{"id":282790,"date":"2026-04-23T23:09:09","date_gmt":"2026-04-23T23:09:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/282790\/"},"modified":"2026-04-23T23:09:09","modified_gmt":"2026-04-23T23:09:09","slug":"long-beach-launches-renter-aid-program-to-provide-residents-financial-support-prevent-housing-loss-press-telegram","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/282790\/","title":{"rendered":"Long Beach launches renter aid program to provide residents financial support, prevent housing loss \u2013 Press Telegram"},"content":{"rendered":"

Long Beach has a new program that will provide short-term financial assistance to low-income renters who are at risk of losing their homes, in an effort to help them stay housed and avoid eviction and homelessness.<\/p>\n

The city announced the launch of the Long Beach Renter Aid Program<\/a> on Thursday, April 23, during a press conference at the Civic Center Plaza. This new initiative will invest $2.7 million in rental assistance \u2013 coupled with a previously rolled out $1.5 million in \u201cRight to Counsel\u201d eviction defense and education assistance \u2013 to help up to 1,000 low-income households.<\/p>\n

\u201cToday, we are launching Long Beach Renter Aid, a new program designed to support families at the brink and keep them in their homes, because when families are struggling to afford rent, one unexpected expense can quickly spiral into a crisis,\u201d Mayor Rex Richardson said on Thursday, \u201cand that\u2019s why we\u2019re taking action upstream. Help is on the way.\u201d<\/p>\n

The program is part of the city\u2019s Upstream LB<\/a>: Homelessness Prevention and Housing Pathways Plan, a coordinated effort designed to prevent housing instability, stabilize residents in crisis, create pathways into permanent housing and reduce homelessness across the city with a focus on youth, seniors and families impacted by shifting federal policies and immigration enforcement actions.<\/p>\n

Long Beach Renter Aid will offer temporary financial assistance for overdue rent, short-term rental assistance, past-due utilities and relocation costs, officials said. A minimum of $250,000 and up to $500,000 will be set aside for settlement assistance, and another $500,000 will be used to assist households impacted by shifting federal policies and immigration enforcement actions.<\/p>\n

Payments will be made directly to landlords or service providers, the city said. Participants will also be connected to supportive services and basic needs resources to promote long-term stability.<\/p>\n

Long Beach Renter Aid is made possible through new funding from LA County\u2019s Measure A, Richardson said. This is new structural funding that does not come from the city\u2019s general fund, he added, and Long Beach is the first city in the county to launch these new prevention resources and deliver a comprehensive local program with the county Measure A funds and working with the LA County Affordable Housing Solutions Agency.<\/p>\n

\"Long<\/p>\n

Long Beach launched its new Renter Aid Program on Thursday, April 23, 2026, which will provide short-term financial assistance to low-income renters in Long Beach who are at risk of losing their homes. (Photo by Christina Merino, Press-Telegram\/SCNG)\n<\/p>\n

\"Long<\/p>\n

Long Beach launched its new Renter Aid Program on Thursday, April 23, 2026, which will provide short-term financial assistance to low-income renters in Long Beach who are at risk of losing their homes. (Photo by Christina Merino, Press-Telegram\/SCNG)\n<\/p>\n

Show Caption<\/p>\n

1 of 2<\/p>\n

Long Beach launched its new Renter Aid Program on Thursday, April 23, 2026, which will provide short-term financial assistance to low-income renters in Long Beach who are at risk of losing their homes. (Photo by Christina Merino, Press-Telegram\/SCNG)\n<\/p>\n

Expand<\/a><\/p>\n

Applications are now open for Long Beach residents to apply.<\/p>\n

Residents who qualify for the program include those living in rental housing, including people temporarily staying in another housing arrangement; having a household income at or below 50% of the area median income<\/a>; and having experienced an emergency or unexpected event within the past 12 months that places them at risk of losing housing, which cannot be resolved without financial assistance.<\/p>\n

Those emergencies, for example, could be \u2013 but are not limited to \u2013 an action of landlord or property management; unlawful detainer, such as an eviction lawsuit; threat of displacement or housing instability; loss of income; loss or delay of public income benefits; and medical emergency, among other emergencies that threaten housing stability.<\/p>\n

The program will prioritize people and families who are older adults; are at immediate or imminent risk of eviction or homelessness; have recently lost income, housing vouchers or other benefits; are experiencing a housing crisis related to federal policy changes, funding cuts or loss of federal benefits; and households affected by immigrant enforcement actions, according to the city\u2019s website.<\/p>\n

This new program will be impactful for many Long Beach residents, community organizers said, as approximately 60% of the city\u2019s residents are renters.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s dire, and we see it every day in our work,\u201d said Lilly Piedra, director of organizing and outreach at Long Beach Residents Empowered, better known as LiBRE. \u201cWe talk to tenants day in and day out who just need a little bit of support to be able to avoid an eviction.<\/p>\n

\u201cUp until now, we haven\u2019t had a ton of resources to point those community members to,\u201d Piedra added, \u201cand so we\u2019re very excited to be part of launching this program. We\u2019re excited to now have a resource that we can share with the community when all they need is a little bit of assistance to get back on their feet.\u201d<\/p>\n

Eligible people can apply online at longbeach.gov\/renteraid<\/a> or in person, and applications are available in English, Spanish, Khmer and Tagalog.<\/p>\n

The first application window will close on Friday, May 8, officials said. Beginning in June, applications will be accepted monthly from the fifth through the 12th of each month or until funds are fully distributed. Early application is encouraged, as funds are limited.<\/p>\n

Applications will be reviewed based on eligibility and priority criteria. Applicants will receive a response within five business days after the application period closes, officials said. Selected applicants will be contacted to complete verification and a full assessment. Approved payments are expected within 30 days of verification, with expedited assistance available in urgent cases.<\/p>\n

Besides the Long Beach Renter Aid Program, the city will launch two additional prevention programs in the coming months as part of the Upstream LB initiative, which includes an older adult shallow subsidy program launching in May, and a youth homelessness prevention unit to support residents ages 18 to 25 who are at high risk of homelessness in July, the city said. Long Beach also continues to support its Right to Counsel program, which provides free legal assistance to low-income residents facing eviction through a partnership with Stay Housed LA.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn Long Beach, we don\u2019t leave our neighbors behind,\u201d Richardson said. \u201cA single setback should not mean losing your home. Today, with Renter Aid, we\u2019re taking a major step forward for the very first time in our city and making this vision of upstream prevention real.\u201d<\/p>\n

For more information on the Long Beach Renter Aid Program, visit longbeach.gov\/renteraid<\/a> or email LBRenterAid@longbeach.gov.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Long Beach has a new program that will provide short-term financial assistance to low-income renters who are at…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":282791,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[7,1011,23,131,133,132,137],"class_list":{"0":"post-282790","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-long-beach","8":"tag-california","9":"tag-housing","10":"tag-local-news","11":"tag-long-beach","12":"tag-long-beach-headlines","13":"tag-long-beach-news","14":"tag-los-angeles-county"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/282790","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=282790"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/282790\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/282791"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=282790"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=282790"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=282790"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}