From Relief to Resilience: Two HPN Members’ Approach

When the pandemic brought housing insecurity to the forefront, the United States responded with an unprecedented experiment: nearly $47 billion in Emergency Rental Assistance (ERA) funds to keep families housed. For many, that support was a lifeline. But what happened when the temporary aid ended?

In Virginia, two HPN members - True Ground Housing Partners (True Ground) and Affordable Homes & Communities (AHC) - are showing that the lessons from the ERA program didn’t have to fade with the pandemic. They’re using small, targeted rent-relief programs as building blocks for something much bigger: lasting financial stability and upward mobility for the residents they serve.

Both organizations primarily serve households earning between 30 and 80 percent of the area median income across the D.C.–Maryland–Virginia region. And both are proving that when residents and their experiences are at the center of program design, short-term interventions can lead to long-term change.

The story starts in Arlington, Virginia, where Arlington Presbyterian Church made an unexpected decision. Moved by the growing number of neighbors struggling to find affordable homes, the congregation sold its property to what was then the Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing, now known as True Ground Housing Partners.

On that site, True Ground built Gilliam Place, a 173-unit community for low- and moderate-income families. The church stayed on as a mission-driven neighbor, sharing the building with residents and a small business hub.

But the congregation wanted to do more than share space. They wanted to form a relationship – one that reflected the needs and hopes of the people living around them. After early efforts like food distribution, church leaders and True Ground staff began exploring how to provide more meaningful financial support. Their solution: a $200,000 fund that residents themselves would help design.

Over several weeks of sessions, residents, staff, and church leaders sat down together to answer questions like:

What would an extra $250 a month mean to you?
What would success look like?
How should we measure accountability and trust?

The result was the EASE Program, Encouraging Affordability and Stability for Everyone – a two-year rent-relief and savings initiative built entirely around residents’ voices and experiences.

From the beginning, True Ground’s goal was to design with residents, not for them.

Through open-ended conversations and shared decision-making, residents helped shape every aspect of the program from eligibility to success measures. The EASE design team included resident leaders, church stewards, and True Ground’s resident-services and data teams. Once the final plan was complete, staff brought it back to residents for feedback before launch, closing the loop and ensuring accountability.

When applications opened in summer 2024, 30 households were selected. Residents’ applications were evaluated based on how much of their income they spend on rent as well as factors like rental payment history, employment status, debt to credit ratio and whether they were receiving any local, state or federal funding. Each participant receives a $250 monthly rent subsidy for 24 months and commits to saving $10 per month. True Ground matches those savings at the end of the program up to $240, giving participants both immediate relief and a small emergency fund. Quarterly financial wellness sessions, hosted by local and national banks, round out the model, equipping families with tools to strengthen their financial health long after the subsidy ends.

Just a few miles from Gilliam Place, in Alexandria, Virginia, AHC was having similar conversations with its faith-based partner, the Episcopal Church of the Resurrection. Years earlier, the church had worked with AHC to develop The Spire, a new affordable housing community for families earning up to 50% of the area median income.

As with True Ground’s partnership, the church’s involvement didn’t end when construction did. Through foodbank work and community partnerships, they stayed connected to residents and asked a simple but powerful question: “What else can we do to help?”

When church leaders learned about True Ground’s EASE program, they saw a blueprint that could work for their own community. With feedback from the church’s committee, AHC staff adapted the model to fit local needs and resources, prioritizing residents most burdened by rent.

The result was the RISE Program, launched in August 2025 and supporting 11 households. Like EASE, RISE offers a $250 monthly rent subsidy for two years, paired with matched savings and quarterly financial coaching. But there are key differences: participation is by invitation (spending minimum of 35% on rent and current on rent payment), households must have lived at The Spire for at least six months, and participants can earn up to a $500 savings match.

Both EASE and RISE remind us that even modest interventions can have outsize effects. When residents in both programs were asked what an extra $250 a month would mean, their answers painted a vivid picture:

“I’d finally take my kids to the dentist.”
“I could pay off medical bills.”
“I’d buy three weeks of groceries.”
“I’d open a savings account — for the first time.”
“I’d finish my pharmacy tech certification.”

Behind each response is a story of possibility. Over 24 months, $250 per month adds up to $6,000 - enough to reduce debt, build savings, or simply ease the daily trade-offs between food, transit, and rent. These programs aren’t just providing relief; they’re creating space for stability and self-determination.

For both organizations, the programs’ success lies not just in the dollars distributed but in how they were designed and delivered.

True Ground’s resident-led design process built trust and accountability from the start and uncovered insights that staff might never have found alone. These faith-based partnership models show how local congregations can become direct allies in sustaining affordable housing communities. Most importantly, both organizations are examples of how small dollars can be meaningfully leveraged.

Both teams have also learned valuable implementation lessons. For AHC, internal systems and funding logistics sometimes slowed the process - a reminder that even the best-designed programs need flexibility. And for True Ground, the next iteration of EASE will focus on setting household-level financial goals, not just individual ones, to encourage shared family progress.

Despite those challenges, both organizations agree: rent relief isn’t trivial. It’s a meaningful investment in people’s potential.

The momentum is building. True Ground is already expanding its EASE model to two additional communities, and the program has drawn the attention of local philanthropists interested in supporting replication. AHC plans to track data and outcomes at The Spire, with hopes that positive results will lead to new funding for future cohorts.

For other affordable housing providers, programs like EASE and RISE offer a simple but powerful model. One that’s community-driven, easy to administer, and deeply human in its impact.

As Susan Davidson, Vice President of Resident Services at AHC, put it:

EASE and RISE prove that long-term stability doesn’t always require large-scale funding. Sometimes it starts with a few hundred dollars, a trusted partnership, and a willingness to listen.

By centering residents in program design and working hand in hand with community partners, True Ground Housing Partners and Affordable Homes & Communities are helping redefine what housing stability looks like: not just keeping people in their homes, but helping them move toward financial freedom and opportunity.

In a time of limited resources and growing need, these programs remind us that innovation often begins with empathy, and that even small dollars can spark lasting change.