Emergency Rental Assistance (ERA): Historical Federal Program

Emergency Rental Assistance (ERA): Historical Federal Program

The federal Emergency Rental Assistance (ERA) program is closed as a source of new renter payments. The U.S. Department of the Treasury says that the period of performance for ERA2 awards ended on September 30, 2025, and that ERA2 grantees may no longer use ERA2 award funds to assist renters. There is no new national ERA application on this page, no federal ERA2 application deadline to wait for, and no federal ERA2 balance that a renter can claim through Treasury.

This entry remains useful as a historical reference because it explains what ERA was, who it served, what the money could cover, and why an old state or county application page may still appear in search results. It is not a promise of assistance and it is not an application form. For possible help now, use Treasury’s current link to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) renter resource: Get help paying rent and bills. That page directs renters toward state and local organizations, 211, utility assistance, housing counseling, subsidized housing, housing choice vouchers, and legal help.

Status at a glance

What ERA was

ERA was a temporary federal response to housing instability during the COVID-19 pandemic. Treasury administered two related funding streams. ERA1 was authorized by the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, and provided $25 billion. ERA2 was authorized by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, and provided $21.55 billion. Treasury says the two programs collectively provided communities more than $46 billion to support housing stability for eligible renters.

The money did not operate as a single federal voucher that every renter could request from Treasury. Treasury distributed funds to states, U.S. territories, certain local governments, and, for ERA1, Indian Tribes, Tribally Designated Housing Entities, and the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands. Those recipients built or contracted local intake systems. Depending on the jurisdiction, a renter might have applied through a state portal, county office, municipal housing department, Tribal housing organization, court program, or nonprofit subrecipient.

That delivery structure explains why the name still appears in local records. An agency may have used ERA funds to build an intake portal, publish a document checklist, train housing navigators, or create an eviction-diversion partnership. Some of those systems were later closed, renamed, or folded into other local housing services. A surviving web address does not prove that it accepts applications today. Check the date, funding source, and application status with the organization that operates the page.

What the federal funds covered historically

While the program was active, ERA funds could support several housing costs. Treasury’s program page identifies financial assistance for:

• current rent;
• rental arrears;
• utilities and home energy costs;
• utility and home-energy arrears; and
• certain other expenses related to housing.

Treasury’s historical guidance also described housing stability services and, under ERA2, certain affordable rental housing and eviction-prevention activities. Depending on the grantee’s rules, “other expenses” could include relocation costs such as a security deposit, rental application or screening fees, reasonable accrued late fees, internet service provided to the rental unit, and some rent or rental bonds connected with an eviction proceeding. A grantee had to apply the applicable statute, award terms, and its own documented policies. The list was never a guarantee that every household in every location would receive every type of cost.

Payments were commonly made to a landlord, utility provider, or another approved party, although local procedures varied. Some jurisdictions allowed direct tenant applications, and ERA2 grantees were required to allow tenants to apply directly even when a landlord or owner did not participate. Those were historical operating rules. They do not reopen the federal program now that ERA2’s award period has ended.

Historical eligibility

ERA eligibility was based on a combination of renting, financial hardship, housing risk, and income. Treasury’s FAQ says an eligible household had to be obligated to pay rent on a residential dwelling. For ERA1, the household also had to show that one or more people qualified for unemployment benefits, experienced a reduction in household income, incurred significant costs, or experienced another financial hardship related directly or indirectly to the pandemic. The household also had to demonstrate a risk of homelessness or housing instability and have household income at or below 80% of area median income.

ERA2 used very similar requirements. Treasury described the ERA2 standard as a household with pandemic-related unemployment, income reduction, significant costs, or other financial hardship; a demonstrated risk of homelessness or housing instability; and status as a low-income family under the applicable federal definition. Treasury’s FAQ explains that this low-income definition was tied to income not exceeding 80% of area median income, subject to the statutory rules.

The program also required prioritization. Treasury required grantees to establish a preference system for households with income below 50% of area median income and households with one or more members who had been unemployed for at least 90 days before applying. That preference did not mean every prioritized household was automatically approved. Local programs still had to verify eligibility, avoid duplicate assistance where required, document the housing obligation, and work within the funds available to them.

The exact documents differed by local program, but historical applications commonly requested a lease or other proof of residence, a rent amount or arrears statement, household income information, a hardship explanation, and evidence of eviction or housing instability where applicable. Treasury allowed grantees flexibility in documentation, including photocopies, digital photographs, emails, and attestations in appropriate circumstances. A local program could also ask for utility bills, a landlord contact, identity documents, benefit letters, pay records, or court papers.

