Rental Assistance Program
The Los Gatos Anti-Racism Coalition’s Rental Assistance Program provides up to $500 in one-time, emergency rental assistance to individuals and families on the verge of eviction all across Santa Clara County. Due to grant funding from the Town of Los Gatos and Santa Clara County, we are occasionally able to provide more than $500 depending on your place of residence (see the “Apply” section).
Launched in June 2023, our program serves people from all racial backgrounds with the understanding that preventing homelessness is anti-racist. The ongoing housing crisis threatens the socioeconomic, ethnic, and racial diversity of our neighborhoods. Decades of housing segregation, mass incarceration, and employment discrimination have disproportionately impacted Black and Latino/x communities. High and rising rents have forced many to live precariously from check to check. A single complication, such as a layoff or an unexpected expenditure, can potentially force a person to miss rent and face potential eviction.
It is far less expensive and more practical to help people stay housed than to rehouse them. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Our rapid, low-barrier, $500-rent relief program is designed to buy those at the brink of homelessness critical time to find their footing and stabilize in the face of adversity.
Our EIN is 88-3215057
Apply
The Coalition’s Rental Assistance Program is open to all residents of Santa Clara County. Generally, we provide up to $500 in one-time, emergency rent relief (though exceptions may apply based on our funding). If you feel our services suit your needs, please consider filling out our initial intake form or reaching out to us with a brief explanation of your circumstances at rentalassistance@lgarc.org. One of our case managers can be expected to email you back within 1-2 days regarding next steps.
NOTE: Due to high case volume and the all-volunteer nature of our program, rental assistance applications may take longer than 1-2 days for a response. We apologize in advance for all delays.
Until June 2026, applicants who reside in District 5 are eligible for additional funding due to grants approved by the Town of Los Gatos and the County of Santa Clara. This district spans the North County and West Valley and includes the following communities: Cupertino, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Los Gatos, Monte Sereno, Mountain View, Palo Alto, Saratoga, Stanford (Unincorporated), southerly portions of San Jose, and Unincorporated communities in the Santa Cruz Mountains.
Residents in Los Gatos are eligible for up to $2,000 of rental assistance. Residents in District 5 outside of Los Gatos are eligible for up to $1,000 of rental assistance.
We provide more resources to these areas because the grant funding we have received is geographically restricted–we want to prevent homelessness as much as possible everywhere. We hope to obtain additional funding through donations and grants to provide more resources in areas outside of Los Gatos and District 5.
Eligibility
Circumstances
You may qualify for assistance if your household has recently experienced one (or more) of the following:
1. You received an eviction notice.
2. A household income-earner has become unemployed or received a cut in hours/pay.
3. Your household has lost an income-earner.
4. Your household has encountered an extraordinary, non-routine expenditure (e.g., car accident or acute medical condition expenses).
5. Your landlord has raised rent.
Documentation
For verification purposes, we typically request the following documents to be sent digitally over email:
- Personal identification for all occupants of the household. Examples include, but are not limited to:
- Driver’s license
- Birth certificate
- Passport
- The lease of the housing unit.
- Recent documentation of each household contributor’s employment status. Examples include, but are not limited to:
- Paystub(s)
- Letter of termination from former employer
- Correspondence with the Employment Development Department (EDD) regarding unemployment benefits
- Unemployment benefits check
- The household’s income statements from the last month. Examples include, but are not limited to:
- Bank statements
- Government benefit records, such as Calfresh.
- Proof of the applicant’s circumstances. Examples include, but are not limited to:
- Eviction notice
- Medical bills
We tailor our inquiries to each applicant’s situation. The above list is neither comprehensive nor absolute. We recognize that certain documents may be difficult or impossible to produce for valid reasons.
Privacy: The Los Gatos Anti-Racism Coalition is committed to every applicant’s privacy. Our team will never share your household’s information with a third party without your explicit permission. Unless we have a signed Release of Information Form, any documents we receive are strictly for internal purposes.
Evaluation
The Coalition’s decisions on aid are based on (1) whether our team sees an imminent risk of homelessness, and (2) whether we feel our assistance can temporarily stabilize a given applicant’s situation. That said, we recognize housing insecurity is not a simple thing to define; it often begins far before property management serves a pay-or-quit notice. If you feel your circumstances broadly meet the above two criteria, we would encourage you to reach out to us at rentalassistance@lgarc.org—perhaps especially if you do not or cannot meet the listed eligibility guidelines. On a few occasions, for instance, the Coalition has been able to assist with security deposits and hotel/storage unit expenses for recently evicted applicants.
We try to make the application process as low-barrier as possible, and our team reviews every case holistically. If your situation does not cleanly align with the aforementioned circumstances or you are unable to procure some of the requested documentation, our case managers will do our best to work with you and find alternative solutions.
Our goal is to raise $50,000 in 2026 to help keep our neighbors in their homes. Because our program is 100% volunteer run, nearly all funds raised goes directly to our rental assistance applicants. The Los Gatos Anti-Racism Coalition is a 501(c)(3) organization.
As of January 2026, the Coalition has distributed over $70,000 in rental assistance to over 100 unique households in Santa Clara County.
Our 2024-2025 Report is coming soon! In the meantime, click here to read our 2023-2024 Rental Assistance Program Report. In it the team describes our program, why we do it, our impact, and our future plans.
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