How a New York state program is helping cover back rent to prevent evictions (Central Current)

New York state elected leaders and housing advocates are pushing for the extension of a program that has helped renters across upstate New York remain in their homes and keep landlords paid. 

The state allocated $10 million in its 2024-2025 budget last April meant to help upstate tenants catch up on rent payments through a pilot program, a move that local housing advocates say is vital in reducing homelessness and keeping people housed.

...

State Senator Sean Ryan, who advocated for the funding, said preventing an eviction also helps reduce the workload of social services meant to help unhoused individuals. 

“The alternatives for people being evicted often ends up being a burden to counties’ overwhelmed shelter systems,” said Ryan, an Erie County Democrat representing the State Senate’s 61st district. 

Ryan, a former legal services attorney, sponsored the bill in the senate that led to the creation of the SAEF program. The senator said that his office estimates those savings to Erie County services to be of around $13,000 per family. 

Based on an analysis of court records performed by Ryan’s office, tenants are being evicted in courts across upstate New York for owing on average $1,400 in back rent, the senator said.

Keeping tenants housed, Ryan added, alleviates another component of the housing crisis in cities like Syracuse and Buffalo: the lack of affordable housing options.

“There are no apartments for tenants to move into if they lose their home and so that’s led to people going to hotels and shelters, which costs thousands to the counties,” Ryan said. 

Click here to read the full story