Seminole County Community Services rent and deposit assistance helps local tenants

Seminole County tenants may receive rental assistance or help with security deposits on both rent and utilities. This is a service of your local government.

Rental assistance in Seminole County is provided through county offices and funded by state and federal programs.

Security Deposit Assistance

The State Housing Initiatives Partnership (SHIP) is a program that provides a lifeline to potential tenants who need help getting approved to lease a new rental property. It provides grant funding that is paid directly to your landlord to satisfy the security deposit requirement for your new home.

When applying for assistance, you should be upfront about the total move in costs that you will incur. This includes the security deposit for your apartment or rental home as well as the deposits required for your utilities. Both are eligible for assistance. Best of all is that the assistance does not have to be repaid.

As long as you meet eligibility requirements, you may utilize the security deposit assistance once every two years. You will need to attend an orientation session, complete an application and supply all necessary documentation in order to be considered. Priority is given to applicants who are lower income and in immediate danger of becoming homeless if assistance is not provided.

Help with Late Rent

The county is willing to provide rental assistance funds to eligible tenants who are falling behind on their rent. This assistance is provided at most once every two years to each applicant.

To qualify, you must be able to document that your household qualifies as a lower income household. You need to document a hardship event that has caused you to fall delinquent on your rent.

Your case manager will need to see a copy of your lease. If you have received an eviction notice from your landlord, make sure that you bring it in, since that will help prioritize your application for rental assistance.

By giving you assistance on late rent payments, the county hopes that you will be able to permanently be able to remain in stable housing. If they believe that your current home is unaffordable, then you may not be able to receive funds for your late rent.

Other Rental Assistance

Subsidized housing is difficult to obtain due to the lack of available funding. Seminole County is not currently accepting new applications for its Tenant Based Rental Assistance program.

The county utilizes federal funding to operate the Shelter Plus Care program. This could help your family receive emergency shelter now and transition into permanent housing using the assistance provided by the county. If you have already been evicted and need help finding emergency shelter, then you should request a referral to an emergency shelter by calling 407-665-2300. More information is available through the county website.