The Issue of Rent
Day 15
Since today is still mostly dedicated to preparation for move-in-day I thought I’d spend a little time talking about rent. This always comes up in resettlement discussions.
The question really is how much of their rent should we subsidize?
I look at it this way. Our goal is to help a refugee family become self-sufficient within 6 months or less, if at all possible. Living costs money. Self-sufficiency implies the ability to pay for their own expenses. Therefore they must pay rent and understand the economics of doing so.
Obviously though they cannot arrive in the country and start making a monthly payment anywhere from $550 to $1000 without some help.
Here’s an overview of how we’ve handled it in the past. Each case is a little different, but the essence remains.
Every family receives some grant money upon arrival. If the amount is sufficient, we prefer to make the security deposit and first month rent with their grant money. We would like them to have 1/3 or more of their money leftover for other upcoming expenses. If that’s a problem we’ll cover some of their first month.
We always pay the security deposit with their grant money because they are free to move at any time. The landlord will return their security deposit. We do not want to be in the middle trying to get that back.
Usually then, we pay for the 2nd month rent at 100%. For the 3rd month we pay 80 to 100%. If there was still a lot of grant money left over we’d go with 80%. If there was little left over we may pay 100%. It also depends on how well we believe we’ll be able to find employment quickly for the eligible family members.
For the 4th and following months we ramp down while the family ramps up their payments. We like to be done paying any rent by the 6th month. I believe we’ve finished in as little as 4 months, but have also continued some support much longer.
If extra support is needed, I would rather have the family paying for their own rent in full while we supplement food or utilities or some other expenses along the way. They must understand that paying rent, in full and on time, is important. We want them to get into this habit as early as possible. This way they will always have a home here. And, if/when they decide to move, they’ll also have that freedom!
[…] by acorcoran on August 1, 2009 Update August 5th: See the next installment of this group’s how-to on refugee resettlement. It brings a smile to my face because this is […]