SALISBURY, Md. -- The emergency rental assistance program is winding down. Applications for the program are no longer being accepted in Worcester and Wicomico counties.
According to local homeless shelters, there has been an influx of families in need of housing in the past few months. The problem is many of those shelters are already at capacity, and they've been forced to turn away families.
"This past month we had to turn away at least 15 families," said J. Anthony Dickerson.
Dickerson, the executive director for the Christian Shelter, doesn't feel like there's an end in sight for a bad situation.
"I think this is the beginning," said Dickerson. "We're beginning to see an influx of families that is without housing."
Julie Peters is the Community Services Specialist for Shore Up!, a non-profit in Salisbury. She says inflation is a big reason why so many families are struggling.
"Grocery prices, gas prices, rent, everything is going up and it's really put a strain on a lot of families household budgets," said Peters.
It's forced families out of their homes, which has forced the Christian Shelter to take some extreme measures.
"We're telling the husband and wife it may be an inconvenience for a while, we may have to separate you, because we want to keep the family units for families with 1,2,3,4,5 children," said Dickerson.
Dickerson is planning on opening up more beds to expand the shelters capacity, but he says he'll have to do so cautiously since we're coming out of the pandemic.
The Christian Shelter isn't the only organization that's had to turn people away. The Samaritan Shelter in Worcester County has seen the same challenge. The Halo Shelter in Salisbury has seen a 22% increase in population since last year, and they expect that influx to continue moving into the winter.
As we move into the winter months, those in need of assistance can turn to Shore Up!
"Although the emergency rental assistance program is coming to an end and we are no longer accepting applications for that, we do have other areas that we can assist individuals in," said Peters. "We have someone who works with homeowners on making applications to the homeowners assistance fund in Maryland if they're having difficulty making mortgage payments."
Shore Up! also offers counseling.
"We have housing counseling to assist families in how to budget for their household expenses, including housing and skills that would help them make more viable choices for their budget in the long run," said Peters.
While Shore Up! is no longer accepting assistance applications, anybody who applied before October 7th is still eligible as long as funds are available.
Those in need of assistance can also dial 211. It's a 24/7 hotline to reach information and referral services to health, human, and social service organizations.
