The County of Santa Barbara is offering Emergency Rental & Utility Assistance through United Way of Santa Barbara County to eligible County of Santa Barbara residents that have experienced a loss of income due to the COVID-19 pandemic and can demonstrate the need for support. This Emergency Rent Assistance Program is intended to prevent homelessness by providing rent and utility assistance to residents.

Qualifying households may apply for a three (3) month subsidy of:

• Rent assistance up to $6,000 to be paid directly to the owners or managers of the rental units on behalf of all tenants in the applicant’s household.
• Utility assistance to be paid directly to the utility company on behalf of the applicant.

If awarded, qualifying households will also be eligible to thereafter re-apply for an additional three (3) months of assistance, up to a total of 15 months.

There are strict eligibility requirements for this funding opportunity, please review at https://www.unitedwaysb.org/rent.   

Click here to complete the application. The application is also available in Spanish here.

If you need assistance filling out this application or have questions, please call United Way of Santa Barbara County (UWSBC) during the following office hours: Monday, Wednesday and Friday between 9:00am and 2:00pm. Staff is working virtually and will return all calls and emails within 72 hours (Monday – Friday). For assistance, please call (805) 965-8591 or email info@unitedwaysb.org.