Heading 2: Iowa Legal Aid for Housing: An Overview
Iowa Legal Aid is a non-profit law firm serving low-income people in Iowa. Founded in 1977, Iowa Legal Aid was formerly known as the Legal Assistance Corporation of Iowa. Iowa Legal Aid provides free legal assistance to vulnerable Iowans to promote equal access to justice and to fight poverty.
In addition to the main office located in Des Moines, Iowa Legal Aid has eight regional offices throughout the state: Cedar Rapids, Davenport, Des Moines, Dubuque, Sioux City, and Waterloo; a senior citizen law project providing legal assistance to Iowans age 60 and older in Cedar Rapids, Davenport, Des Moines, and Iowa City; and a branch office in Council Bluffs . Iowa Legal Aid has the largest number of law students working to provide free legal services to low-income people in the state.
Iowa Legal Aid sees its purpose as providing equal access to justice and eliminating poverty. Legal Aid provides a broad range of services on housing issues including but not limited to: eviction defense; foreclosure prevention assistance; claims for utility assistance; homelessness prevention; public housing; tenant rights; and rental housing issues.
Heading 3: Who Qualifies for Iowa Legal Aid Housing Assistance?
When it comes to legal aid for housing-related issues, Iowa Legal Aid’s eligibility guidelines state that "In applying the poverty standard for eligibility for legal services, your household income and/or net assets must fall below the Federal Income Poverty Guidelines for Iowa."
For more information on the federal income poverty guidelines for Iowa, go to the Health and Human Services Department of the United States government. Iowa Legal Aid uses this information to determine eligibility.
Legal Aid’s website goes on to specify that a household that earns enough money to satisfy these guidelines "you are presumptively ineligible for Iowa Legal Aid services. However, we still will ask you certain questions and give you referrals and community resources. We will never turn anyone away who asks for our advice or information."
Iowa Legal Aid uses the following additional criteria:
However, Iowa Legal Aid also notes that except for the cases referenced at the top (ensuring equal access to justice in the courts, preventing imminent loss of housing, and preserving income) "Income eligibility is a consideration in all cases. In some cases where we may not usually provide legal assistance, we may provide limited legal assistance (advice or brief services) if there is a legal issue involved that falls within our eligibility criteria."
This only begins to scratch the surface when it comes to the directly related legal issues with housing in Iowa. But this gives you a good foundation for understanding the basics of Iowa Legal Aid for housing assistance.
Heading 4: Housing Services Provided by Iowa Legal Aid
Iowa Legal Aid provides services in many different areas, including housing. In the area of housing, Iowa Legal Aid helps with landlord-tenant issues, foreclosure prevention, along with some other areas.
From the Iowa Legal Aid website: The section prioritizes legal assistance in housing matters for persons with low-income and limited assets. The majority of renter and homeowner homeowners who come to Iowa Legal Aid have housing problems that arise out of a civil law issue. Many are concerned about an eviction or foreclosure. They need help before being evicted or foreclosed. Others have been served with eviction papers, and are looking for ways to prevent an eviction. We provide assistance in the following housing areas: renters’ rights and responsibilities; subsidies; fair housing; service animals; repair problems; utility shut-off; evictions; relief from eviction judgments; cash help for renters; housing and EUOs; homeowner rights; predatory lending; mortgage foreclosures; lien issues; property tax foreclosure; tax sales; homesteads; mobile homes; trusts; inheritances; creditors; contracts; loans; bankruptcy; abuse and neglect; guardianships; conservatorships; HIPAA; advance directives; and nursing homes.
Heading 5: How to Request Iowa Legal Aid for Housing Assistance
If you are seeking housing assistance, the application process for receiving such help from Iowa Legal Aid is as follows: You will first need to call the Iowa Legal Services Hotline at 800-532-1275 to schedule an interview. Iowa Legal aid will conduct an eligibility interview over the telephone to determine if you are eligible for its services. If you do not get selected for help, you will be referred to a program that may be able to assist you. If you do get selected for help, then Iowa Legal Aid will send you a letter that will ask you to review an enclosed Iowa Legal Aid ‘Application for Legal Assistance.’ You will be asked to either complete this application yourself or have a client support person complete it for you. Then it must be sent back to the office listed in the letter. Any failure to return the application will result in forfeiture of your spot on the waitlist. If you have a household of four or less, then you will soon be called and asked a few questions about your case. If you have a household of five of more, someone in your household will need to come to the office for an in-person interview, where you will be asked questions about your case. Then Iowa Legal Aid will notify you of the outcome. If you are selected, then an attorney may help you with your legal issue. If you are not selected, you will not receive help from Iowa Legal Aid, other than the information in the denial letter.
Heading 6: Iowa Legal Aid and Housing: Success Stories
Iowa Legal Aid has had a significant impact on the housing landscape for low-income Iowans. A recent report released by Iowa Legal Aid shows that they provided legal advice, counsel, or brief service to 9,150 individuals facing housing issues in 2014 alone. Of these 9,150 individuals, 5,785 were against eviction, 2,196 needed help with unauthorized lockouts, and another 911 were homeless. Iowa Legal Aid has also successfully assisted individuals with other housing issues such as ensuring their right to a safe and secure living environment. In one case , Iowa Legal Aid attorneys successfully forced an apartment complex to correct noted fire hazards and get the complex up to code. The legal team was able to prevent the landlord from evicting clients while the building was unsafe. Housing is a vital need for everyone, and Iowa Legal Aid ensures that no one is denied the right to housing through protections like these.
Heading 7: Iowa Legal Aid Housing: Frequently Asked Questions
What are the costs of the housing services?
All legal aid services are free of charge; however you must qualify under financial and legal circumstances to receive a service. To see if you qualify please visit the eligibility page.
What are the various types of housing assistance provided by Legal Aid?
Legal Aid helps individuals and families with a wide variety of housing cases including: landlord/tenant issues, Iowa Code Chapter 91A Wages issues, wrongful evictions, foreclosures, foreclosure defenses, housing discrimination, and more.
How quickly can you get housing assistance through Iowa Legal Aid?
Iowa Legal Aid tries to solve as many problems as quickly as possible, and there is no 7-10 day maximum time frame to get help. Through various intake offices in Iowa, we are able to reach as many people as possible and provide needed assistance.
Heading 8: Other Resources for Housing Assistance in Iowa
There are a number of other organizations and resources in Iowa that provide assistance for housing-related issues. Local nonprofits may have funds to assist low-income individuals with repairs, renovations, or energy efficiency improvements to their homes. Some communities in Iowa also provide rental assistance for lower income Iowans either through housing authorities or directly for physical improvements.
Iowa City Housing Trust Fund
Works with Iowa City individuals to assist with loans to cover physical improvements to homes, rent, and eviction prevention.
Iowa Legal Aid
The website provides information about all of the legal services provided by Iowa Legal Aid throughout Iowa. For housing issues, legal aid provides assistance with landlord-tenant matters including evictions, constructive eviction, retaliatory actions by landlords, housing code violations , rent and other disputes.
Revitalize Iowa Community Services (RICC) provides assistance to eligible low-income Iowa individuals with home repairs, renovations, and improvements such as insulation and furnace replacement. Participation in RICC programs is based upon the availability of funding.
Iowa Housing Finance Authority (IHFA)
Provides education about Iowa rental assistance and home buying assistance programs. The website also has information about the Iowa Family Home Ownership Program which is designed for families with lower incomes and which provides loans to assist with purchasing a home.
Iowa Department of Human Rights
The Department of Human Rights’ Housing Assistance Program makes available federal housing assistance for lower-income individuals. The department also advocates on behalf of residents against poor housing conditions.