Fulton County Brings Rental Assistance Into Courtrooms As Eviction Hearings Continue
Fulton County rental assistance staff will now sit outside eviction hearings Mondays through Thursdays. On the first day, however, few landlords were willing to postpone evictions in exchange for financial help.
Stephannie Stokes / WABE
Fulton County is bringing the court system into the rental assistance process, following the example of other counties. But the programs’ first day shows the challenge of preventing evictions with the federal funds.
Previously, tenants had to apply online or by phone. However, Chief Magistrate Judge Cassandra Kirk said her court noticed many of the applications Fulton received didn’t involve active eviction cases.
The court still hears dozens of cases every week, even though the Biden administration extended a nationwide moratorium on evictions for nonpayment of rent on Aug. 3. Tenants only qualify if they sign a declaration saying they lost income due to COVID-19. Many don’t sign it. In court, judges don’t tell those renters about the moratorium or the form.
Now, however, the court will inform those tenants about rental assistance.
Kirk and Fulton Commissioner Khadijah Abdur-Rahman announced in a press conference Wednesday that the county would bring caseworkers to eviction courtrooms.
“This new process will direct the funding to those imminently at risk of being evicted due to non-payment of rent,” Kirk said.
Tenants who meet with the caseworkers can qualify for up to $7,800 in help with their past-due rent. The county said it will also expedite the payment process, so landlords can get money within about a week. Normally that could take much longer.
But at the first set of hearings after the launch, only a few landlords are interested.
As people show up for hearings on Zoom and in the courtroom, a judge lets them know that rental assistance staff are available outside.
Patience Phillips is one tenant who visits the caseworkers. She said she didn’t know the rental assistance funding existed before now.
“I wasn’t expecting this,” she said. “This will help out a lot. So I don’t have to come up with so much money.”
After meeting with the caseworkers, Phillips and her landlord do come to an agreement before the judge. He declined to do an interview, but she said he’s a nice guy.
“As long as you communicate with him, then he works with you,” Phillips said.
Her case ends up being unique. Most landlords choose to move forward with their eviction cases. They can because the tenants are behind on rent. The judge lets the tenants know they still may qualify for help with moving. Fulton County is offering direct assistance to tenants whose landlords refuse help.
But the tenants still will have to leave their current places within seven days, the judge said.
Fulton County is working to distribute tens of millions of dollars to tenants and landlords who live within the county but outside the city of Atlanta. Its new program follows DeKalb and Gwinnett Counties, which already partner with local magistrate courts as part of the rental assistance process.
The money is all part of the $46 billion that Congress approved for rental assistance nationwide. Find links to local programs here.
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