31
February
- Reporting: In February Treasury released quarterly data on the demographics of ERA recipients in 2021 and monthly ERA spending through December 31, 2021
January
- Promising practices: On January 14, 2022, Treasury published promising practices for using commitment letters to assist prospective renters. These practices highlight the opportunity to help those who need to prove to a prospective landlord that they can access future rent assistance in order to be stably housed.
- Reporting: On January 7, 2022, Treasury released the November ERA report. Emergency Rental Assistance Disbursed $2.9 Billion in November in Largest Month for Program
- Reallocation: On January 7, 2022, Treasury updated forms relevant for the second round of reallocation:
- Request for reallocated funds: Requests for reallocated funds from Round 2 were required to be submitted to Treasury portal by January 21, 2022. Treasury will provide details on the process for requesting reallocated funds from the upcoming round in the coming weeks. Please do not email requests using prior forms.
- Reallocated Funds Form with Exhibit C- Voluntary Reallocated Funds. This form is now superseded by an updated form.
- Reallocation: On January 7, Treasury released the reallocation amounts for ERA1 Round 1 Reallocation and Voluntary Reallocation
- Program and service design: On January 7, 2022, Treasury updated its guidelines for program websites to include resources for grantees to improve access for those with limited English proficiency
December
- Report fraud, waste, and abuse: On December 16, 2021, Treasury added details on how to report fraud, waste, and abuse for ERA grantees and applicants.
- Reallocation: Reallocated Funds Form with Exhibit C- Voluntary Reallocated Funds
- Reallocation: On December 9, Treasury published the template letter for requesting excess funds to be voluntarily reallocated (such requests should now be input directly in the Portal).
- Promising practices: On December 9, Treasury updated the promising practices for fact-specific proxies to highlight grantee use of proxies, detail the advantages to using this practice, and considerations to take when implementing a proxy.
November
- Reporting: On November 29th, Treasury released the October ERA report (spreadsheet updated 12/6/21). Emergency Rental Assistance Program Surpasses 2.5 Million Payments to Renters and Landlords.
- Promising practices: On November 18, 2021, Treasury updated promising practices for utilities, including an updated discussion about working with energy providers and other utility assistance programs (like LIHEAP). Treasury also updated the example screens for COVID-19 financial impact and housing instability.
- Program and service design: On November 5, 2021, Treasury added guidelines for fact-specific proxies and an example of an ERA application flow for grantees exploring application process improvements. In addition, example screens have been added and updated, including screens for rent and utility assistance requests.
- Promising practices: On November 5, 2021, Treasury updated the promising practices for take-away PDF of the Eviction Diversion Maturity Model.
October
- Reporting: On October 25th, Treasury released the September ERA report more than 510,000 households received Emergency Rental Assistance in September, totaling nearly $2.8 billion in payments
- Reallocation: On October 25th, Deputy Secretary Adeyemo published a letter to all grantees to highlight additional detail on the reallocation process.
- Reallocation: On October 25th, Treasury published the following reallocation forms.
- Program Improvement Plan form
- Reallocated Funds form (which is now superseded by an updated form)
- Reallocation: On October 4th, Treasury published reallocation guidance and a letter from Deputy Secretary Adeyemo was sent to ERA grantees about the reallocation guidance.
- Reallocation Summary: On October 4, Treasury published a summary on ERA reallocation highlights .
September
- Reallocation: On September 24, Deputy Secretary Adeyemo published a letter to all grantees providing further insight into how Treasury intends to approach the reallocation process.
- Program and service design: On September 24, 2021, Treasury added a section on ERA program and service design which, includes new Guidelines for ERA program online applications including example screens and guidelines for program websites.
- Updated monthly reporting: On September 24, 2021, Treasury released the August ERA report showing more than 420,000 households received Emergency Rental Assistance in August, totaling over $2.3 billion in payments
August
- FAQs: On August 25, 2021, FAQs were revised to provide further clarification on the use of self-attestation and to describe methods of speeding payments to eligible households.
- Promising practices: On August 4, 2021, Treasury updated promising practices around eviction diversion including the addition of a maturity model and example self-attestation forms.
- Reporting: All Emergency Rental Assistance (ERA1 and ERA2) Recipients have been notified of the requirement to submit Q2 partial reports via Treasury’s Portal by August 6, 2021.
June
- FAQs: On June 24, 2021, Treasury updated its previously issued ERA FAQs to provide updates regarding ERA1 and ERA2 programs. All eligible entities should review these FAQs, which provide important information regarding the ERA.
Press releases
May
March
February
January
November
- November 29th Emergency Rental Assistance Program Surpasses 2.5 Million Payments to Renters and Landlords
October
September
- September 24th More than 420,000 Households Received Emergency Rental Assistance in August, Totaling Over $2.3 Billion in Payments
- September 14th Treasury Releases Additional Emergency Rental Assistance Funds to High-Performing State and Local Government Grantees
August
- August 27th Secretary of the Treasury Yellen, Attorney General Garland and Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development Fudge Sent Letter to Governors, Mayors and State Courts Urging Use of Emergency Rental Assistance Over Eviction
- August 27th READOUT: Deputy Secretary of the Treasury Wally Adeyemo’s Roundtable Discussion with Emergency Rental Assistance Program Grantees and Call with National Advocacy and Housing Organizations
- August 25th Treasury Announces Seven Additional Policies to Encourage State and Local Governments to Expedite Emergency Rental Assistance
- August 18th READOUT: Deputy Secretary of the Treasury Wally Adeyemo’s visit to Maryland Emergency Rental Assistance grantee
July
- July 28th Treasury Joins Administration Call to Action to Alert Americans to Emergency Rental Assistance and Promote CFPB “Rental Assistance Finder”
- July 21st Treasury Data: Amount of June Emergency Rental Assistance Resources to Households More Than All Previous Months Combined
- July 9th READOUT: Deputy Secretary of the Treasury Wally Adeyemo’s Roundtable Discussion with Emergency Rental Assistance Program Grantees
June
May
- May 21st Treasury Distributes $6.1 billion to Assist Renters and Landlords Through Emergency Rental Assistance Program
- May 7th Treasury Announces Additional $21.6 Billion in Emergency Rental Assistance Allocation