Published:
Helping Residents Stay in Their Homes
Listen to the Podcast Here:
https://www.westchestercountyny.gov/podcast
Westchester County Office of Housing Counsel (OHC) Director George Asante joined the This Week in Westchester podcast to discuss the success of this innovative government agency that works to stabilize communities by assisting people facing housing instability and possible eviction stay in their homes.
Created in 2023 as the first County program of its kind, OHC launched last July with the mission of ensuring that financially eligible tenants have access to resources and legal representation at no cost to themselves in eviction and related proceedings. It also serves as a clearinghouse and access point for free pre-eviction support and counseling programs to help keep people in their homes.
Asante said: “Housing -- everything flows from it. Without stable housing, all else falls apart -- employment, education, your health. Without stable housing, people suffer. And I think we take that for granted, those of us who don't have to worry about these sorts of things. That's the mindset I come to work with every day, to make sure that we provide stability and housing to as many people as possible through my program and in collaboration with other County departments and their complementary programs.”
The track record speaks for itself; since its inception, OHC has prevented 282 evictions, and delayed another 111 evictions to allow time for relocation. In addition, the program has successfully connected more than 430 households to community housing providers and social services.
The program not only assists vulnerable residents, it benefits both property owners and taxpayers. Connecting residents to financial services rather than letting them go through the eviction process saves landlords money that would otherwise be spent on legal fees and on costs associated with finding new tenants. Taxpayers bear the cost burden when people are evicted from their homes. Shelters are at capacity and expensive to run and maintain. Keeping people in their homes makes sound economic sense.
Asante added: “These are real life stories we deal with -- the veteran we got a subsidy for, the domestic violence survivor who was able to get a unit transfer because an advocate pushed for it, the family who lost their breadwinner and couldn't afford to pay the rent. These are not folks looking for a hand out, these are folks going through extreme hardships and we are able to help.”
For more information on the Office of Housing Counsel, go to https://socialservices.westchestercountyny.gov/housing-assistance/eviction-prevention-and-representation
