Interfaith Neighbors

Program Spotlight | Facing a Crisis: The Rental & Mortgage Assistance Program

The shortage of affordable housing and families facing homelessness has been an issue in the U.S. and NJ since long before Interfaith Neighbors’ founding in 1988. However, today’s “housing crisis” has increasingly been affecting numerous people who never imagined they could be struggling.

The U.S. Poverty Rate saw its largest one-year increase in history with 12.4% of Americans living in poverty in 2022, increasing from 7.4% in 2021. According to the 2023 State of the Nation’s Housing Report by Harvard University, 2022 was a record-breaking year for rising rent and home-ownership prices in the U.S., where annual home prices rose 20.1% and annual rent price growth reached 15.3%. 2.4 million more people were priced out of their homes in 2022 than in 2021, and the annual income to afford median home ownership rose 20% to $117,000 (JCHS). Here in New Jersey, the problem is exacerbated by the high cost of living. Here, housing costs are 31% higher than the national average. The United Way estimates that 37% of Monmouth County residents fall into the category of “working poor.” Not surprisingly, in conjunction with rising home and rent prices, the number of citizens experiencing unsheltered homelessness rose 3.4% since 2020, according to the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Communities with a high concentration of people of color and high poverty rates, like Asbury Park, are disproportionately experiencing negative effects from this latest housing crisis.

Interfaith Neighbors’ (IFN) Senior Manager of Homeless Prevention through Rental & Mortgage Assistance, Judy Nelan, expressed how great the need for rental and mortgage assistance currently is, especially in the low-income areas Interfaith Neighbors serves across Monmouth County.

“The phone just rings and rings all day long. We’re getting about 150 calls for mortgage and rental assistance per week, which is about double what we received last year at this time,” Judy explained. She went on to describe some of the program’s current challenges, stating, “most of the grants we receive to assist people who have fallen behind in their housing payments require rent to be affordable for the recipient going forward, and this is becoming harder to achieve due to the ever increasing rents in Monmouth County. We’re having to refer significantly more people to other agencies, and there have been numerous people returning for additional assistance who were previously helped with one or two months of rent.”

The Rental and Mortgage Assistance Program is funded primarily by Monmouth County, with SSH (Social Services for the Homeless) and SSH/TANF (SSH/Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) grant funds, as well as a grants from the State of NJ and private donations. In 2023, the Program received $281,448 in SSH and SSH TANF funding. During the COVID-19 pandemic, emergency rental assistance funding was also provided through the county and state to supplement the standard funding. IFN’s Program assisted 298 households with over $635,900 in 2022. From January 2023 to July 1st, 2023, the Rental and Mortgage Assistance Program assisted 174 households with $447,820. With this trend continuing, the program will assist significantly more households in 2023 than in 2022, due to the county’s additional COVID-related funding and increases in need for assistance. However, it is anticipated that 2023 will be the last year that COVID-related funding will be available.

With so many people facing evictions, foreclosures, and near homelessness, the work of IFN’s Rental & Mortgage Assistance Programs is as pertinent as ever. Many of the individuals and families inquiring about assistance with rent and mortgages never thought they would see the day they had to call for help. Interfaith Neighbors was founded on this work of preventing homelessness and will continue to provide those in need with the basic necessities of life, especially the needed assistance for people to remain in their homes and stave off homelessness.

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