Low-to-moderate income renters in Prince George facing a crisis and struggling to make ends meet can apply for assistance through the B.C. Rent Bank.
“We're able to offer interest-free loans for people who are having trouble paying rent or essential utilities and in addition to that, we also provide wraparound services,” explained Melissa Giles B.C. Rent Bank Project Lead.
“These can be things like access to financial literacy, credit counseling, advocacy, skills, training, support with navigating government systems, or even meditating at times the relationship between landlords and their tenants.”
Giles said the goal is to help increase people’s housing stability and prevent their eviction.
B.C. Rent Bank works with local partner non-profit agencies throughout the province who are more adept at responding to what renter’s local need are. This service is available to people in Prince George and northern B.C. through the rent banks centralized hub.
In November 2021, BC Rent Bank and Kamloops and District Elizabeth Fry Society partnered to extend rent bank services to people throughout the province.
This meant that people in communities that did not previously have access to rent bank loans and services, including on Vancouver Island, in the south Okanagan and in northern B.C., now have access to help to stay in stable housing.
Despite the now province-wide availability, a recent survey found that while B.C. Rent bank is having a positive impact on those who use it, there is little awareness about the service.
“I think while we were focused on growing access to services, we also want to now turn our attention to increasing awareness of the service,” said Giles. “The rent bank is not going to serve every renter’s needs but for those that fit the rent bank model, it's a really great solution.”
BC Rent Bank surveyed every household in B.C. that received financial assistance from a rent bank between April 1 and June 30, 2021, and asked about their housing situation six months after receiving assistance.
“The survey results we've been able to share with the public and we know that rent banks are in fact working and that majority of people that responded said that they had either maintained their housing or they had actually improved their housing stability,” said Giles.
“People talked about being able to maintain custody of their children or engage in recovery from addiction.”
She said some renters noted they were able to “buy time” until they could return to their previous employment and the survey showed that rent banks are really effective in responding to the needs of renters.
“But the survey also showed us that we need to do a lot of work around increasing awareness.”
Giles explained there is an online pre-assessment form that takes about 15 minutes to complete, which starts the process. Applicants are then contacted by a case manager who will determine if a loan is the best fit for their situation or if there is a better solution for their needs.
“This is not going to be a solution for everyone. People need to understand that is a loan so there are going to have to qualify in that sense of being able to demonstrate the capacity to repay.”
Giles said they’ve seen people from the ages of 19 all the way up into their 80s applying for the Rent Bank.
“The word homelessness in itself can bring up a lot of different images or ideas of who is applying for the service. But we know that the line between staying housed and not staying housed has always been thin and because of the pandemic that lines become even thinner,” said Giles.
She said there was once an instance when a man named Carl had to travel to Vancouver for ongoing cancer treatments but when he was able to return home healthy, he wasn’t able to catch up on his bills.
“He still had to figure out ‘how can I maintain my housing in this gap time while I get healthier and I'm able to return to work’. So, in those moments, it can kind of bridge the gap between the crisis that's going on and make sure that people stay housed.”
More information on how to apply for the B.C. Rent Bank is available on the organization’s website.
