As part of the City of Atlanta’s Neighborhood Reinvestment Initiative, Mayor Andre Dickens announced a new zero-cost, zero-fee anti-displacement loan pilot program to help renters who might be facing eviction.
The two-year pilot is being led and administered by the Flagstone Initiative, a national nonprofit founded in 2022. According to a press release from the city, Flagstone has made over 9,000 microloans across seven states by partnering with governments, philanthropy, and housing providers.
“The Neighborhood Reinvestment Initiative is about investing in communities while making sure the people who have called them home can stay and benefit from that progress,” Dickens said in a statment. “Sometimes the difference between stability and crisis is a few hundred dollars at the wrong time. This pilot gives us another tool to step in early, help families stay in their homes and prevent a temporary setback from becoming an eviction.”
The pilot provides a $500 no-fee, no-interest and no-penalty rent loan to stabilize eligible households as soon as they anticipate a financial hardship that could lead to a missed rent payment. Households then contribute $20/week for 25 weeks to repay the loan. No collateral, no interest, no fees, no credit checks, no credit reporting, and no collections are tied to the loan.
In addition to $50,000 in pilot funding from the City, other local and national donors are contributing additional resources to expand the pilot’s reach, including $50,000 for loan costs from AirBnb, and $150,000 from the Community Foundation of Greater Atlanta and $150,000 from the William Josef Foundation in loan capital.
Households interested in learning more can visit flagstoneinitiative.org/rent-loan or contact the City’s Housing Help Center. Housing providers interested in enrolling in the program to support their residents can also reach out to Flagstone at flagstoneinitiative.org/contact.
Learn more about the Neighborhood Reinvestment Initiative at this link or by visiting atl.direct/nri/
