Due to COVID-19, the Texas Rent Relief program was created by the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA) in order to provide Texas tenants with financial assistance for rent and utility bills (including past due rent and utilities). TDHCA began accepting applications from landlords and tenants on February 15, 2021.

To contact the Texas Rent Relief program, please call 1-833-9TX-RENT (1-833-989-7368).

The Texas Rent Relief program helps renters with financial relief for the following:

• Past due, current, and up to 15 months of expected rent costs
• Past due, current, and up to 15 months of expected utility and home energy expenses

Renters can apply for assistance with these costs back to March 13th, 2020. Both landlords and tenants are eligible to apply for this program.

For Landlords

A landlord can create an account to apply for unpaid or future rent on behalf of their tenants. The tenant can then sign the application and the payments will be issued directly to the landlord. Any payments issued to the landlord through the TDHCA program must be used to pay the tenant's rental balance.

For Tenants

Tenants must meet all 5 qualifications in order to be eligible for relief:

• The tenant must make 80% or less of AMI (average median income)
• The rental property must be the tenant's primary residence
• The tenant must be at risk of homelessness or unsafe/unsanitary living conditions if they were evicted
• The tenant must be facing financial hardship. This can include receiving unemployment benefits or other financial hardship, like high medical bills, extra childcare costs, loss of work hours, inability to work, etc. Documentation of unemployment benefits is not required. 
• The tenant will not receive additional rental assistance for the months covered by the TDHCA program. Tenants are welcome to apply for additional rental aid, but if they are approved for aid elsewhere after receiving TDHCA funds for the specified time, they will need to return the TDHCA funds.

This program cannot be used for the following:

• Rental units higher than $4,600 monthly rent amount
• Recently vacated units (though tenants' eviction or otherwise)

Note As of April 21st, 2021, tenants in public housing or receiving project-based voucher assistance are now eligible to apply for assistance with the tenant-based portion of rent and utilities. Previously, tenants in Section 8/voucher program housing or public housing units were not eligible to apply.

If you are not sure whether you qualify for relief, TDHCA has a list of questions you can use to find out if you qualify.  You can also look up your area's median income to determine your eligibility. 

How Does It Work?

Payments are made directly to the landlord or utility provider. A tenant can ask their landlord to apply on their behalf, or the tenant can apply directly and the system will follow up with the landlord for information. Payment is typically issued to the landlord within 14 days of completing an eligible application. If your landlord does not agree to accept the payment, the payment will be made directly to the tenant after a period of 21 days of attempted outreach to the landlord or utility provider.