Do not transfer those historical thresholds to a local program without checking. A current city, county, state, Tribal, utility, or nonprofit program may have a different income limit, eligible expense list, service area, document policy, or repayment rule. The fact that a local page uses the words “rental assistance” or “ERA” does not establish that it is federally funded or still open.

What to do now

There is no federal ERA2 application to submit to Treasury. The useful present-day workflow is a resource search, not a federal application workflow.

1. Start with Treasury’s renter-resource link

Open the CFPB’s Get help paying rent and bills page. Treasury links to that page for renters and landlords seeking other rental-assistance resources. CFPB advises renters to look for state and local organizations in their town or city, county, state, or Tribal area. It also lists 211, utility assistance, rental housing counseling, subsidized housing, housing choice vouchers, and legal help.

2. Search the place where you live

Use the official website of your city, county, state, Tribal government, public housing agency, or local housing department. Search for terms such as “rental assistance,” “eviction prevention,” “housing stability,” “emergency rent help,” and “utility assistance,” along with your location. Read the eligibility and funding language carefully. Look for a recent “accepting applications” notice, an intake phone number, or a named organization responsible for the program.

3. Call 211 for a local referral

CFPB says 211 can help identify available resources for rent or utility bills. Ask whether the referral is accepting new requests, whether it serves your address, whether it helps with arrears or utilities, and what the next intake step is. Write down the organization’s name, phone number, hours, required documents, and any reference number. A referral is not an approval, so confirm the program directly.

4. Contact legal help if eviction is involved

If you have a court filing, pay-or-quit notice, lockout threat, or a near-term utility shutoff, contact legal aid or a HUD-approved housing counselor at the same time as you search for financial help. A rental-assistance application may not pause a court case automatically. Ask what your local rules require and whether a response, payment plan, mediation session, or court filing must happen before an assistance application can help.

5. Prepare a focused packet for a separate local program

Do not send personal documents to an old ERA portal just because it still loads. First verify that the organization currently operates the program and accepts applications. If a separate local program confirms that it is open, ask for its exact checklist. Depending on the program, useful records may include:

• a current lease or other proof of residence;
• a rent ledger or written statement showing the amount owed;
• recent income or benefit records for household members;
• a brief explanation of the hardship and when it began;
• utility bills or a shutoff notice if utilities are part of the request;
• a court notice, eviction filing, or pay-or-quit notice if one exists;
• landlord or property-manager contact information; and
• identity or household-composition records requested by that local provider.

Keep copies of everything you submit. Use consistent dates and amounts across forms, and ask whether the landlord must provide information. Never assume that a local program will pay the same expenses, use the same income definition, or accept the same documents that an ERA grantee once accepted.

Avoiding stale-program traps

The most important mistake to avoid is treating a historical federal page as a live application. A page can have a working URL and still be an archive. Treasury’s page is a good example: it remains available and contains program facts, guidance, and closeout information, but its notice says ERA2 grantees may no longer use ERA2 award funds to assist renters.

Be cautious with old social-media posts, copied application instructions, and search results that invite applications without showing the responsible agency and a recent funding notice. Check whether the form identifies a current local fund, whether the contact information works, and whether the program explicitly accepts new applications. If an organization asks for a fee to apply for rental assistance, stop and verify it independently; government and nonprofit intake should identify the responsible provider and its terms.

Also separate emergency help from long-term housing. A local arrears program may address a past-due balance but not provide an ongoing rent subsidy. A utility program may help with an energy bill but not rent. A housing counselor may provide referrals rather than money. A public housing agency may explain voucher or subsidized-housing options, but those programs can have waiting lists. Ask what the service actually provides and what happens next.

Bottom line

ERA is an ended federal pandemic-era program, not a live nationwide benefit. The historical ERA2 deadline is September 30, 2025, and no new federal ERA2 renter assistance should be presented as available through Treasury. Historically, ERA helped eligible renter households facing hardship and housing instability with rent, arrears, utilities, energy costs, and related housing-stability services through state, local, territorial, Tribal, and partner delivery systems.

For possible help now, follow Treasury’s link to the CFPB renter resource, search the government and housing agencies serving your location, and call 211. If eviction or shutoff is urgent, contact legal aid or a housing counselor while you make those calls. Treat any open local program as a separate opportunity with its own eligibility, documents, funding, and deadline; do not describe it as a reopened federal ERA application.