Program provides ongoing rental assistance and services to help Oregonians avoid homelessness
SALEM, Ore. — More than 1,900 households and 3,000 Oregonians have had access to long-term rental assistance and supportive service since July 1, 2025, through an Oregon Housing and Community Services (OHCS) program designed to help people remain safely and stably housed after exiting homelessness. The program recently expanded beyond Oregon’s more populous counties, now reaching rural communities across the state.
“Long term rental assistance is a lifeline for thousands of Oregonians. Oregonians are what make Oregon special and they should not have to face the impossible choice of fighting to pay rent or pay for other basic needs,” said OHCS Executive Director Andrea Bell. “Rural communities across Oregon know their neighbors and their needs, and long-term rental assistance gives local partners the flexibility and resources to deliver.”
While the largest number of households have been served in Deschutes, Lane, Washington, Jackson, and Multnomah counties, the program is also demonstrating significant demand in rural Oregon. In just under nine months since expanding to counties in the Balance of State, more than 500 people have received assistance. This includes households in Curry, Benton, and Clatsop Counties, as well as Eastern Oregon communities in Umatilla, Morrow, Gilliam, and Wheeler Counties.
“LTRA funding enables CAPECO to continue serving households whose housing situations remain fragile and who might otherwise return to homelessness” said Claudia Limón, program director at Community Action Program of East Central Oregon (CAPECO). “By providing ongoing support and resources, we can help families maintain stability, preserve their housing, and build a stronger foundation for long-term success.
The growing reach of the program reflects an important piece of Oregon’s response to homelessness: helping people not only move into housing but remain there.
LTRA provides rental subsidies and supportive services to eligible households to increase housing access and long-term stability for people exiting homelessness. The program was created in connection with Oregon’s emergency homelessness response to ensure people rehoused through state investments could access longer-term assistance when needed rather than risk returning to homelessness.
“LTRA has made a meaningful difference for households across Wasco, Sherman, and Hood River Counties by providing the stability they need to remain housed,” said Mid-Columbia Community Action Council Housing Stabilization Manager Mitzi Mason. “It gives us the opportunity to work alongside families and individuals during that period of stability, helping them build the skills, connections, and resources they need to maintain housing long-term. We’re seeing firsthand that when people have the security of a stable home, they have the time and space to focus on the other barriers that may have kept them from being stably housed in the past.”
For some households, the difference between becoming homeless again and remaining housed can be the availability of consistent assistance after short-term support ends. LTRA can help with rent and utilities and provide supportive services intended to address the individual circumstances that can threaten a household’s housing stability.
“We have a client that received a no-cause eviction,” said Clatsop Community Action Social Service Program Manager Merrill Mathre. “We entered the client in the LTRA program, and the client was rehoused within a week and is excited to continue her college education. As soon as she has graduated and is employed, she should be sustainable.”
The program also recognizes that homelessness and housing challenges can vary greatly from one community to another. LTRA is administered regionally and gives communities flexibility to decide how best to serve eligible households based on local needs. That flexibility can be particularly important in rural Oregon, where communities may face limited rental inventories, long distances between services, and other challenges that differ significantly from those in larger urban areas.
About Oregon Housing and Community Services (OHCS)
OHCS is Oregon’s housing finance agency. The state agency provides financial and program support to create and preserve opportunities for quality, affordable housing for Oregonians with low and moderate incomes. OHCS administers programs that provide housing stabilization. OHCS delivers these programs primarily through grants, contracts, and loan agreements with local partners and community-based providers. For more information, please visit: oregon.gov/ohcs.