Darling Human Services

OUR SERVICES

1.Tenant Support (Helping Tenants Maintain Stability in Their Housing)

This service is focused on providing ongoing assistance to tenants, especially those facing challenges that could jeopardize their housing stability. Support can include helping tenants navigate personal, financial, or social barriers that might make it harder for them to maintain their tenancy.

What it involves:

Emotional and logistical support: Assisting tenants with difficult life circumstances (e.g., job loss, health issues, family problems) that could impact their ability to pay rent or follow the terms of the lease.
Problem-solving: Helping tenants find solutions to issues such as late rent payments, income concerns, or conflicts with neighbors.
Resource connection: Referring tenants to additional resources, such as employment support, life skills training, or social services (mental health counseling, addiction recovery programs).
Check-ins: Periodic check-ins to ensure tenants are receiving the help they need and making progress in maintaining housing stability.

Benefit to landlords: Reduces the risk of tenant eviction, minimizes vacancies, and improves long-term retention by ensuring tenants have the support they need to stay housed.

2. Coordinating with Landlords on Communication and Tenant Needs

This service involves acting as a liaison between the landlord and tenant to ensure smooth communication and prevent misunderstandings. It also includes addressing any issues related to tenant care or property management.

What it involves:

Payment coordination: Help ensuring rent is paid on time (including working with housing voucher payments and tenants who might need assistance managing payment deadlines).
Timely communication: Acting as a supplemental point of contact for landlords and tenants, ensuring that both parties stay informed about any updates, concerns, or needs. For example, if a tenant is going through a rough patch, the landlord is kept in the loop so they can make informed decisions.
Proactive problem-solving: Addressing tenant-related concerns early, before they become larger issues for landlords. For example, if a tenant is struggling to maintain the property, or if there’s an issue with property maintenance that the tenant hasn’t reported, we can help resolve it quickly.
Coordinating property repairs or requests: Assisting tenants in reporting issues to the landlord and ensuring that repairs or maintenance requests are addressed.

Benefit to landlords: Provides landlords with a reliable communication partner who helps ensure rent is paid on time, issues are addressed promptly, and tenant concerns are managed proactively.

3. Conflict Resolution and Mediation When Issues Arise

This service focuses on preventing and resolving disputes between tenants and landlords or between tenants themselves. It involves finding mutually agreeable solutions to conflicts, ensuring that they do not escalate into legal or eviction-related matters.

What it involves:

Mediation services: Acting as a neutral third party in tenant-landlord disputes or tenant-to-tenant disputes. This could involve issues like noise complaints, property damage, payment disputes, or behavior concerns.
Conflict de-escalation: Using effective communication strategies to help both parties express their concerns and needs in a way that promotes understanding and cooperation.
Negotiation: Facilitating compromises that work for both parties, whether that’s adjusting payment plans, addressing lease violations, mutual rescissions or resolving personal conflicts between tenants.
Follow-up: Ensuring that any agreements reached are implemented and maintained, and checking in periodically to ensure that the conflict has truly been resolved.

Benefit to landlords: Prevents costly and time-consuming evictions, minimizes legal disputes, and improves tenant retention by resolving issues early on.

4. Referrals to Additional Social Services (Mental Health, Addiction Recovery, Etc.)

This service involves connecting tenants with appropriate community resources to help them address underlying issues that may affect their ability to maintain stable housing, such as mental health challenges, addiction, or financial instability.

What it involves:

Assessing tenant needs: Identifying tenants who might benefit from additional services, whether it's mental health counseling, addiction treatment, job placement, or social services like food assistance.
Referral process: Connecting tenants with local organizations, clinics, and services that can support their specific needs. For example, referring a tenant who struggles with addiction to a local recovery center or directing a tenant who needs help managing finances to a budgeting program.
Ongoing support: Following up to ensure that tenants are engaging with the resources and receiving the help they need. This could include checking in with the service providers or coordinating additional support.

Benefit to landlords: When tenants have access to the right support services, they are more likely to overcome barriers to housing stability, reducing the risk of eviction or non-payment of rent.

5. Maintaining Compliance with Housing Programs (Including Voucher Programs)

This service ensures that tenants remain in full compliance with the rules and requirements of housing programs, particularly voucher programs like Section 8. It helps tenants understand and follow the guidelines that allow them to receive housing assistance.

What it involves:

Helping tenants with paperwork: Assisting tenants with the paperwork and documentation required by housing authorities to ensure they maintain eligibility for their vouchers, including interim changes.
Tracking deadlines: Keeping track of important deadlines such as annual recertification for housing assistance and ensuring that all paperwork is submitted on time.

Benefit to landlords: Reduces the risk of losing rental income due to non-compliance, ensures smooth participation in voucher programs, and minimizes the chances of facing legal action for program violations.