The City and County of Honolulu is reopening its rent relief program, so that another 8,000 people will receive assistance to help them stay in their residences. 

What You Need To Know

  • The Rental and Utility Relief Program is prioritizing new applicants

  • Eligibility requirements can be found here

  • Renters who previously received less than 18 months of assistance can request additional funds from Catholic Charities Hawaii or the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement

  • So far, RURP has helped nearly 15,000 Oahu renters and distributed close to $190 million since April 2021

The Rental and Utility Relief Program will reopen on Oct. 3 at 2 p.m., according to a news release. Renters can apply here.

“As we try to move on from COVID, we need to make sure that those whose lives were disrupted the most have the resources they need to get back on their feet,” said Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi in a news release. “The Rental and Utility Relief Program will continue to support qualified Oʻahu renters and prevent evictions this year with short-term financial help and with access to long-term housing stabilization services.”

The program is prioritizing new applicants. Renters should apply only once. 

Renters who received less than 18 months of assistance can request additional funds from Catholic Charities Hawaii at rurp.recert@catholiccharitieshawaii.org or the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement at RURP@hawaiiancouncil.org starting on Oct. 3. 

CCH and CNHA provide housing stability services to eligible households in the RURP to help them stay in their homes for the long term. The services include eviction diversion, case management, money management skills, referrals to job training and job placement, and other programs. 

To fund the RURP, money from the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Emergency Rental Assistance will be used first, and then $31 million from the City and County of Honolulu’s State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds will be used. 

So far, RURP has helped nearly 15,000 Oahu renters and distributed close to $190 million since April 2021. 

Eligibility requirements can be found here. Renters can also call 808-768-CITY (2489). The call center is open Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. On Oct. 3, the call center will be open until 5:30 p.m. 

Michelle Broder Van Dyke covers the Hawaiian Islands for Spectrum News Hawaii.