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Housing
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Evictions Loomas COVID Rent-Relief Funds Dry Up This Winter
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What Outreach Has Been Seeing
On December 7, the Austin American Statesman reported on its front page what St. Austin’s Outreach team observed as November turned to December: Rent relief funds from the City of Austin, the State of Texas, and now Travis County were all used or allocated. Their robust rental assistance programs ended, but the need remains for many, many families in our area. Sadly, for a number of our neighbors this holiday season, the risk of being evicted from their homes looms large.
The Outreach team can hear the desperation in the emails requesting assistance and in the phone calls we make with guests to offer hope and a little bit of help with growing rent bills. We commonly receive emails requesting rental assistance to the tune of $700+ or from people showing eviction notices with balances topping $3,000. The roughly $200 we offer often seems like a drop in the hat for the deep financial holes many of our guests find themselves in. A few apartment complexes have even stopped taking assistance checks from us recently, at least until the tenant can come up with the rest of what they owe. Our experience tells us this will become more and more common as evictions or the threat of an eviction on one’s record move people out of their homes when they can't pay their rent. Just last month -- between the time he applied and the time we called to help with his rent -- a guest abandoned his apartment to live with a friend because he owed too much and had no way to pay his mounting rent debt.
A major source of the problem is rapidly skyrocketing rent and home prices. According to the Austin Monitor, Austin homes "on median, now sell for $536,000, a price that reflects more than a 20% annual increase. The average monthly rent in the metro area has surpassed $1,500, an increase of about $300 in half a year.” There is also a lack of housing throughout the Austin area, and a particular shortage of affordable housing. Low-income families and families without jobs often simply can’t bear the burden. We pray not, but it could be a 'perfect storm' for evictions.
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What can we do – as individuals and as the St. Austin community – to really make a difference?
Developing affordable housing takes a deep community commitment as well as creativity and often takes years. Thankfully the City of Austin is looking into ways to reduce the cost of new construction, but there is certainly more that could be done.
We invite you to pray, educate yourself on the issue, volunteer your time, advocate locally or at the federal level for an increase in affordable housing, or donate to an organization that helps house vulnerable individuals.
Not sure where to get started or feel like the issue is just “too big? Put more of a face on the issue by listening to the podcast of a conversation between Mobile Loaves & Fishes founder and CEO, Alan Graham, and Foundation Communities Executive Director, Walter Moreau: “Getting’ Stuff Done”. And keep reading to learn more, take action, and pray for affordable housing in our community.
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1. Pray
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For equitable & affordable housing
Lord God of all, we pray for our neighbors in need of safe and affordable housing, and for the many families in danger of home foreclosure, [being evicted], or mourning the loss of their homes. May we work to build communities that create space for all people to live, not just for the wealthy. Amen. (Source: Sojourners)
Dear God,
Watch over your children, especially those with no homes to return to at the end of long and weary days. Protect them from all harm and keep them from despair. Open the hearts and eyes of those of us with blessings to share.
Unite our voices in a call for justice:
So that no man need ever lay down for the night on a wooden park bench because he has no home;
So that no woman need ever tuck her children into the backseat of her car because she has no home;
So that no child need ever wonder, “Where will I feel safe?” because he has no home;
So that all those who wander and all who are in need, find the shelter and the peace they seek.
Remind us, O God, that we cannot rest fully secure in our homes each night until all your children are, at last, home.
Amen.~Andrea Goldstein, from Social Justice Resource Center
More Prayers for Those Experiencing Homelessness
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2. Be Informed
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On Housing as a Human Right
The Catholic bishops believe decent, safe, and affordable housing is a human right. Catholic teaching supports the right to private property, but recognizes that communities and the government have an obligation to ensure the housing needs of all are met, especially poor and vulnerable people and their families. At a time of rising homelessness and when many workers’ wages are stagnant and living expenses are rising, it is important to ensure housing security.
~ U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops
The lack of safe, affordable housing requires a renewed commitment to increase the supply of quality housing and to preserve, maintain, and improve existing housing through public/private partnerships, especially with religious groups and community organizations.
~ U.S. Conference Catholic Bishops
I want to be very clear, we can find no social or moral justification, no justification, no justification whatsoever, for lack of housing.
Pope Francis
~From the Social Justice Resource Center
More Quotes on Housing
From the Bishops on The Right to a Decent Home
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3. Advocate for Affordable Housing
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Let your local elected officials know that housing situation in Austin is urgent and requires ACTION, not just more studies. We know that the people who are being forced out of their homes because they can't afford rent will move into unstable housing situations, over-crowded living conditions, or become homeless during the coldest weeks of the year. And this, in turn, presents a greater health risk to themselves and others as we continue to navigate the COVID-19 pandemic.
Urge politicians and lawmakers at the local, state, and federal level to direct more funds -- and all the other incentives they can -- to create more funding in our community and nationwide. Use the quick links on our Advocate Now page to get their contact information. Data shows that calls are more effective than emails, and you are encouraged to make the words your own, such as including personal anecdotes. As a parishioner of St. Austin, you are welcome to share what our parish has learned through serving neighbors in need in our Outreach and St. Vincent de Paul society ministries. Consider reaching out to any Outreach or SVDP volunteers you know to hear some stories of the guests and neighbors we serve to add "flesh" to your call or email.
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4. Support organizations addressing homelessness & housing equity
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Local Organizations
People are in urgent need of affordable housing. Here are a few local organizations working to create affordable housing solutions:
Foundation Communities creates housing where individuals and families succeed.
Saint Louise House provides housing and essential services in Austin to homeless women with children.
Mobile Loaves & Fishes' Community First! Village provides affordable, permanent housing and a supportive community for the disabled, chronically homeless in Central Texas.
Austin Habitat for Humanity helps families with affordable home ownership, home repairs, and more.
Guadalupe Neighborhood Development Corporation (GNDC) is an affordable housing provider helping families from
East Austin remain in their neighborhood. -
Nationwide Organizations
Here are a few organizations working on affordable housing solutions around the country:
Family Promise has numerous affiliates across the U.S. that help families experiencing homelessness and low-income families achieve sustainable independence through community-based responses.
National Alliance to End Homelessness is a nonpartisan organization committed to preventing and ending homelessness in the United States.
RESULTS advocates for policies that increase access to affordable rental housing, support homeownership, and tackle the racial wealth divide in the U.S. RESULTS is a movement of everyday people who use their voices to influence political decisions that will bring an end to poverty in the U.S. and globally.
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5. Take Care of Yourself & Stay Positive
