Fairfax County Assistance Programs

Get help with paying bills
Northern Virginia Family Service is a non-profit organization that offers Fairfax County residents with various resources, grants, and services that can help them make it through a difficult period. Some of the programs offered are below. Contact them to apply, or learn more about these or other programs. Contact them at 703-385-3267.

Housing, Mortgage, and Foreclosure Counseling Services
There are a few options for people to get help with housing related concerns in the Fairfax area. The primary goal of the Northern Virginia Family Service (NVFS) Housing Counseling Program is to assist individuals and families with housing issues. They want families to become self-reliant over the long term by helping them to identify achievable goals. A key to this process is for them to develop and enhance budgeting and money management skills that will serve to enhance their long-term housing stability, and ensure people have support over the long term. Dial 703.385.3267.

The Housing Counseling Program will offer several resources to clients. People can get short-term intensive case management services for both low and moderate-income households. In addition to the counseling and case management, maybe even more importantly clients may also be eligible to receive emergency grants for such expenses as utility bills, monthly mortgage payments, for rent, security deposits, and heating bills. The short-term intensive case management services are offered for a minimum period of 3 months. The maximum amount of assistance someone can receive is for 6 months. In addition to housing related counseling and cash grants, Fairfax County clients will also need to attend budgeting and money management workshops, and also receive debt counseling. The Housing Counseling Program is administered in both Fairfax and Arlington Counties. Find other ways to get foreclosure and mortgage help. Read more.

Prevent or stop an eviction.
If you are significantly behind on your rent, The Northern Virginia Family Service (NVFS) Eviction Prevention Program can provide low income families with emergency financial assistance and grants to pay rent. The Eviction Prevention Program includes the SHARE-HIP (Homeless Intervention Program), which provides grants for rent, utility service disconnect notices, and security deposits. The emergency financial assistance and case management services offered from this program are provided to all eligible Fairfax County Virginia households.

Rent assistance programs

Good Shepherd Housing and Family Services provides qualified individuals with a grant of up to $250 to prevent evictions as well as help pay for a renters first month's rent or security deposit. They also provide utility help, budget counseling, and other aid as indicated below. (703) 768-9404.

Vehicles For Change

The Vehicles for Change program was created to assist low and moderate income individuals in the local community as these families and individuals strive to become self-reliant. This program receives donations of used cars from local businesses and the community and then prepares these cars to be “road ready” for distribution to eligible recipients. So people can receive a fairly decent quality car, for little money or maybe even for free. Dial (410) 242-9674.

Ways to Work Loan Program
This program was created to provide low-interest loans to families to help them either repair or purchase a vehicle in order to help them maintain their employment. It is anticipated that the average purchase loan offered from Ways to Work will not exceed $4,000 and the loan will be repaid over 24 months. If you need to repair your car, the average car repair loan will not exceed $750 and this loan need to be repaid over 12 months.

Help with paying energy bills

• Fuel Assistance Program - Will provide help to eligible low and moderate income Fairfax households. The funds provided will help them with the costs of heating or cooling their homes. The application period runs from late October to late November. Call Fairfax County at 703-324-7604 to apply.
   
• Crisis Assistance Program - This will assist households that are facing an emergency situation by providing primary with money to pay their bills if they are facing a disconnection. Money is also available for funding the repair or replacement of heating equipment and heat security deposits. The application period for a crisis grant runs from November to March of each year. You may also request an application by calling 703-324-7604.
   
• Another charity organization to turn to is Good Shepherd Housing and Family Services. They provide a cash grant of up to $250 that will prevent someone’s energy service from being disconnected or to pay an old utility bill. The phone number is above.

Child Care Assistance and Referral Program

This program offered in Fairfax county provides financial assistance to help families in need pay for child care. Assistance is offered to both low and moderate income families that reside in Fairfax County Virginia. The program supports families who are in education or job training programs, and families who are working in they need assistance with paying for the cost of child care. The child care assistance program pays for child care costs in family child care homes, child care facilities, or School-Age Child Care. Find other ways to get help with child care expenses. Contact the county government to learn more or apply. Call CCAR at 703-449-8484 for more information.

Rent Help from FAMILY PRESERVATION and Strengthening Service (Family PASS)
This organization provides a three-year rental assistance program, and they combine it with intensive case management, budgeting, debt management, and other resources. The Family PASS program requires that families be in the U.S. legally and adults also need to be working but are just struggling to stay current with their monthly rent. Many of the applicants need skills to find better employment, and to meet this need educational training is one of the organization’s ways of support. Some of the other services offered include intense counseling, from money management, debt management, and planning to housing assistance and access to grants.

The Family PASS program works with landlords who will accept its rental assistance and cash grants to help clients qualify for approval. In the assistance formula that the organization uses, no more than 31 percent of a family’s total household income will go towards paying rent. Family PASS subsidizes the rest by paying the landlord directly. 703-242-6474

Assistance from Reston Interfaith

This is a local nonprofit agency that offers rent help, serves as a shelter, child care provider, food pantry, and more for people in need of help.

Last year, Reston Virginia Interfaith (contact number is 703-222-0880) spent more than $5 million on various assistance programs, food aid, and shelter services, according to its tax records.

There are a multitude of programs offered. Last year the nonprofit offered rental assistance, self-sufficiency aid, child care services, and pantry services, and altogether they provided more than 2,000 families with relief and aid.

For example, the number of people who are seeking aid from its rental assistance program has spiked during the past 18 months. Just over the last 3 months almost 100 families were provided almost $60,000 in funds to either pay arrearages or future rent.

Low cost or free health and medical care

The County of Fairfax Virginia offers several affordable health care programs. some of the services provided to children and others includes primary care and urgent care, prescription drugs, dental care, vision services, immunizations, and more. Dial 703-237-3446 to learn more or apply.

Debt elimination and credit repair

Yet one more resource provided by Good Shepherd Housing and Family Services is debt reduction and financial education. These debt and credit services are offered for low-income families and individuals of Fairfax County. Participants in the debt assistance program clean up the credit history, learn new money management skills, reduce debt payments and interest rates, and gain financial independence. Dial (703) 768-9404 for more information. More on debt assistance programs.

Food aid and access to pantries

If you need assistance or help providing for your next meal, Food for Others (phone 703-207-9173) is the organization that may help. They provide food that is vitally needed by our unemployed and low-income people who live in northern Virginia.

Crisis Assistance

Fairfax County Coordinated Services Planning (CSP) (703-222-0880) provides low to moderate income, the unemployed, and others who are struggling assistance with basic needs issues, such as emergency food, utility help, clothing, housing and rent, furniture, and transportation to medical appointments, screening for emergency shelter, and access to other social services.