County spent $4 million on eviction assistance program since December

By Laura Lydic
Baltimore Watchdog Staff Writer

Baltimore County has spent $4 million since December to help 935 households avoid being evicted from their apartments because of financial hardships suffered due to the coronavirus pandemic, county officials reported this week.

The eviction assistance pilot program, which was done in partnership with United Way of Central Maryland, was funded through the CARES Act Coronavirus Relief Fund approved by Congress last year.

The money helped households cover rents that were past due by three to nine months. To qualify, a household had to have seniors and/or children in them and had to have lost income due to the pandemic.

“We are doing all we can to promote housing stability and support families who are struggling with rent, which is especially important during the economic recovery form the COVID-19 pandemic,” Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski said in a statement.

Vulnerable households in Essex, Halethorpe, Dundalk, Parkville, Gwynn Oak, Windsor Mill, Owings Mills, Middle River and Rosedale were targeted with the program. The county used data collected from the Urban Institute and United Way to assess which areas were especially at risk of high levels of eviction.  

The program, officially called Strategic Targeted Eviction Prevention (STEP), has tenets work directly with their landlords, said Sean Naron, a spokesperson for the county executive.  Funding is provided to the landlords.

United Way of Central Maryland worked with the Maryland Multi-Housing Association to recruit 23 management companies that own 91 properties in the targeted areas.