Feeding Futures

Fighting food insecurity with innovative action. A story series sponsored by Principal® Foundation

Hope for Housing Insecurity: Finding Answers to Gaps in Rental Assistance Program

What is the most effective length of time to provide emergency rental assistance to a low-income household experiencing a crisis in order to regain economic stability? That’s a question the Central Iowa Emergency Rental Assistance Study (CIERAS) hopes to answer.

Led by a team at Grinnell College and funded by a public/private partnership convened by Mid-Iowa Health Foundation, participants will be randomly assigned to receive either one, three, or six months of assistance.

Using both quantitative and qualitative data, the study seeks to uncover what circumstances drive local families to need access to emergency rental assistance and identify the most effective ways to design an assistance program to keep families stably housed.

Find out more at https://upliftiowa.org/central-iowa-emergency-rental-assistance-cieras/. Visit www.principalfoundation.org to learn more about Principal Foundation.