Saint Louis
Emergency Rental Assistance Program

Program Overview

The Emergency Rental Assistance (ERA) Program is intended for those disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 outbreak.

Saint Louis and its partners are running this rental assistance program to address the hardship faced by our community.

Funds are available for past due, current due, future rent, and utilities. This web page will share information about the application process, provide FAQs for tenants and property owners, and share simple resources that simplify this process.

NEED SUPPORT? 
If you need help, please email us at
FORWARD-support@forwardplatform.com or call us at 1-855-582-3973.

IMPORTANT: If you have previously applied to City/County rental assistance, but haven’t heard back, we are actively working through the backlog of applications. If you attempt to log in and get an error that states “Individual already exists for this email” then we have your application already! Please email FORWARD-support@forwardplatform.com and we will respond to you promptly.

Eligibility Requirements

Households must meet all four of the initial screening criteria to be eligible for rental assistance:

One or more individuals within the household has qualified for unemployment benefits or experienced a reduction in household income, incurred significant costs, or experienced other financial hardship during or due, directly or indirectly, to the coronavirus pandemic.

You have current housing instability or risk of housing instability, which may include rental arrears or anticipation of inability to pay future rent.

Your household income is at or below 80% of the Area Median Income (AMI) – Refer to the table below for Income Limit.

Final FY 2022 FMR By Unit Bedrooms
Family SizeIncome Limit
Median Family Income$84,900
1$47,550
2$54,350
3$61,150
4$67,900
5$73,350
6$78,800
7$84,200
8$89,650

Click Here for a map of Saint Louis neighborhoods.

* We prioritize assistance to households with income that does not exceed 50 percent of the area median income for the household, or where one or more individuals within the household are unemployed as of the date of the application for assistance and have not been employed for the 90-day period preceding such date.

Required Documents

The following documents will be used to verify your eligibility:

  • State Driver’s License / State ID
  • Tribal Identification Card
  • Birth Certificate
  • Military ID
  • Passport Book or Card
  • U.S. Certificate of Citizenship or Naturalization
  • U.S. Permanent Resident Identification
  • Consular Identification
  • U.S. College/University Identification Card
  • Corporate Identification
  • Other documents with the applicant’s name and address sent by the state, government entity, or utility company may also qualify.

Which can include paystubs, W-2s or other wage statements, 2021 tax filings, or bank statements demonstrating regular income.

Proof of a current lease, or documentation of residence showing evidence that establishes a pattern of paying rent.

Proof of past due rent or utility notice, or eviction notice.

You can store documents in your profile so that you can easily find them to include in your applications. These file formats are supported: .doc, .docx, .gif, .jpeg, .jpg, .pdf, .png, .xls, and .xlsx

Please note that you might still qualify for assistance if you do not have these documents. Contact us so we may assist you with the application.

Frequently Asked Questions

FORWARD has extensive experience administering rental assistance programs across the nation and can process applications at scale, prevent fraud, securely process payments, and provide reporting that meets Treasury requirements.

Households who rent their home/apartment must meet four Saint Louis Emergency Rental assistance criteria.

  1. One or more individuals within the household are obligated to pay rent or have rental arrears (past due) on a residence located in Yakima County.

  2. Total household income is equal to or less than fifty percent (80%) of the area median income (AMI).

  3. One or more individuals within the household who have Qualified for unemployment insurance benefits; or, Experienced financial loss due, directly or indirectly, to COVID-19.

  4. One or more individuals within the household can demonstrate a risk of experiencing homelessness; or housing instability.

After submitting your application, it will move through the following five steps:

  1. Application Review

  2. Tenant Outreach – someone will contact you if more information is needed.

  3. Eligibility Determination – your application moves to the next step if you meet the eligibility criteria. If not, you will receive a written denial which you can appeal.

  4. Landlord Outreach

  5. Payment Processing

If you have already applied to a previous round and haven’t heard back, you might already be set up with an account. You do not need to sign up for a new account. Please contact us at FORWARD-support@forwardplatform.com so we can confirm if you have an account.

If you would like to check on the status of your application, please log into your FORWARD account and click the “My Applications” tab to see your status.

You meet the income eligibility requirements if your total household income equals or less than 80% of the area median income (AMI). Your AMI depends on how many people live in your household.

No. United States citizenship is NOT an eligibility requirement of this program.

You must be 18 Years or older to apply. Or you are legally emancipated if under 18 years of age.

Eligible renters may receive up to eighteen (18) months total assistance for unpaid past due rent and utilities incurred after March 13, 2020.

No. According to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Emergency Rental Assistance is to help eligible households that require financial assistance to pay for rent, utilities, and other related expenses. Rental and utility payments ONLY count as gross income for your landlord or utility provider.

ERA payments will be made directly to landlords and service providers. The information provided in your application will be used to contact your landlord or utility provider(s). You will receive documentation of all payments made to your landlord or utility provider(s) on your behalf.

They can include electricity, gas, water/sewer, trash removal, energy costs, such as fuel, oil, or wood for heating. The Internet is considered an utility for this program.

Phone and TV bills are NOT included in the program.

Costs related to obtaining or keeping safe housing will be considered on a case-by-case basis when an application is reviewed.

Yes. Households that receive a monthly federal subsidy are eligible to apply for assistance. However, assistance will only be provided for the amount not covered by other programs.

No, but rental assistance is limited to 18 months in total.

FMR is the Fair Market Rent of a rental unit in a designated area decided by the Department of Housing Urban Development. As defined in 24 CFR 888.113, Fair Market Rents are estimates of 40th percentile gross rents for standard quality units within a metropolitan area or nonmetropolitan county. The table below depicts the FMR for Saint Louis.

FY 2022 & FY 2021 & FY 2020 FMRs By Unit Bedrooms in Saint Louis
Unit BedroomsFY 2022 FMRFY 2021 FMR
Efficiency$689$671
1$745$731
2$947$938
3$1,230$1,224
4$1,449$1,440

FORWARD Online Application Tutorials

FORWARD Online Application Tutorials

4 Videos

FORWARD is administering the Rental Assistance Program on behalf of Yakima County. 

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