By Jessica Perez and Abby Boshart, Housing Matters, August 18, 2021
Rent relief gained national attention last week, when the federal eviction moratorium lapsed before a new protection was enacted by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for areas with high rates of COVID-19 spread. As of June, state and local rental assistance programs had distributed only around $3 billion of the more than $47 billion in federal funding allocated for emergency rental assistance (ERA). Although distribution has significantly sped up compared with previous months, the current pace means relief will not reach (PDF) millions of renters in need soon enough.
These distribution data were key to understanding ERA programs’ progress, but they were missing important information to understand programs’ impacts and challenges—such as whether the programs distributing aid quickly are reaching households most at risk of eviction. There has been little insight into why certain ERA programs have been distributing assistance faster than others or what can be done to help lagging programs.
Lessons from behavioral science, the study of how people make decisions, can improve ERA programs to encourage renters to apply and to ensure assistance quickly gets into the hands of the people who need it most.
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